Municipal Budget Talk to Continue This Week

Montville Township Committee to Talk Budget

During the Montville Township Committee meeting this week, committee members are expected to resume discussion on the 2013 municipal budget.

Budget planning has been underway for months and at the last township committee meeting on March 12, Township Administrator Victor Canning presented two options, one of which would bring the tax increase to 3.87 percent but utilize $275,000 from the Water Utility fund balance.

"We've reached pretty much the wall and there's not much room to move," Canning told the committee before recommending this option and explaining that taking money from the utility fund balance is common practice elsewhere in New Jersey.

But committee members were not entirely in favor of pulling $275,000 from the utility fund, even though all were in favor of the 3.87 percent increase as opposed to the first option, which called for an increase of 5.4 percent without the utility fund balance money. Committeeman Scott Gallopo said he was not in favor of taking money from a utility fund and Committeeman Don Kostka said he wanted to know more information about the potential impact of taking money out of the fund.

Ultimately, committee members asked Canning and the administration and finance departments to seek another source of funding the $275,000 budget gap that would bring the increase down to 3.87 percent.

The committee will meet Tuesday at 8 p.m. in the township municipal building on Changebridge Road.

School Spirit Week to be Celebrated

The Montville Township High School community will show Mustang spirit this week as the students and faculty members celebrate Spirit Week. The festivities kick off Monday and continue until Friday, leading up to a pep rally at the high school Friday from 1:30 to 2 p.m.

Living Lessons Coming in May

Planning for the bi-annual Living Lessons event, which has the school community raising thousands of dollars for the Living Lessons program, is underway. This year's event will be held on May 16. Several speakers will participate and this week, we will bring you a closer look in a preview story about the 2013 Living Lessons gathering.