ORWELL — Orwell residents approved school and municipal budgets, elected town and school officials on Town Meeting Day and, on the preceding evening, decided a number of items at the annual town meeting.
The proposed school spending plan for the next fiscal year passed by voice vote. The plan comes to $1,809,406, a 5.5 percent increase from the $1,709,645 approved last year.
Residents also decided to spend $20,000 to make renovations to the school’s existing art room, bringing it up to state and federal codes so a preschool program can be implemented in fall of 2016.
The proposed town spending plan of $974,678 passed, representing a 3-percent increase over last year.
Residents also approved $9,975 for social services agencies, including Addison County Home Health and Hospice Inc., Addison County WomenSafe, Elderly Services, Champlain Valley Agency on Aging and others.
In local elections, voters filled 20 town offices and a couple of school board positions, many of which ran unopposed.
In the town’s only two contested elections, Richard Buxton Jr. unseated incumbent selectboard member Carla Ochs for a two-year term and Peter Stone beat incumbent school board member Peter Ochs for a two-year term. Michele Almeida was elected to fill an empty union high school board seat for a three-year term. Also, Amy Roy won an unopposed race for a three-year term as a school director.