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Old Home Day organizers ask the town for more support after rising costs; committee seeks fiscal detail
Summary
The Old Home Day committee requested town funding to reduce reliance on private fundraising after reporting roughly $27,800 in event expenses last year; the Finance Committee asked for an itemized account and discussed a middle ground for town support.
Diane Doherty, chair of the Recreation Commission, and Mike Lally, Old Home Day organizer, presented the recreation budget and a funding request for Old Home Day to the Finance Committee. Lally said last year’s event expenses totaled about $27,800 and asked the town to provide increased support so the committee need not rely so heavily on private donations.
Lally provided an itemized run‑down of significant expenses from the prior year, including a pyrotechnics deposit and final payment (the meeting record listed a large fireworks line that has fluctuated year‑to‑year), rental fees for party equipment, bands and entertainment stipends and trophies. He said the committee secures additional contributions from private donors each year but that fund‑raising is increasingly difficult: “It would be nice to be able to go out at the beginning of the year and get what we want and give a nice presentation for the town on Old Home Day,” Lally said.
The committee and town staff discussed the logistics of event‑related police details and volunteer availability. The police chief and committee earlier noted that some event costs — police details, road closures and related public safety coverage — currently are absorbed by the police budget; the chief argued for consistent event commitments to reduce last‑minute overtime charges.
Finance Committee members asked for a full balance sheet showing last year’s expenses, donations and the net amount raised so members could consider a town contribution. One committee member suggested a compromise: a partial town appropriation — for example $18,000 — with the committee continuing to raise the remainder privately. Lally said additional town support would reduce the committee’s year‑round fundraising burden and allow planning farther in advance.
The Recreation Commission also noted a small technical correction in its supplies budget for portable toilets tied to new pickleball/tennis use at the middle school and confirmed the Memorial Day line remains small and largely unused if no group formally requests funds.
The Finance Committee did not vote on a funding amount; members asked for the Old Home Day committee to supply a detailed statement of receipts and expenses to inform a possible allocation.
