STARKSBORO — Residents in Starksboro will convene on Saturday, Feb. 28, at 9 a.m. for the annual town and school meeting, during which they will consider 12 articles.
Voters will elect town officials and decide school budgets by Australian ballot on March 3. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the elementary school.
Residents will weigh in on a proposed general fund budget that expends $740,210; after non-tax revenue of $209,050 and a previous surplus of $29,269, a total of $501,891 in taxes would be required. That total spending figure is 1.96 percent less than the budget for the present fiscal year.
Other spending proposals on the warning include: An article asking voters to place $40,626 into the Fire Equipment Reserve Fund and another that would place $87,748 into the Road Equipment Reserve Fund. An article also asks voters to appropriate $26,100 to pay for the 2013-2014 costs of the Starksboro Public Library.
Two articles on the ballot involve a solar array on Parsonage Road. One asks voters to appropriate one-fifth of the purchase price of the array, or $11,160. The second asks voters to purchase six solar trackers installed at that location for $55,800.
Voters will also approve or reject a budget proposal for Robinson Elementary School that sets spending at $2,809,709. That sum is 6.0 percent higher than the budget voters approved last year.
There is one contested race on the ballot. Nancy Cornell is challenging incumbent Bonita Bedard for a three-year seat on the Robinson Elementary School board.
Incumbent town clerk Cheryl Etsey and treasurer Celine Coon hope voters return them to those posts, while incumbent selectboard member Susan Jeffries is again running for a post on that board.
Other candidates include Jim Runcie for town agent, Amy McCormick for tax collector, Dennis W. Casey and Kelly Norris for two seats on the planning commission, Mark Lucas for library trustee, Norman Cota for lister, and Daniel Dubenetsky for town and school moderator.