WETHERSFIELD - Town residents sounded off on two local budget proposals Monday night �" in a Wethersfield High School (WHS) auditorium-hosted two-hour public hearing that brought those opposing tax increases, as well as school and library funding advocates, to the podium.

       Currently before the Council is a $115,661,007 budget proposed by Interim Town Manager Bonnie Therrien �" the proposal would hike appropriations by 3.67%, or, $1.7 million.

       Therrien has described it as a strictly “maintenance” budget �" one that slashed another $1.7 million from department requests for next year, to brace for contractually-fixed salary and benefit hikes driving the proposed increase.

       “I know it’s a lot of cuts that aren’t popular,” Therrien said. “Even though I took all that out, we’re still at an increase. So what are the solutions? We can grow the Grand List through redevelopment, since we’re built out. We can cut back on town services, but nobody wants to hear that. If you want to keep all those services, we’re gonna have to increase taxes.”

       The tax base grew by $2.4 million this past year, due to motor vehicle property values �" helping to further mitigate the impact of rising costs.

       As for existing services, Therrien and her team walked back a previous proposal to close Willard Pool �" after a show of widespread opposition �" but still on the table is a $100,000 cut to the Wethersfield Public Library’s budget proposal.

       “I was very disappointed to see that,” Library Board Chair Martha Conneely said during her testimony. “Our proposal was a result of our entire staff trying to sustain services while putting a responsible budget forward.”

       Those services include an early literacy program, as well as digital skill-building tools for job seekers �" an increasingly vital resource in these challenging economic times, she said.

       In a budget that’s 86% personnel costs, $100,000 means a reduction in book purchases, Conneely said.

       “If this cut stands, it will significantly reduce our online resources,” she said. “We will have to cut staff hours and close on Sundays.”

       And while Therrien proposed no cuts to the Board of Education’s (BOE) budget �" a proposed 4.98% increase �" members of the public anticipate hard scrutiny on what Superintendent of Schools Michael Emmett has acknowledged is the steepest requested hike of his decade-long Wethersfield tenure.

       But that, too, is being driven by personnel costs �" a combination of contractual obligations and the retention of special education support staff brought in last year with tuition savings.

       The positions �" which were added to expand an inhouse special education program established for the purpose of saving the district on outplacement costs �" now need to be built into the BOE’s yearly operating budget, Emmett said.

       Insurance, meanwhile, is up 15% - making up 65% of the proposed budget increase.

       “We brought the most responsible budget we could, without affecting existing services,” Emmett said.

       Now it rests with the Council, which has until early May to make any adjustments.

       Longtime resident Bob Woodward, a senior on a fixed income, hopes any changes result in another Mill rate decrease �" as it stands, the proposed budget would hike the tax rate 0.31 mills.

       “Last year’s decrease helped, but this is a very distressing, disturbing, and disheartening budget,” Woodward said. “Food is going up. Gasoline is going up. Our insurance is up. What you do is going to tell me who’s welcome in this town �" only people with a certain income? What you do will speak volumes.”

       Town resident Claudio Borea expressed similar concerns, describing a continued cycle of yearly budget increases as unsustainable.

       “The situation, to me, is dire,” he said. “I support education and understand that it’s expensive, but there comes a point where you have to put that with what a community can afford.”

       But the community can’t afford the kind of classroom staff shortages the district saw at the height of COVID’s Omicron surge, parents said �" due to substitute teacher recruitment woes in late fall, some buildings saw students left to study hall periods in lieu of instructional time, according to Emmett.

       Since then, the district hiked substitute pay rates, held a job fair, and enlisted two floating building subs �" per school �" to replenish staff. The building subs report to work every day, Emmett said.

       “If I have a teacher who says they’re not feeling well, there’s no way I’m going to get a substitute in ten minutes, but if I have a building sub, I can pull them from wherever they are,” he said.

       The decline in COVID numbers, as well as relaxed quarantine protocols, have also helped, Emmett said �" but now parents such as Shannan Roach fear the impact of a potential school budget cut.

       “My son was sitting in this auditorium, and I don’t know how that’s helping him,” Shannan Roach told the Council. “I don’t know how further taking away our students’ resources helps our community.”

       Good schools are also an economic proposition, others added.

       “We all pay taxes, and I don’t envy where you’re at,” town resident and former State Rep Russ Morin told the Council. “But please take a different approach. The way to do this is to not cut to the point where we’re not competitive anymore.”

       The Council held the line on taxes the past two years �" without cutting services �" with the help of reserves, but Therrien is recommending against a dip into the fund balance this year.

       There’s still the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money �" Therrien is recommending that $1.2 million go toward one-time capital improvement expenditures.

       Councilors from both parties have all but written off using the grants to cover operating costs.

       The federal government only recommends that you do it for one-time expenses �" building repairs. Vehicle purchases,” Therrien said. “Because otherwise, when the money runs out, you’ll be on the hook for that in later years.”

       Local leaders say they’d like to direct the ARPA money toward economic development �" through streetscape, façade, and pedestrian safety improvements that make parts of town more attractive to businesses.

       And with the hearing drawing more than one comparison to the success of South Windsor, councilors hope it winds up being the long-term difference-maker.

       “South Windsor has a Costco. An Aldi’s,” Wethersfield resident Suzzanne Martin said. “Part of that is people knowing South Windsor has an excellent school system, and Costco is paying for a lot of that school budget. We have to spend money to make money, and we need to find a way to get our empty buildings filled.”