SWAMPSCOTT — The Swampscott Town Meeting members will vote on 12 articles Monday night at this year’s Annual Town Meeting.
However, the Town Meeting members will not be attending in person, but will rather tune in remotely for a virtual Town Meeting due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
To watch the meeting live at 6 p.m. online visit tv.swampscottma.gov, or tune in on television, channel 22 for Comcast, channel 41 for Verizon.
The first six articles deal with the town’s finances. Article 1 asks residents to appropriate $69,368,417 for the town’s budget for the 2021 fiscal year, which begins July 1 — this is compared to $68,964,549 approved at the last Town Meeting.
The largest portion of the recommended (by the town administrator and Finance Committee) budget goes toward the schools, at $29,154,254. This number is lower than last year, which had a budget funding the schools at $30,124,608. According to Town Administrator Sean Fitzegerald, the recommended cuts are due to predicted revenue shortfalls due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fitzgerald said the Mass Taxpayers Foundation has predicted the state will raise $6 billion less than it anticipated before the COVID-19 pandemic, and that loss will trickle down to Swampscott. The closing of restaurants, entrepreneurs not applying for business permits, and general uncertainty regarding revenues have led to the recommended cut.
Articles 2 through 6 recommend transferring money from the town’s “Free Cash” and water and sewer “Retained Earnings,” including $200,000 from Free Cash, $140,000 from the Sewer Enterprise Fund Retained Earnings, and $88,000 from the Water Enterprise Fund Retained Earnings, to be spent on the schools and to mitigate increases in water and sewer rates.
Articles 7, 8, and 9 deal with the town’s capital expenses. Article 7 asks the town to accept $300,000 in Chapter 90 funds for roadway improvements, Article 8 asks to appropriate $1.1 million to replace the town’s water mains by borrowing money, and Article 9 asks for just over $7 million to be appropriated and borrowed for other capital projects, including upgrading school technology, water and sewer infrastructure, police cruisers, and the middle school fire alarm system.
The remaining articles amend the town’s public walkway bylaw to allow only the Select Board or its designee to allow a walkway to be obstructed (Article 10), allow restaurants recovering from COVID-19 pandemic loss of business to have outdoor seating (Article 11), and remove the town’s Police Chief and Fire Chief from Civil Service (Article 12).
The Swampscott Fire Department union has voiced its opposition to the Civil Service change, while Police Chief Ron Madigan and Fire Chief Graham Archer have endorsed removing the positions from Civil Service.
A copy of this year’s Town Meeting warrant can be found on the tv.swampscottma.gov website. .
