City Council Ad Hoc Budget Committee of the Whole Meeting
FY25 budget hearings and presentations for multiple city departments including Recreation, Library, Council on Aging, Veterans Services, Health/Inspectional Services (including Zoning Board of Appeals), Police (and Harbormaster), Fire, and Whittier Vocational Schools.
The Ad Hoc Budget Committee of the Whole (Budget Hearing #4) met on May 29, 2024 to receive FY25 budget presentations from multiple city departments and regional partners. Department heads and program directors presented proposed FY25 budgets and supporting information: Recreation (Kathleen Crowley) detailed program staffing, salary changes, and line-item adjustments; the Amesbury Public Library (Aimie Westphal) reviewed mission, circulation statistics, staffing FTEs, and the municipal appropriation requirement (MAR) and noted an informational public meeting on facilities assessments; the Council on Aging (Doreen Arnfield) summarized programming, transportation and outreach metrics, and grant/funding sources including EMHOT; Veterans Services (Kevin Hunt) described the regional district model and Chapter 115 goals and presented historical budget figures; Inspectional and Health Services (Vincenzo Tirone) explained staffing, training, testing, and level-funded line items; the Police Department (Chief Craig Bailey) presented a FY25 budget with a 0.71% increase, staffing reductions (from 33 to 31 full‑time officers) and compensating overtime/shift adjustments; the Harbormaster budget was presented by Chief Bailey; the Fire Department (Chief James Nolan) reviewed staffing, apparatus, training and a FY25 budget recommendation; and Whittier Vocational Schools (Superintendent Maureen Lynch) presented district budget drivers, enrollment/CTE program data, recent grant funding, capital needs, and proposed assessments.
Councilors engaged each presenter with questions across topics including staffing levels, training, program changes, intermunicipal/regional arrangements, grant funding, and facility needs. A procedural note: Councilor Mandeville recused himself from the Library budget presentation. The minutes record no final votes to approve or adopt departmental budgets during this hearing; discussions were informational and for budget review. No public comments or specific citizen concerns were recorded in the official minutes. (The only formal recorded motion was to adjourn, which passed 8–0.)