Values of a town are in its budget
BY JOHN VOLTZ
The values of a town are not found in its vision, but in its budget. The only infrastructure in Cape Elizabeth that is sustainably funded is the Turf Field. This is a choice. The field needs turf replacement about every ten years. This is costly (over $500,000). That level of cost is hard to ‘afford’ in any single budget year. To limit big spikes in the budget, the town set up a Turf Field Fund and the town and school contribute every year. When it’s time for the costly replacement, the town budget barely changes — half the money for the turf is already in the fund.
The town could do this for all sorts of critical infrastructure. We could establish funds for essential facilities, including the fire station, Town Hall, each school, the police station, the community services building and any other vital infrastructure.
This is not a new idea. Yarmouth does this — they have separate funds for different parts of their infrastructure. These funds are allocated for expected renovation and/or replacement projects. What a town can afford often depends on the timeframe. We can afford what we sensibly plan for, and long-term planning is cheaper. In the last several years, we haven’t been planning.
The town should start saving now, in this year’s budget, for its infrastructure needs — like the schools. Also, we should establish infrastructure funds to save for our future needs, together with a sensible municipal bonding plan. Let’s put our values back in our budget.
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