Amherst Default Budget Under Scrutiny

Confronted with a difficult default budget, Amherst selectmen held a public hearing Monday to hear ways to reduce the budget without hurting services.

The question of the night: Can you cut what some have called a bare-bones budget without cutting into bone?

It's possible, according to the Amherst Citizens Association. In its presentation at Town Hall, the ACA outlined savings opportunities in the neighborhood of $333,708, close to the targeted savings needed to be in line with the .

The first idea raised was a proposed return to the Milford Area Communications Center, the regional dispatch center, which would achieve $134,708 in savings, said Mark Vincent, in discussing the ideas before the board.

As much as $150,000 could be saved by a thorough re-evaluation of town government functions and services, including possible adjusted hours at the town transfer station, waiting to fill an opening in police supervision, and nixing town septic inspections because of a likely duplication of state inspections, according to the ACA presentation.

Two other core ideas, Vincent said, was a $24,500 reduction in Peabody Mill Environmental Center funding and a $31,000 reduction in the recreation budget.

The re-evaluation of government operations could arrive at a small reorganization, based on the ACA proposal. One example given: three different crews in three different departments mow lawns.

Nancy McMillan, Amherst Recreation director, told selectmen the ACA's estimated 10 percent cut in recreation would impact services. She added that the budget includes lifeguard coverage, and that work continues for the establishment of a foundation to help support various recreational services in town.

Police Chief Peter Lyon told selectmen to keep the 24-hour town police dispatch, both for services and for savings. He said the estimated savings of returning to the MACC would be "a wash," and he noted Amherst, like Milford and other towns in the regional dispatch membership, have grown since Amherst joined MACC base.

There would be other costs associated with rejoining MACC, according to the chief. Those costs include radio transmitter changes, computerization changes, and remote antenna changes, Lyon said.

David Chen, a member of the town's Ways & Means Committee, wished selectmen luck with the tough decisions ahead.

"Fairness is not the issue here," he said, "efficiency is the issue."

Other residents countered that, for taxpayers and town employees, the issue is fairness because town operations are already lean.