Simsbury board adopts budget, restores $85,000 to Main Street and approves capital items after hours of debate

The Board of Selectmen approved the municipal operating and capital budgets on March 2 after more than three hours of public testimony and detailed line‑item review.

The board voted to restore funding for Simsbury Main Street Partnership to $85,000 for the remaining year of its memorandum of understanding. The motion to restore the full $85,000 was moved, seconded and ultimately adopted after board members asked staff to complete an internal financial review and the manager agreed to coordinate planning between Main Street, the Economic Development Commission and town staff. The measure was discussed and temporarily tabled during the earlier budget debate while members requested more financial detail; the board later reintroduced and approved the funding as an amendment to the proposed budget.

Main Street leader Sarah Nielson told the board the organization operates under a fee‑for‑service model and has secured more than $800,000 in grants during her tenure. “Everything from the Riverview to . . . we have written national grants, a national parks grant,” Nielson said, urging the board to recognize Main Street’s revenue and programmatic contributions.

Board members said they supported a coordinated plan tying Main Street, the town manager’s office and the EDC together and requested a future agenda item for detailed financial review of the Main Street relationship, including measurable deliverables and reporting expectations.

Budget votes and capital approvals

At the meeting’s close, the board passed motions adopting the Board of Selectmen operating budget and several related funds and referred a package of capital projects for planning review under state statute. The motions included modest adjustments made during the session: targeted reductions in several outside‑agency requests, a larger legal‑services line judged to be right‑sized by staff, a $20,000 upward adjustment to projected investment income, and a $140,000 increase to an operating transfer to capital reserves tied to the ambulance appropriation.

The board also approved a $200,000 capital purchase for the Simsbury Volunteer Ambulance (SVA) to be funded from capital reserves and structured as a town asset leased to the ambulance association. The manager said the town attorney advised that the town could own the ambulance and use a capital‑lease arrangement to protect the town’s interests, provided insurance and maintenance terms are set. The motion was approved with a condition directing the town manager to finalize lease terms that protect the town’s asset and limit liability.

Town manager’s reallocation and staffing questions

During budget deliberations the town manager proposed reallocating an existing library business‑development position to split time and create a part‑time municipal business‑resource function focused on economic development — a move presented as a reallocation rather than the creation of a new full‑time job. The manager said the change would cost taxpayers little or nothing net and would help the town better coordinate development, abatements, and RFP work.

Several selectmen asked for a written job description, union review and personnel‑committee input before any permanent reclassification or reassignment. The board did not authorize the reassignment at the meeting and asked staff to return with union and personnel‑committee outcomes as part of the follow‑up.

Police dispatch staffing request

Police leadership and staff outlined operational stress in the dispatch center and requested one additional full‑time dispatcher to improve redundancy and reduce overtime. Chief staff said heavy overlapping emergency calls, crossing guard coordination and EMD (emergency medical dispatch) duties create sustained high workloads. Board members asked whether the town could fill current vacancies first and, if needed, fund a new position mid‑year from year‑end surplus funds; no new dispatcher position was approved at this meeting.

What’s next

Staff will prepare the financial details requested by selectmen — including the Main Street review — and provide updated levy and mill‑rate analyses as the budget proceeds to the Board of Finance. The town manager will draft written job descriptions and consult unions before any personnel changes are finalized. The board directed the manager to pursue a lease arrangement to formalize town ownership of the ambulance and requested confirmation of insurance and maintenance obligations before the asset is turned over to the ambulance association under contract.