CLARKSBURG, Mass. — Voters this week will decide a number of spending items, including a town budget of $4,818,020 and whether to buy a backhoe for the Highway Department and fix the town field pavilion.

 

The annual town meeting will be held Wednesday, May 26, at 6:30 p.m. outside at the Community Center.

 

The annual town election will also be held at the Community Center on Tuesday, May 25, from noon to 7 p.m. All candidates on the ballot are running unopposed.

 

The proposed fiscal 2022 total budget is up 5.53 percent, or $252,310, over this year. The main drivers are the implementation of a preschool program, cost of living and contracted wage increases, and insurance.

 

The town budget is $1,760,373, up $73,476 or 4.36 percent over this year. The final tally was amended at the Select Board meeting two weeks ago to include a 15-hour custodian position at $14.20 an hour. 

 

Board members had initially broached a five-hour a week custodian position to maintain town buildings but didn't think it would garner interest. After some discussion at the last meeting, they voted to make it a 15-hour position and added $11,800 to the budget.

 

Chairman Ronald Boucher thought the position could pay for itself by keeping the buildings in good order and helping with the Department of Public Works at times.

 

The proposed spending plan also has an increase of town clerk hours from eight to 16 hours at $19.27 an hour in anticipation of final approval at the town election of making it an appointed position. All town employees are also getting a 2.5 percent cost of living increase.

 

Select Board members had initially broached a five-hour a week custodian position to maintain town buildings but didn't think it would garner interest. After some discussion at the last meeting, they voted to make it a 15-hour position and added $11,800 to the budget.

 

Chairman Ronald Boucher thought the position could pay for itself by keeping the buildings in good order and helping with the Department of Public Works at times.

 

The school budget is $3,057,647, up $178,834 or 6.21 percent. This includes the McCann Technical School assessment of $347,942, which is down $23,785 from this year.

 

Clarksburg School is asking for $2,709,705, up $202,619 or 8.08 percent over this year. About half of that increase is to develop a prekindergarten program that the town's been exploring for nearly a decade. A proposed merger with Stamford School had been seen a solution but that union has fallen through.

 

The balance of the increase is due to fixed costs, contracted wage increases and an $87,000 in hike in high school tuition.

 

The largest offset is a proposal to use $400,000 in school choice. This will leave $190,000 in the account with another $277,000 expected to replenish it next year. The School Committee previously had voted to keep $300,000 in the account for emergencies approved dipping below that balance.

 

The warrant has three capital spending items for approval: a backhoe for $110,000, a police cruiser for $52,000 and replacement or renovation of the pavilion.

 

Both equipment purchases would replace aged vehicles — the current backhoe is 37 years old and the Police Department's 10-year-old Tahoe has 87,000 miles and would replace the old Impala as a backup vehicle.

 

The cost of replacing the pavilion is estimated at up to $65,000 as well as improvements to the field. The structure needs a new roof and concrete pad has buckled and heaved. It is currently taped off as being a hazard.

 

All three capital purchases would come out of the town's free cash. The two final free cash articles would put $60,000 to bring down the tax rate and $50,000 into the stabilization fund.

 

In the town election, Select Board member Ronald Boucher, Board of Health member Norman Rolnick, School Committee member Cynthia Brule, Library Trustee Debra Bua and Planning Board member Erin Scott are all running for re-election unopposed. 

 

Boucher is also running for moderator, to which he was appointed last year, and new comer Jeffrey Williams is running for tree warden.

 

There is no candidate for War Memorial trustee and local contractor David Thayer is running a write-in campaign for the second five-year Planning Board seat.