Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Budget topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Gardner City senior center flags year‑end deficits, says supplemental appropriation likely
Summary
The Gardner City Council on Aging was told energy, utilities and repair accounts are over budget and staff will likely ask the mayor and city council for a supplemental appropriation to cover roughly $12,000 in shortfalls, including major boiler repairs earlier this year.
The Gardner City Council on Aging was told April 6 that the senior center is facing multiple year‑end deficits and will likely request a supplemental appropriation from the mayor and city council.
Terry, who presented the treasurer’s report, said the center’s energy and utilities spending is running about 18% above last year and that, as of April 6, the center had spent $14,828.27 for the month. She said staff now forecast roughly $20,000 in energy and utilities expenses by June 30 — about $5,500 over the current budget line.
“Terry said energy and utilities are about 18% more than we were last year and if all things remain equal we look to be about $5,500 over budget in that account,” a board summary said.
Terry also reported a substantial overspend in repairs and maintenance: year‑to‑date expenses of $18,427 against a budget of $13,250. With outstanding purchase orders, she warned the repairs account could carry a deficit in the range of $7,000.
The treasurer outlined two major repairs that contributed to the increase: an emergency back‑staircase repair (about $2,800) and boiler work that required replacing a manifold and circulating pumps, a repair she described as “a big ticket” at over $10,000.
Terry said staff can reclassify some expenditures and transfer balances between certain accounts (for example moving $300 from an on‑call standby account to cover overtime), but there are no internal lines sufficient to cover all of the projected shortfalls. “It is absolutely going to require us to go back to the mayor and the city council for a supplemental appropriation to cover those,” she said.
Board members asked about the budget impact if the senior center relocates to a different building later this year; Terry said current budget proposals assume the existing footprint and that any move could materially change utility and facility costs, which the mayor and council would need to address.
The board approved the treasurer’s report following the presentation. The next step staff outlined is to finalize figures for the mayor’s office and, if necessary, submit a formal supplemental appropriation request to the city council.
