WILTON — The second phase of the sewage treatment plant upgrade, zoning ordinance changes and a $1.7 million budget for 2012-13 comes before residents Monday.
The annual town meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. Monday, June 18, at Academy Hill School Cafeteria.
Selectmen will again provide a barbecue for residents starting at 5:30 p.m. at the school cafeteria.
An upgrade for the aging wastewater treatment plant, now 32 years old and beyond its 20-year design life, was split into two phases to spread out the costs.
Town voters have already accepted phase one, including an upgrade of all 31 pumps at the station and some initial work at the treatment plant at a cost of $4,696,000. Construction is expected to begin in July.
The second phase comes before voters Monday night. It covers the work at the treatment plant at a cost of $4,962,000 with construction expected to begin in the spring of 2013.
Annual debt payments on the two phases are expected to add nearly $100 per quarter to the bills of customers, who number about 944. The average $265 per year bill for a sewer customer would rise to a projected $656 per year.
In a separate article, voters will be asked to raise and appropriate $30,000 toward the annual debt service of the new wastewater treatment plant upgrade. The money is not included in the budget. If accepted, the cost to taxpayers is about $11 per $100,000 of valuation.
While the town has to vote on borrowing money for the project, control of the project and grant funding amounting to about 45 percent of the cost could be lost if voters don’t accept the second phase of the project, Clayton Putnam, wastewater plant superintendent previously said. The state Department of Environmental Protection could move in with basically a court order to make improvements to the aging facility if the town does not proceed on its own.
Voters will also decide Monday whether to keep the costs for street lighting down by shutting off more lights. About 100 lights were dimmed last year after voters opted to save money.
Most town department budgets are either the same or slightly lower than this year, according to Town Manager Rhonda Irish’s budget message.
Recommendations from selectmen and Finance Committee differ slightly on the Fire Department budget. Selectmen recommend $101,965 and the committee, $104,765 for the department. The difference was based on their recommendations for equipment and the chief’s and assistants’ stipends.
The Police Department budget of $440,550 includes an increase of $35,800 from the current year for salary increases, fuel and vehicle maintenance and half the cost of a new vehicle.
Voters will also decide on zoning changes around the former Wilton Primary School and current RSU 9 bus garage. They are asked to change the residential zone to downtown village zone.
The change could make redevelopment of the property easier and more conforming to the neighborhood, Code Enforcement Officer Paul Montague said.
Along with deciding on other changes to clarify the town’s zoning ordinance, voters will consider adding a building demolition permit standard.
This would put state requirements in one place where it’s easier to find, he said. It helps make sure people know that DEP needs to be contacted when any building is taken down. Those include single family homes especially those built prior to the early 1970s due to concerns about lead and asbestos, he said.
abryant@sunjournal.com
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