LYNNFIELD — The Finance Committee kicked off the budget process Wednesday evening with a summit held between each department head, giving them an opportunity to analyze what’s been achieved in the previous year and to look forward to the 2026 fiscal year beginning next July.
Town Administrator Rob Dolan started off the meeting by reflecting on the past year and all the projects that have been funded, including spending all American Rescue Plan Act money.
In addition, he noted two large-scale projects, the 10-year roadway investment and the library renovation, that passed through town meeting and will soon be on the ballot.
“We have a very strong free cash position going into 2025, we have a very healthy capital budget number going into the budget, and we have very strong reserves,” Dolan reported. “Our FY25 budget remains very strong and balanced.”
However, two issues were highlighted during the meeting. One regards Department of Public Works initiatives that will require transfers due to inflation, and another involves overtime pay for law enforcement officers, a problem Police Chief Nick Secatore went further into.
Dolan stressed throughout the night that departments must spend money not on any wants, but solely on what is needed, an especially important axiom to remember as new growth and state aid in the coming year will be stagnant.
“Everyone will get basically not what they want, but what they need,” Dolan said. “However, if this community wants to invest more in collective bargaining contracts and benefits that we’ve done in the past … then we do not have the money to make those additional investments.”
Fortunately for the town, all department heads reported on stable budgets that were maintaining their status as expected. Many discussed endowments that their departments have gotten over the past year, like a $25,000 grant that the Lynnfield Historical Commission received to preserve headstones.
DPW Director John Scenna took time to talk about how his team has worked with the other departments to figure out what projects they have planned and how they can figure into a comprehensive capital plan for the town.
“At this point in time, our committee has met with every department head… we can start to put a financial plan around some of these projects,” Scenna said. “We view ourselves as a support group to so many people on this table, but more importantly, to the community in general.”
Several department heads pointed to areas of crucial capital need. Director of the Lynnfield Senior Center requested investment for new carpeting, Director of Golf Enterprises Donnie Lyons asked for new spray rigs, and Superintendent Thomas Geary stressed the need for technological upgrades in the schools.
“We identified technology as an area where we really have to work, especially in terms of our infrastructure,” said Geary. “Our infrastructure is aging, in some areas beyond aging.”
Finance Committee Chair Thomas Kayola closed the summits with a final reminder on how important it is to the community that they are keeping the budget in control.
“Thank you for keeping an eye on expenses and making sure that when we’re asking the taxpayers for increases coming out of their wallet, that they are needs and not wants, and that we’re using those tax dollars as efficiently as possible” said Kayola.
