3 days Ago By By Mark Rondeau, Bennington Banner
NORTH BENNINGTON — The North Bennington Trustees recently voted to approve a $841,987 municipal budget for fiscal year 2025-2026 to be presented in the annual report for vote next March. “If this budget were to be approved, and no negative fund balances, the increases to the taxes would be 6.39 percent, which is less than the year before and it’s actually the lowest in three years, I believe,” said Village Treasurer Doug Buggee.
“There’s nothing we foresee at this point in time that would create a major fund balance, either positive or negative.” “So it’s a very responsible, very reasonable budget,” he added. The Trustees voted 5-0 to adopt the budget on Dec.
10, a week after having a public budget workshop meeting. In the General Government section of the budget, total spending is $126,850, up from $102,150. Increases include a $6,000 increase for the operation of the Village Office and a $1,300 per year stipend increase each for the village clerk, treasurer, bookkeeper, and secretary.
The budget also includes a $2,000 increase for the board chair. All of these increases were discussed at the Trustees’ budget meeting on Dec. 3.
There’s a new line item for an emergency planning reserve. “In the General Government, really the only item to talk about is the emergency planning reserve. If you remember, the request was at $15,000.
When I started to work through things, and talking through things and discussions that were made at the meeting, it looks like $7,500 is the better start." Starting it at $15.000 would make it the town's third-largest reserve fund right off the bat, he said.
"There's still a number of steps, like we were talking about,” he said. “So, it is very important to start it. Our starting point in this budget would be $7,500 and then we can kind of figure it out going forward from there.
” In the Fire Department section of the budget, the increase is from $107,430 to $124,430, with $4,000 more in the budget for fire truck maintenance and $7,000 more for firehouse expenses. The Highway Department Budget increases from $388,994 to $402,457. The budget for contributions to other organizations increases $5,500 to $61,500.
“There was a handful of increases that were discussed, and everybody seemed amenable to them,” Buggee said. The increases are Park McCullough House are from $1,500 to $5,000; McCullough Free Library from $30,500 to $31,500; the Sage City Symphony from $500 to $1,000; and the town Tree Committee from $1,500 to $2,000. In other business, Emily Maikoo, a senior at Mount Anthony Union High School, attended by Zoom to explore holding a festival on Main Street in honor of Black History Month on Sunday, Feb.
23, from about 10 a.m. to 2 p.
m. She was looking to use the part of Main Street (Route 67A) that loops off around the town fountain after Prospect Street, when traveling north. Maikoo said she was approaching the Trustees “on behalf of the , which is Vermont-based non-profit made up from students from throughout the state focused on working toward anti-racism throughout Vermont and its institutions.
” “We’ve been in operation for around five years and we’ve worked with a lot of schools like the Village School and Mount Anthony,” she said. The winter festival would highlight Black owned businesses and offer music and children’s activities. Members of the Trustees held off taking a vote on the exploratory proposal, but were supportive and offered several suggestions on how to move forward, including contacting local businesses at the site.
“I commend you and your co-students for thinking community-wide,” said Trustees Chair Mary Rogers. “I think we are unanimously in support in seeing how we can help you make this work.”.
