The Gorham Town Council held a special meeting to approve the school and municipal budgets on Tuesday, May 12. Chairperson Suzanne Phillips called the meeting to order and all members were present.
During the public hearing on the school budget, five members of the public spoke. Four, including three School Committee members speaking as citizens and not representing the committee, spoke in favor of the budget and the need to fund the schools. One speaker expressed concern with the increase particularly for senior citizens who are financially struggling at this time.
Several members of the council expressed support for the budget but questioned Superintendent Heather Perry and School Committee Chair Nicole Yeo-Fisher on specific items and lines in the budget. Council Member Hamblen also questioned school population trends and how the same number of students has led to such a large increase in the past seven years. Council Member Kuech, who has attended many of the school budget meetings, commented on the cuts that have already been made by administrators and the School Committee.
The council voted (7-0) to remove $50,000 from the budget at the request of the School Committee. The council then voted to approve the school budget (5-2, Phillips, Dearborn). This will result in an increase of 83 cents on the mill rate.
During the public hearing on the municipal budget, four members of the public spoke. Three objected to the elimination of the membership for the Greater Portland Council of Governments (GPCOG) and the fourth spoke about the need for a communications person in the budget to assist local businesses.
The municipal budget was presented. The council had a long discussion about the impacts of the change in trash collection and the implications on the budget. The town has committed to a mechanical collection model, which was going to start in the spring of 2027. However, because the totes have already been purchased and because of the ability of the company to begin in the fall, that decision will result in the loss of income for the town of approximately $315,000. The council voted (5-2, Phillips, Kuech) to begin the mechanical collection of trash in the fall.
The council voted (7-0) to add into the budget the membership of the town in GPCOG.
After failing to eliminate the proposed position of Communications Coordinator in the budget (2-5, Hamblen, Simms), they voted (6-1, Hamblen) to delay the position until January, thus saving one half of the salary (reduction $66,042). They voted (6-1, Kuech) to eliminate the proposed public works foreman position (reduction $75,263). They voted (7-0) to authorize the town manager to use TIF funds to pay a portion of the communications coordination position and the GPCOG membership.
After recalculating these changes to the municipal budget, the council approved a town budget of $26,082,135 and Cumberland County property tax of $1,897,592 (4-3, Phillips, Hamblen, Dearborn).
For a complete account of the meeting, a copy of the minutes and a recorded video of the meeting may be found on the Gorham Town Council website.