An Enlightening One-On-One At The Town Council/BOE Hour

'Tis the season for crafting an annual budget and all the fanfare that goes along with it. For that reason, it was somewhat surprising that only one resident turned out at the monthly Town Council/Board Of Education hour at the on March 12.

The monthly Town Council/BOE hour is an opportunity for residents to ask questions and make comments on any item of interest. So despite the singular turnout, the forum this past Saturday resulted in a unique opportunity for one resident, Ken Kittredge, to have an in-depth one-on-one conversation with Town Council member Jack Flynn about hot-button budget issues.

For Kittredge, a Friends of Tolland Schools member, he sees the problem with the town's budgetary process is that by the time residents really get to see the budget, it has already been pared down considerably on both the Town and Board of Education side.  Kittredge said he believed it would best serve the town if the public received a presentation that told them what the town realistically needs to operate rather than what they hope will pass muster at referendum.

"You need to try to strike a balance between the 'yes' and 'no' votes," said Kittredge.

Flynn agreed that budget increases between zero and 2 percent are unsustainable for the long term.

"You might get away with that for a year or two, but you can't go years putting out budgets that are below the rate of inflation," he said.

Flynn said he does feel there is a definite value in putting forward budgets that truly reflect the town's needs.  "The referendum process can be messy, and sometimes budgets will fail," he said. "Others feel you shouldn't put out budgets you know will fail. It's a tricky process."

Kittredge said he feels an unfortunate part of that process is that too many people feel the first referendum is to cut the fat out. Most do not realize that the budget has been pared down many times over before it even reaches referendum.

Both Flynn and Kittredge agreed that residents need to have a good perception of what it takes to provide quality town services and education.

For example, Kittredge noted that while people may be aware that the cost of snow plowing and removal was a strain on the budget this winter, many might be less aware that the affects of the winter snowfall carry through into the next season as significant road repairs need to be carried out. He reminded Flynn that the heavy snow also resulted in the collapse of The Pavilion at Crandall Park, of which the repair or replacement will also add to town costs.

Both agreed that perception also plays a role in the pay-to-play policy with sports at Tolland Middle School and Tolland High.  Kittredge said parents of school-aged student athletes who voted against including sports in the BOE budget wind up paying more in pay-to-play fees. 

"The year we cut [junior varsity] sports, we had senior residents asking why if they cut them were the sports still being played," said Kittredge. "They said they can't trust [Superintendent of Schools] Bill Guzman.

"They don't realize the sports were still there because of fundraising and parent participation with the costs," he said.

Kittredge added that he is aware there are some students who are not playing sports because their families cannot afford the pay-to-play costs.

"A big piece to me, personally, is that the way schools are perceived impacts the price of housing," said Flynn. "If sports are cut, there will be some people who would not want to consider living here," he said.

"[Putting forward a fair budget] is always difficult because you have sympathy for those who trully can't afford tax increases," said Flynn. "On the other hand, you can't let that dictate the whole budget."

Flynn said the town is fortunate to have a number of programs that help lower income residents with the rising cost of living. He recommended that residents struggling with costs contact Beverly Bellody in the Human Services Department to see what might be available to them.

"Some people don't realize the income restrictions might not be as stringent as they think," said Flynn.

One such program that Flynn and Kittredge discussed was Ordinance 60, an income-based program for seniors and disabled homeowners that allows the town to freeze any tax increases they might receive and to defer those added costs until they later sell their homes.

"It's a rolling plan where homes eventually get sold, taxes are then recouped, and meanwhile new people are coming onto the program," said Flynn.

"It works because many seniors have equity in their homes so we eventually do recoup the money," he said, adding that there is a cap on funding where it cannot exceed a certain percentage of the entire town budget.

Flynn said he senses many residents don't have a good understanding of how their tax dollars are spent and what they are getting in return. He said it would be good to communicate to people what their taxes go for--as there are so many basic and necessary services that aren't even considered, such as recordkeeping to prove title to one's property.

"[Town Manager] Steve Werbner is very good at tying levels of service to cost," said Kittredge.  "There just needs to be a little better job of selling the budget, and telling people 'Here's what we need.'"