Budgets are crumbling, Governor Patrick is shedding Billions from the state budget in the current fiscal year and as a result will be reducing distributions of our “cherry sheet revenues” that we depend on when we built our budget last year. What will Harvard to do to manage the shortfall?
Left with few choices, we need to act now while there are 5 months left in the fiscal year to close the gap on the short fall. How big the shortfall will be this fiscal year, nobody can be quite sure. Last week we were told by our Town Administrator to prepare for a $350,000 shortfall, this week its looking like $180,000. Local receipts are down (money that we usually receive in fees and excise taxes on vehicles) and are trending lower as people tighten their belts.
If it were not enough to have the ice storm cleanup still looming, now we need to strip down services and reduce staffing across town departments. On the town side, the selectmen have frozen all discretionary spending (we’ve already frozen hiring) instituted reduced Library hours, reduced staff at the highway department, lowered thermostats, curtailed professional development, suspended travel and out of house training for employees and are working to return to the General Fund, unexpended funds from old warrant articles still being held in the town treasury. The most difficult choice to make was the choice to reduce the number of adminstrative staff at town hall which will happen over the next month.
What does this mean to you? Roads take longer to get plowed since we have fewer drivers. The Library will be open fewer hours and will begin to close on Fridays. Staff at town hall will reduced and shuffled to manage the “retail operations” at town hall by combining jobs or redistributing the work load.
Do you feel the pinch yet?
We are all feeling the pinch and even though Harvard has many people that have earned a comfortable existence, they are not immune. I just sent the letter below to the Press and Post editors. I hope people will take your comments seriously and not burden the roadside cleanup with costs that we cannot afford at this time.
Dear Editor,
I would 1st like to applaud those that have cleaned up their own debris from this winter’s ice storm. I think most people in town were over whelmed with the damage. I’ve heard that the town has planned a roadside clean up using FEMA funds and our own tax dollars. This is certainly appropriate on town property and I thank the selectmen. However, the plan also includes debris that homeowners put on the curbside. How suburban.
I will personally be ashamed of any able-bodied family that takes advantage of this “bail out”. If you can get it to the roadside, you can take care of it yourself. The amount of debris on town property is immense, but it could easily double or triple if people abuse this un-budgeted service. Already I see roadside piles that could have been taken care of with the same amount of effort it took to get them to the curb.
All of the trimming of school and library expenses could be quickly wiped out with this type of adult pampering. There are citizens in our town that have tree or landscape businesses. Take some responsibility and give them a call or do the work yourself. In my neighborhood we actually worked together and talked to each other. I can’t imagine expecting the tax dollars of others (local or federal) to be used to clean my yard.
When our kids attend cold schools they are heroes, and in my opinion, anyone expecting roadside pickup are zeros.
Bob O’Shea
Old Littleton Rd.
By: bobandchrisoshea on April 4 , 2009
at 10:21 pm