Norton voters support more money for government departments | Local News

The meeting, which lasted over two hours, saw a strong turnout of 205 voters in the high school auditorium.

The school division received $321,291 to bring back some positions, including elementary school math and reading specialists, middle school art and music specialists and core academic coordinators.

Funds will also be used to hire permanent substitute teachers – one for each school.

“Right now we’re having a very difficult time finding replacements,” said Superintendent Jennifer O’Neill.

On the city government side, the police and fire departments are getting more funding for overtime spending, which has been cut sharply, and at times is threatening to close Chartley’s police and fire stations. Other departments also receive more money.

Laura Parker, who sits on the planning committee, questioned the spending. She said that at the city’s spring meeting, “we made it very clear that we should not use one-time appropriations in the budget.”

Most of the money comes from a large city reserve fund called Free Cash, which was recently certified by the state at $6.25 million. The fund’s money comes from unexpected savings and income and is about $1.3 million compared to last year. This is the amount the departments have paid back.

Former longtime city official Bill Gouveia also opposed the request. Residents “voted for a budget that we knew was not enough. The city has learned absolutely nothing since last year,” he said. “We continue to do things the same way under the same system and expect different results.”

Gouveia had supported a tax increase through a budget repeal of House Tax Caps Act 2 1/2, but it failed 2-1 in July.

“I think the voters have spoken clearly and I think you should give the people of the city what they voted for,” he said, calling it a “shack game.”

Former longtime selectman Bob Kimball pointed out that the city routinely uses its reserve funds to supplement its budget in the fall.

“We’ve been doing this forever,” Kimball said. “If you vote against it, you will get a completely different kind of city, not the city I want to live in.”

School Board Chairman Nick Schleicher noted that about $3 million, mostly positions, were cut from the school budget.

“Give our children a little hope,” Schleicher said. “I don’t think it’s a big challenge sitting on the amount of money we have.”

Finance Committee member Zack Tsilis, a fiscal conservative, agreed. “I don’t think that’s an unreasonable request.”

“Do you want to go back to the early 90s when we closed the police station at night and closed the Chartley Fire Station?” asked resident Mark Sweeney.

Most residents agreed to increase department budgets.

Select board members had voted in favor of the allocation, but finance committee members deadlocked 3-3 two weeks ago. The latter board met again before Monday’s meeting and decided to support the motion.