ROCKLAND, Maine — The City Council gave its preliminary approval Wednesday night to a 2015-2016 budget that will result in no tax increase from city spending but cuts several positions including ones that will end the city-run Recreation Department.
The council will hold a public hearing and final adoption of the budget on Wednesday, June 24. The meeting begins at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.
Councilor Valli Geiger said the cuts made by the council were responsible in the face of a possible dramatic tax hike. She said people already were struggling to pay their taxes before this year.
Councilor Larry Pritchett said this will be the second time in three years that the council will adopt a budget that will result in no tax increase from the municipal side.
Councilors said they hoped the school district would do its part to lower the tax burden.
With the city cuts, the projected tax rate will rise to $21.68, up $1.52. The increase is only about half what was projected when the municipal budget first was submitted in April and before the school district trimmed more than $290,000 from its budget.
A person owning a $150,000 home in Rockland will pay $228 more in taxes for the upcoming year if the budget is adopted as proposed and the Regional School Unit 13 budget is approved at the polls on Tuesday.
The reductions, however, did not come without pain.
The biggest cut came in the recreation budget. The council agreed to cut $221,000 from the department, which will end the city-run recreation program. The council plans to enter into a contract with the Penobscot Bay YMCA to have it run the program out of the recreation building.
This will result in the elimination of the recreation director, assistant recreation director and three part-time positions at the center.
The budget will not fill a vacant police patrol officer position and also will not fill, for a second straight year, the fire chief position. Assistant Chief Adam Miceli is filling in on an extended interim basis.
The budget also cuts $30,000 from the harbor and waterfront budget. Councilor William Clayton said those cuts could be avoided if the department can come up with additional revenues.
Clayton and Harbor Master Ed Glaser clashed at a meeting last week on the budget with the harbor master warning about the impact of higher fees.
“I’d rather have a welcome mat in the harbor than a toll booth,” Glaser said last week.
Clayton said he was troubled that more revenues were not included in the budget.
“I don’t see us having an exodus of people because we increase rates,” Clayton said.
The budget also will result in the elimination of Sunday hours at the library.
The council did not allow any public comment at the beginning of the Wednesday night session.