Scarborough Town Manager Tom Hall presented the proposed Fiscal Year 2023 budget to Town Council and the public last week. His emphasis was on showing the key drivers of the budget that make up a large portion of expenses (health insurance, investing in new staff, and energy and fuel increases). He also highlighted some of the projects, studies, and investments proposed for the year ahead, and how they reflect the needs of the community as a whole.
Last Fall 2021, the Town Council looked to residents for input in a community wide survey to assess the overall satisfaction with development and municipal services, and to provide a sense of direction on priorities that Town leadership should focus on in the years ahead. The quantity of feedback received exceeded goal expectations and ensured a reliable reference point. The community expressed opportunities for improvement among key issues facing our town. Town leadership is using this as a guide to structure next steps on issues like infrastructure needs, traffic improvements, visibility of law enforcement, and capital investments that will benefit the community.
One area of focus over the next two years that was emphasized by survey respondents is improving the flow of traffic (58 percent indicated this should receive attention). Others that ranked high were the maintenance of streets, sidewalks, and infrastructure (42 percent), improving snow removal (37 percent), and concern with the general condition of major Town streets (34 percent) and sidewalks (27 percent). We are proposing a town-wide transportation study ($100k) in the upcoming budget to narrow into the most effective course of action and investment for improving traffic flow. The proposed budget also includes a new sidewalk snow removal machine ($150k), a Black Point Road paving project ($265k), general sidewalk rehabilitation that includes paving and accessibility improvements ($180k), and our usual investments in mid-level paving ($1.5 million).
In addition to identifying areas for improvement, survey respondents also rated their satisfaction with Town services and departments. There was overwhelming overall satisfaction with Scarborough’s public safety departments, but lower ratings for the visibility of law enforcement in neighborhoods, retail areas, and enforcing local traffic laws. The Patrol division staffing has not increased in many years and as the need for specialty divisions has materialized, the number of officers able to perform routine patrols has diminished. To address this concern, we are proposing adding two additional patrol officers to the department ($176k).
The budget aims to address immediate concerns and invest in longer term priorities. Overall, the goal of all of these areas is to enhance the quality of life for those who live and work in Scarborough. When asked which capital projects are most needed in Scarborough, the survey indicated broad support for a community center (69.1 percent), with over half of respondents indicating a center being one of the top two capital project needs. Additionally, respondents indicated a strong desire for an indoor space for recreation programming. To further understand the feasibility of such a project, we are proposing to undertake a Recreation Center Design project ($100k) which will build on the initial work completed by the Ad Hoc Community Center Advisory Committee in the summer and fall of 2019, and likely be further informed by the Parks and Recreation Facilities Master Plan process currently underway.
Many of these budget areas that respond to community needs are a continuation of ongoing work. For others, it’s a starting point—a response to the needs of the community now and planning ahead. You’ll see that the approach varies based on the scope of the topic, and many of these needs require further evaluation, study, and planning to get started.
The Town relies on public input during the budget process, like that which was provided in the community survey last year. It is critical for us to have feedback from the community when reviewing the budget so that the capital projects and other areas of focus reflect public needs and enhance our quality of life. Find the full budget proposal, March 30 presentation, and upcoming Finance committee budget review meetings on our website, scarboroughmaine.org, and click Budget Portal on the homepage.
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