Members of the Financial and Advisory Committees (FINCOM) of Hamilton and Wenham met to hear budget presentations from the shared departments: Recreation, Library, ECO, and Senior Van Program.

Each committee will review the reports and vote separately on acceptable budgets. Each towns Finance Director will also reconcile payments to support the shared programs.

Recreation

Deborah Nippes-Mena, Finance Director for Hamilton, presented the past and proposed budgets for the Recreation Department.

Currently, the department is seeking a new director to replace Melissa Roy, who left in January. The Recreation Department has two benefits-eligible employees, the full-time director and the part-time assistant. The remaining employees are programmatic instructors paid by stipend from the departments revolving fund.

The recreation evolving fund is funded by program revenues to pay for program implementation. Nippes-Mena discussed a few line items on the budget. The fiscal year 11 actual budget costs show an increase in water payments, indicating a possible leak in the building. The department printing costs are down as administrators have been using email rather than direct mail.

Costs for the Patton Park Summer Program are higher in anticipation of a return of the 100-person increase in enrollment in 2010. The cost for the pool is up in response to increased hours open to the public, which were well-received last summer. Hamilton Town Manager Michael Lombardo commented that the pool needs work, possibly a complete replacement. However, CPA funds were not approved for this kind of project last year.

Both FINCOMs asked for further information on the revolving fund and department revenue. Although the fund occasionally has a positive balance at the end of the season, Nippes-Mena explained that the fund is restricted in nature, so the money is not available for any use other than recreation. The proposed budget covers everything else that is not programmatically related.

Library

Jan Dempsey, Director of the Hamilton-Wenham Public Library, presented the librarys current and proposed budgets. Her main concern was that both Hamilton and Wenham maintain the state-mandated appropriations for library materials; otherwise, the state can close the library. She presented a level-funded budget proposal and also identified categories where she made changes in the allocations.

Since salaries for library personnel are mostly below state average, Dempsey shifted her budget around to allow a three percent increase for staff other than the director and the technical service librarian.

Dempsey has elected to use a cleaning service instead of a custodian; costs for cleaning and maintenance were moved out of support staff to a grounds and maintenance category. She made cuts to office supplies, conference and travel expenses, utilities, and programming to cover higher allocations to salaries. Dempsey said she could make programmatic cuts because of the Friends of the Library, which donates about $10,000 for programming needs annually, including all museum passes and funds for the aquarium in the Childrens Room. The aquarium has a trust fund that no longer sustains its costs.

Dempsey identified the areas of volatility in her budget: the building itself, the grounds, and the computers. In regard to the building issues, she is happy to have joint Facilities Technician Mark Gates and the two towns DPW departments to respond, even while parts of the building are still under warranty and funds still left in the building account. The DPWs are assisting with assessment of the cracked asphalt in the parking lot.

The library will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year, and Dempsey is planning events already.

Finally, Dempsey explained that the Librarys computers have a schedule for maintenance and replacement; however, this would be a capital expense separate from the submitted budget. Last years computer upgrades were handled with state grant funds.

ECO

Ann Marie Cullen, Directory of the Hamilton-Wenham Emergency Center, presented the ECO budget. The facility has five benefits-eligible full-time staff and one part-time person to cover shift absences. Some staff receives additional stipends for advanced training, such as emergency medical technician (EMT). She applies for state money for equipment upgrades and training.

Because of the combined population of Hamilton and Wenham serviced by the regional ECO, she received approximately $148,000 last year in grant money. This amount will be drastically reduced when Wenham leaves the ECO for the regional dispatch program in Middleton, she said. Her proposed budget is level-funded; however, she may need to apply any fiscal year 2012 grant money to operating costs to maintain the ECO as state of the art.

Senior Van

Wenham Town Administrator Jeffrey Chelgren reported on the Senior Van program, another level-funded proposed budget. One person serves as the program supervisor, doing the accounting and tracking numbers, and also the dispatcher, making the reservations for van trips. Those roles have become part of the job of the new shared COA Director, Susan Carp. Town allocation to fund the van is by usage, which is currently about 50-50. Additionally, riders donate small sums, which go into a gift fund for the program.

Each FINCOM will meet separately to discuss and vote on the presented budgets. They will also maintain lists of capital needs in conjunction with the Capital Management Committee.

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