Government

Board of Selectmen Approves $176.8 Million Budget; Board of Finance Up Next

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The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday approved a spending plan of about $176.8 million for next fiscal year. The figure represents a 6.09% over the current budget. First Selectman Dionna Carlson said in a press release that the fiscal year 2025 budget, which now moves to the Board of Finance for the appointed body’s review, “reflects a commitment to hold the line on spending while maintaining services to town residents and continually striving for  improvements and efficiencies.”

“Continued pressure from inflation, increased expenses for information technology, early voting election expenses, additional School Resource Officers, additional staffing in the school district along with a large increase in the school health insurance reserve are the primary drivers of the proposed budget increase,” she said in a statement. “This is a challenging budget year, and as we gain more insight into the current year expenses during the coming  months, I remain optimistic that we will find additional opportunities to reduce the FY 2024‐ 2025 budget before it becomes final in April.”

As it stands, the budget includes a Board of Education spending plan of $109.8 million and town department operations expenses of $33.8 million, as well as debt service of $18.45 million and tax-supported capital projects of $1.92 million, according to the release. During Tuesday’s meeting, the selectmen made several reductions to proposed departmental budgets, including to the Departments of Emergency Management and Human Services.

Amy Murphy Carroll

FY25 Budget: Carlson Flags Town Stipends for Nonprofits

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The town should allow grant-making agencies that raise private dollars to fund nonprofit organizations that serve residents, rather than putting that cost on local taxpayers, New Canaan’s highest elected official said last week. Other Fairfield County towns do not make the smaller grants that New Canaan has given to agencies such as the Child Guidance Center and, more recently, Family Centers, according to First Selectman Dionna Carlson. New Canaan needs to “look at where are we getting our bang for buck as a municipality, and what are we using that we need to fund,” Carlson said during a Jan. 23 Board of Selectmen meeting, held at Town Hall and via videoconference. 

Though the community decided to enter into a partnership with the New Canaan Community Foundation and Silver Hill Hospital to fund the successful Urgent Assessment Program, “I’m not quite sure what we are doing with all of these small donations to these other agencies,” she added. “My only argument is that if it truly is a really beneficial nonprofit that many people value, they will write checks for it,” Carlson said.

FY 2025 budget

Chief: Police Department Taking ‘Hard Look’ at OT with Numbers Trending High

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New Canaan’s police chief said last month that the department is looking hard at its overtime use after trending high in some areas fiscal-year-to-date. Chief John DiFederico reported during the most recent Police Commission meeting that “we’re trending a little high” with respect to overtime lines. According to data obtained by NewCanaanite.com through a public records request, the Police Department had spent about $185,000 of the $265,000 total (about 70%) allocated for regular overtime through this fiscal year, which ends June 30. It wasn’t clear from the data whether it represented totals through November or through the date of the meeting (Dec. 20).

Government

‘Pickleball Has Taken Over’: Paddle Tennis Numbers Down

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Though platform or “paddle” tennis, like other outdoor activities, saw a major uptick during the pandemic, the number of people seeking permits is down, parks officials say. One reason appears to be that an increasing number of people are choosing a different outdoor racket sport, according to Parks and Recreation Director John Howe: pickleball. “Unfortunately, this year and last year, our [paddle] permit sales are way down,” Howe told members of the Parks & Recreation Commission during their regular meeting, held Wednesday night at Lapham Community Center and via videoconference. “We’re not seeing the same usage that we had in the past,” Howe said. “We think a lot of it is, while the [paddle] numbers are down, pickleball has taken over.