Category: City News

Final Municipal Budget On Hold

The final 2021-2022 municipal budget is on hold for now, awaiting more information out of Augusta before the City Council will vote to approve or amend it. On April 8, City Manager Steven Buck presented the proposed municipal budget and his recommended amendments to the Budget Committee. The proposed budget includes $30,535,165 in municipal appropriations and $3,922,668 in capital reserve funding, offset by $15,118,696 in municipal revenue. The balance of $19,339,137 is to be raised by taxation. This bottom line…

ATVs on the Rail Trail Debated

Members of the City Council’s Municipal Operations and Property Subcommittee waded into the longstanding conflict between the Trails Committee and the Sanford ATV Club at their April 13 meeting, when they heard arguments from both sides about use of the Rail Trail. Unlike other Sanford trails, the Rail Trail is designated as multi-use, which allows for walkers, horseback riders, motorized and non-motorized vehicles. Hazen Carpenter, Chairman of the Trails Committee, and Nick Taylor, President of the ATV Club, submitted written…

Property Tax Exemption & Current Use Deadlines Extended

At the City Council’s meeting on April 6, City Manager Steven Buck announced that, due to the Governor’s state of emergency declaration, the extended due dates for current use applications and exemption applications that originally applied to 2020, also apply to the 2021 applications. If you are eligible for any of the following programs, the filing due date, which was originally April 1, is now extended until June. Property tax exemptions: Property of Institutions and OrganizationsEstates of VeteransSolar and Wind…

Budget Committee Approves School Budget

At its March 25 meeting, members of Sanford’s Budget Committee gave their stamp of approval to the School Department budget for 2021-2022. The budget will now go to the City Council before voters get the final say on June 8. Superintendent of Schools Matt Nelson was able to trim the Department’s original budget significantly from his original presentation, by using some money from the carryover, reducing expenses and utilizing some of the American Rescue Plan (ARP) Act funds. The final figure increases the…

Budget Committee 3/18 Meeting Summary

The Budget Committee meeting on March 18 began with a summary of the budget by City Manager Steven Buck and Superintendent of Schools Matt Nelson. The Committee had asked for a tax rate calculation sheet, showing the change in the proposed 2021-2022 budget as opposed to last year’s, with the percentage as well as dollar amount change. Since the assessors’ work is not finished yet, Mr. Buck used what he described as “a very conservative number” of $80 million increase…

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