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Cemetery Committee approves FY2027 budget requests, boosts capital reserve for stone repairs
Summary
At its Feb. 20 meeting, the Cemetery Committee approved multiple FY2027 budget line items — including electricity, website maintenance and the sexton contract — and voted to add $35,000 to a capital reserve for stone repair and cleaning while retaining a $6,000 line for monument reconstruction.
The Cemetery Committee met Feb. 20 and approved a set of FY2027 budget requests and capital reserve changes, including a $35,000 addition to its stone repair and cleaning reserve and a $6,000 line item to keep monument reconstruction on the books.
The meeting opened at 10:02 a.m., with Gene Rouse calling the session to order. The committee first approved the Nov. 13, 2025 minutes; the tally was recorded as 5 yes, 0 no and 2 abstentions (Kevin Nelson and Gene Rouse). Town Clerk Gail Pelotte explained why some budget lines appear with no dollar amounts, saying, “That is the way it runs.”
Committee members approved a series of operating requests: $600 for electricity (motion passed), $1,200 for water (motion passed after discussion of unusually high winter bills at Madison Avenue/North Cemetery), and $2,400 for website maintenance for the cemetery’s online presence (DocuFree/Cemetery Find). The committee also approved the sexton contract under the existing contract terms; the record shows a request of $100,367 for the sexton contract and the motion passed by committee tally.
Other approved items included a $1,200 line for the Catholic Church and a $2,000 request for tree cutting after members noted cedars at Southside and a large pine at Bloomfield Cemetery that likely require contracted removal.
A proposal to fund repairs and maintenance at $6,500 failed; a subsequent motion to fund $8,500 passed. Members cited prior stone work performed by DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution), some work paid from capital reserves, and the need to keep repairs funded to avoid interrupting ongoing work. The committee voted to set aside $2,000 for records maintenance and discussed creating a workshop to develop a plan for secure storage and possible digitization of records.
A proposed $25,000 appropriation for cemetery monument reconstruction failed after members raised concerns about contractor availability and the role of volunteer groups. After discussion, the committee adopted a $6,000 line item for monument reconstruction and separately moved $35,000 into the Capital Reserve account for stone repair and cleaning to allow a future out-to-bid schedule and use of capital funds for larger projects.
The committee reviewed five capital reserve accounts (stone repair & cleaning; tree care; cemetery maintenance; cemetery survey; records maintenance) and discussed amounts to present at Town Meeting. The meeting adjourned with plans to meet again on March 19 at 9:00 a.m.
All votes recorded in the minutes are reported here as tallies exactly as provided in the meeting record; where individual abstentions or opposing votes are named in the minutes, those names are noted, and where the minutes only report counts no individual names are assigned.
