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Council presses for DPW maintainer hire as budget talks continue; meeting adjourned
Summary
During budget deliberations Council Chair Lisa Thomas emphasized understaffing in the DPW and supported adding a DPW Maintainer 1; the meeting ended with a motion to adjourn that passed by the present members at 9:28 PM.
After presentations from the library and the Board of Education, the Coventry Town Council began town-side budget deliberations. Chair Lisa Thomas said she would push to include a DPW Maintainer 1 position in the FY26/27 budget, citing chronic understaffing, growing facilities work and impending retirements that threaten institutional knowledge.
Finance Director Cherie Trahan provided a memo (requested earlier by Councilor Robyn Gallagher) that outlined significant budget increases and explained accounting treatments for several funds. Councilors discussed longevity payments (a one-time payment up to $500 for employees who hit STEP caps), special revenue fund formatting to show the use of fund balance, and the need for historical cut-tracking data to inform deliberations; Councilor Julie Blanchard and new Councilor Peter Larson specifically asked staff to provide more historical funding/cut data.
Councilor Jon Hand moved to adjourn the meeting at 9:28 PM; the motion was seconded by Mark Wheaton and passed with all present members voting in favor. Councilor Julie Blanchard was not present for the vote.
