Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Municipal Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Fanwood council introduces 2025 municipal budget, cites one-time grants and rising insurance costs
Summary
The Fanwood Borough Council on April 21 authorized the public introduction of the 2025 municipal budget, citing about $1.35 million in large state grants this year that inflate revenues and appropriations and notable increases in insurance and debt service that drive a roughly $750,000 increase in appropriations excluding grants.
Fanwood Borough Council on April 21 moved to introduce the calendar-year 2025 municipal budget and authorized public posting of the proposed plan, after a presentation by borough finance staff and questions from a resident about grant-driven swings in the figures.
During public comment, Michael Lewis, a Fanwood resident, said he was “rather concerned” about a projected roughly $2.2 million increase in operating expenses for 2025 and asked whether grants were unusually high this year or unusually low in 2024 and what would happen if grant levels fell in future years.
Jesse, the borough’s chief financial officer, answered that Fanwood received two substantial grants from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs this year — about $1,000,000 for capital improvements and $350,000 to renovate tennis courts — that make this year’s grant total unusually large. He said those grants are recorded on both the appropriations and revenue sides of the ledger and therefore offset one another, but that when grants are removed the borough modeled a year-to-year appropriation increase “ballpark” of about $750,000 compared with 2024.
Jesse told the council that cost drivers include higher health-insurance and Garden State Interlocal Fund (GIF) insurance bills, growing debt-service obligations and rising contracted service costs driven by inflation. He explained that the GIF increase cited in council discussion — about 53% — was partly a result of multi-year claims now being billed to member municipalities and that the borough is working with the fund to smooth such retroactive charges in the future.
The presentation highlighted recent accomplishments and capital work funded with grant and capital funds, including repaving projects, sewer lining, a now-open library and improvements at public-safety and public-works facilities. Planned 2025 projects the borough called out include tennis-court resurfacing at Lrand Park, road work on Walden Road and other local streets, and the purchase of a new sweeper for public works.
Officials noted revenue gains in specific areas: commuter parking fee collections returned to near pre-COVID levels, producing about $60,000 in additional revenue in 2025. The borough also used roughly $100,000 more in fund balance in 2025 than in 2024 and said the capital budget will be introduced at a future meeting with proposed funding via short-term notes.
After the discussion the council moved Resolution 2025-04-095 to authorize introduction of the 2025 municipal budget and to post the proposed budget for public inspection. Roll-call votes were recorded as affirmative from Council President Patricia Walsh, Jeffrey Banks, Gina Barry, Anthony Carter, Erin Mroy Barker and Katherine Mitchell; the motion carried.
Council members also approved two other routine financial measures and a resolution supporting publishing legal notices on official government websites. The meeting included multiple proclamations and department reports; the borough said the proposed budget will be posted on the borough website and residents can review copies at Borough Hall through May 19.
What happens next: the introduction authorizes public inspection and sets the schedule for later review and final adoption steps; the council did not take final adoption action on the budget at this meeting.
