Weston board reviews preliminary 2026 budget, discusses SAFER staffing request and pool partnership

The Village of Weston board on Monday reviewed preliminary figures for the village's 2026 budget and agreed to return with department-level detail in September and October for further discussion.

The presentation, given by village staff, laid out fund structure, recent revenue trends and proposed changes. "As a reminder, the budget is a mathematical confirmation of your suspicions. There is no magic calculator. There is no crystal ball," Jessica, a village staff member, told trustees as she walked through slides showing major revenue and expense drivers.

Why it matters: the board is preparing a budget that must fit within state levy limits and local priorities while responding to rising personnel and benefit costs. Staff said they plan to prepare smaller, department-level briefings and bring department heads to upcoming meetings so trustees can review specific service levels and trade-offs.

Key facts and figures presented

- The village's net new construction percentage for the next taxing year is 2.29%, "Village of Weston's net new construction percentage for, for the next taxing year is 2.29%," Jessica said, citing state assessment data and a roughly $40,000,000 figure in recent new construction. - Fund 10 (the general fund) includes core services (police, fire, streets, parks, elections) and records roughly $2,500,000 in wages and benefits, staff said. - The preliminary 2026 general-fund proposal showed about a $361,000 increase over last year; staff attributed most of that to intergovernmental revenue increases and personnel costs. - The budget assumptions include 3% CPI for wages and a 10% increase for health insurance; personnel services were shown as the largest single source of the projected increase, with an approximate $94,000 rise in personnel costs and an added $50,000 for street maintenance. - Accounting treatment of fines and forfeitures changed from a net presentation last year (budgeted at $32,000 net) to recording full revenues and expenditures this year, which alters how some lines appear on the slides.

Public comment and board priorities

Jim Hudson, of 5002 Arrow Street, urged the board to prioritize basic services and revisit past spending decisions before considering new tax measures. "The board needs to take a good hard look at its prior expenditures and learn from them," Hudson said during the public-comment period, urging officials to differentiate "needs" (police, firefighters, snow plowing, clean water) from "wants" (turf ball fields, the farmer's market, a pool).

Board discussion and follow-up directions

- SAFER staffing request: Trustees discussed a SAFER grant application that would add nine positions to the joint fire/EMS staffing model shared between Weston and partner communities. Board members said the SAFER grant structure means the request is presented as a nine-position package rather than single incremental hires; the board discussed the grant's multi-year phase-in but did not take a formal vote on the proposal. The board asked staff to obtain usage and mutual-aid statistics from the fire chief and billing statistics from EMS billing for a future meeting.

- Aquatic center and potential partnerships: Trustees discussed ongoing conversations with Rothschild and Schofield about a possible joint arrangement for the village's aquatic center. Board members said a potential agreement could bring participating residents reduced season-pass access and possibly additional operating dollars; the village currently applies about $40,000 in room tax to the pool each year, staff said. No final agreement or change to fees was made; staff will continue talks with neighboring municipalities.

- Farmer's market: Staff clarified the farmer's market is not supported by village property-tax levy funds; vendor fees, license fees and token accounting cover the market, and a small scholarship CD exists that holds accumulated interest for future scholarships.

- Water utilities and treatment projects: Utility staff updated the board on water-treatment work. Granular activated carbon delivery for one well was reported as arriving and staff said Well 4 should be back online within weeks; work on Well 3 (iron/manganese removal) was reported as out for bid and expected to be awarded at a September meeting. Trustees said continuing work on drinking-water quality should remain a priority.

TIF, fund balance and comparative context

Staff presented tax-increment financing (TIF) updates, including TIF 1 and TIF 2 increments and outstanding TIF debt that must be repaid before closing a district. The presentation also compared Weston's per-capita tax metrics to nearby municipalities and showed a village fund-balance per capita of roughly $1,200 and a fund-balance policy target for cash flow (described on the slides as a percentage requirement of the next year's operating budget). Staff emphasized that shared-revenue receipts to Weston remain lower than many peers.

Formal actions

The meeting included one formal motion recorded in the minutes: a motion to adjourn moved by Zagami and seconded by Jordan; the presiding officer called the voice vote in favor and the motion carried.

Next steps

Staff will return to the board with department-level budget detail, TIF backup materials and usage/reimbursement statistics for fire and EMS. The board scheduled further budget review in September and October and asked finance and human-resources committee recommendations on wages and benefits to be brought forward in coming weeks.

No budget was adopted at the meeting; all figures were described as preliminary and subject to revision as August and September actuals are finalized.