In response to suggestions from residents, the East Williston Village Board is considering adding a public budget workshop to precede its annual April budget hearing.
Village of East Williston David Tanner said the board is trying to determine what kind of preliminary meeting it would conduct in response to feedback from residents.
Resident Michael Guglielmo raised the issue at Monday night’s board meeting, suggesting a preliminary presentation to draw more village residents into the process.
“Perhaps there’s a way to make it clear to people, come down, this is your money,” Guglielmo said.
Village Trustee Robert Vella Jr. pointed out that the board publishes the preliminary budget online prior to the budget hearing.
“We got the preliminary budget out in advance of that meeting,” Vella said.
“I wasn’t trying to suggest you were being fiscally irresponsible,” Guglielmo said.
Village of East Williston Mayor David Tanner said the board is always seeking to be fiscally conscientious, and pointed out that it achieved a year-to-year savings of $16,000 in its current garbage carting contract by rebidding the contract. The rebidding occurred after residents voiced complaints about the carting services provided by Dejana Industries.
Tanner said village board agenda meetings do not permit people in attendance to comment on the business of the meeting. He said the board has to consider how it would frame a preliminary budget meeting and whether it would, in effect, become an additional budget hearing.
“That’s why we have to look at the format of a budget workshop,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s going to be more than one meeting.”
Guglielmo, who was a vocal participant at the April 1 budget hearing, said encouraging greater public participation would produce a positive result.
“I think it would be more constructive to be more inclusive,” Guglielmo said. “A two-way street is important.”
The East Williston Village Board unanimously approved a 2013-124 village budget of $2.82 million. Tanner pointed out that the municipal budget is quite small compared to the budget for the East Williston School district, which is currently north of $52 million.
In other developments:
• Village Trustee Caroline DeBenedittis announced new summer recreation programs in tennis, yoga and boot camp will be starting soon.
• DeBenedittis encouraged donations for an ongoing project to make pillowcases for pediatric cancer patients at Winthrop-University Hospital and Sloan Kettering Hospital.
• Registrations are now being accepted at Village Hall for the first villagewide tag sale to be held on July 13. The rain date for the event is July 14.
• Vella said the local Seniors Group will hold an Ice Cream Social on the Village Green on June 20 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. He said it will be the group’s final event until September.
