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DMC board approves 2026 budget amid dispute over a proposed $30,000 maintenance charge
Summary
Director Caren Demyen reported the DMC budget will go to the township budget meeting Feb. 14; Administrator Lavona Patterson said the Township is proposing the DMC resume paying $30,000 for downtown maintenance, prompting concern that the board could not adequately consider the change before voting. The board voted to pass the budget with one dissent (Paul LaCorte).
Director Caren Demyen told the board that the DMC’s 2026 budget will be presented at the township budget meeting on Feb. 14 and noted the current tax rate is .031.
Administrator Lavona Patterson informed the DMC that the Township, which has paid for downtown maintenance for the past two years, is proposing that the DMC resume responsibility for maintenance at an estimated cost of $30,000 this year. Demyen said this was the first the board had heard of that proposed cost, and several members questioned whether the board could validly vote on the budget with that new information pending.
Property owner Paul LaCorte said property owners should shoulder more responsibility and suggested raising the SID tax; LaCorte later voted against passing the budget. Member Kristen Mider and others said the budget deadline and insufficient time to consider the maintenance change meant the board should not rush; board member Anthony Durante said the DMC could not absorb the cost this year. Mayor Kathleen Miller Prunty said she has historically regarded public-space maintenance as a Township responsibility.
Despite the concerns, the board voted to pass the budget at the Jan. 15 meeting; the motion passed with Paul LaCorte recorded as opposed. The minutes record that the motion was carried but do not list individual vote tallies beyond noting the dissent.
Staff also reported several operational updates at the meeting: 2026 sponsorships are up; downtown filming recently occurred; staff held a ribbon cutting at Cozy Café; wreaths will be removed, winter planters were installed, special plantings are planned for the town's 250th anniversary, and the Little Free Library area will be cleaned. Staff reported gift-card sales totaled $107,000 in 2025 and reviewed upcoming events including the Souperhero Stroll (self-funded, 40 balloons), Cranford Theater programming, Winter Olympics, Fire & Ice, Pasta La Vista, Baby, and Spring Hop. The meeting adjourned at 10:01 a.m.
