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Lititz council advertises 2026 budget; placeholders and priorities include SRO, library support and traffic calming
Summary
Council voted to advertise the proposed 2026 budget as amended. The budget includes a placeholder for a half-year School Resource Officer, a proposed $1 per capita library capital contribution for three years, reduced downtown planning allocation with $20,000 retained for comp-plan implementation, and traffic-calming measures estimated at roughly $35,000 for initial work.
Lititz Borough Council voted Nov. 25 to advertise the proposed 2026 budget with several adjustments and placeholders for further consideration.
Finance presented preliminary 2026 figures showing estimated expenses of about $9.56 million and an expected fund-balance percentage in the high 20s (the finance lead described maintaining a fund-balance target around 25 percent). Council approved advertising the budget as amended, with final approval scheduled for the December meeting.
Notable budget items discussed: • School Resource Officer (SRO): Council placed a half‑year placeholder of $75,123 (expense and equal revenue) in the 2026 budget at the request of Warwick School District. Council members emphasized the placeholder does not obligate the borough to approve an SRO; any hiring or funding would require separate approval and a defined revenue source. • Library capital campaign: Mary Gaddis proposed an additional $1 per capita for three years, estimated at roughly $28,143 over that period, to go to the library capital campaign while maintaining the existing $6 per capita for operational support; Carolyn from the library thanked council for the consideration. • Comprehensive plan/downtown funding: Council agreed to remove an $85,000 downtown planning line item and retain $20,000 for targeted comp-plan implementation activities (community conversations, demolition-review refinements, flood-mitigation work, and initial trail planning). • Traffic calming on 6th Street: After engineering input, the council discussed a narrowed initial approach—a curb extension (bulb-out) with a piano-key crosswalk near the park—estimated at about $35,000 and possibly executed in-house to reduce costs.
Council members and members of the public also discussed parking revenue assumptions and potential fee changes that factor into the budget forecast. The council approved advertising the budget as amended by voice vote.
