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Health director proposes $545,397 budget, highlights inspections and community programs
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Summary
Amy Lahaney presented the health department’s FY27 proposal of $545,397 (a 6.4% decrease), reviewed permits and inspections workload and flagged an unregulated massage-parlor category for further review by planning and zoning.
Amy Lahaney, director of the New Canaan Health Department, presented the department’s FY27 budget proposal at the March 31 meeting and described operations and goals. "We are proposing a budget of 545,397, and that is a 6.4% decrease from last year," she said.
Lahaney outlined the department’s responsibilities and activity levels: roughly 106 food-service establishments, about 60 well permits per year, 43 salons and 22 public pools that the department inspects or oversees. She described community-health programming (monthly panels, QPR suicide-prevention classes, child-vaccine support, tick testing, and outreach) and said the department is modernizing permitting and communications.
Council members raised a regulatory concern about businesses advertised as "massage parlors." Lahaney said that category "is not in the town code, so it's not regulated by the health department" and recommended the council route zoning or code questions to planning and zoning staff for follow-up.
Lahaney also noted a staffing change: a part-time public-health nurse previously grant-funded will move to the town-funded payroll as the grant expires, which is factored into the FY27 salary line. The proposed budget reduces some expense lines while shifting the nurse’s salary from grant to town dollars.
Next steps: The council accepted the health department presentation; planning and zoning staff were asked to look into regulatory oversight of the businesses discussed. The council scheduled a public hearing and then voted to adjourn.
