Wilmington Faces A $1.5 Million Budget Shortfall

WILMINGTON, MA — Wilmington officials are projecting a $1,545,000 revenue shortfall in Fiscal Year 2021, due to the coronavirus, Town Manager Jeffrey Hull told the Board of Selectmen at their Tuesday meeting.

Hull proposed over $1 million in cuts to balance the year's budget, which begins July 1. The school department is responsible for finding nearly $82,000 more in savings, he said.

The lost revenue are largely due to lost state aid in various forms, as well as some local sources like the meals tax.

Five capital expenditures which were slated to come from the tax levy would instead draw down free cash, under Hull's proposal:

• $195,000 for high school laptops
• $195,000 for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten laptops
• $194,000 for replacing flooring at the Dispatch Center
• $280,000 for a street sweeper
• $210,000 for the second phase of the Woburn Street parking lot

To partially offset the hit to free cash, Hull proposed delaying a planned $955,000 study of administrative facilities.

The town manager also proposed also the following cuts:

• $50,000 for the Fourth of July program, which is not happening this year
• $11,000 for the Planning Department sidewalk planning
• $15,000 for the town counsel budget
• $100,000 for police cruisers
• $120,000 for an evaluation of elementary school building options, which would have to be redone as part of the Massachusetts School Building Authority process

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Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.