RICHMOND

Richmond voters will gather at the annual town meeting at 6 p.m. tonight at Richmond High School to decide on a $2.1 million municipal spending plan that calls for less spending than the current budget.

The $2,103,818 proposal for 2017-18 is a $37,380, or 1.7 percent, decrease from the 2016-17 budget.

As proposed — if county and school tax assessments and town valuation remain flat — the budget would result in an estimated 0.3 percent tax rate increase or $0.05 per $1,000 of assessed value. That amounts to an additional $10 for a home valued at $200,000.

Selectmen are recommending a $30,805, or 11.6 percent, decrease in the police department budget, reflecting the elimination of a fifth officer position. This position was part of a CopsFast grant that required the town to fund the position for one year after the four-year grant, which the town has done.

The budget committee, however, is recommending a decrease of $15,205, or 5.73 percent, in order to use some of the savings to hire a parttime secretary for the police department.

Selectmen are again proposing to place $90,000 in the road maintenance line and $200,000 in another road projects line. The major road projects involve placing a pavement overlay on the road base work done two years ago in town.

Voters will also consider spending $17,000 on repairs to the town tennis courts. According to town officials, the fencing, net posts and concrete are in dire need of rehabilitation.

There is also an article related to the former fire station at 10 Lincoln St., which selectmen seek to sell. The station is no longer active and proceeds of the sale would go into the town properties improvement reserve account.

There is funding in this proposed budget for two public service agencies. Selectmen recommend contributing $5,000 for the Richmond

Area Food Pantry and $500 for Spectrum Generations.

The planning board and code enforcement officer spent the last year reviewing the current land use ordinance for clarity and consistency. Article 46 asks voters to enact amendments to the land use ordinance as a result of that work.

The last two questions on the 49-article town warrant will actually be voted on at the June 13 referendum, and include a municipal election of two selectmen and one Regional School Unit 2 board member, a budget committee member and Richmond Utilities District trustee.

There is also a local referendum question on the June 13 ballot asking Richmond voters to authorize the state to issue licenses for the sale of liquor to be consumed on the premises of licensed establishments on Sunday. This request was voted on at a town meeting in 2005 but wasn’t done by secret ballot as required by state law.

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