Stonington voters approved of the town proposed $55.3 million budget by an overwhelmingly majority. They voted more than two-to-one to pass the budget, but voter turnout was low with just 12 percent of eligible voters casting ballots.
Of the 1,477 people who voted, 1,083 voted yes and 394 voted no.
First Selectman Edward Haberek said he was very pleased by the approved vote and that town had work hard to createa budget that reflected the economic difficulties of the times.
The town $55,276,098 budget for the 2011-2012 fiscal year begins on July 1, 2011. It sets the mill rate at 15.63 a .20 mills or a 1.28 percent increase from the 2010-2011 fiscal year. A property owner with a home assessed at $250,000 will see an increase in their annual tax bill of $50.
Selectman George Crouse said he believed residents felt “it was a cost-effective budget.”
Now, Haberek said, the town will play a wait-and-see budget to see if unions will approve of a labor deal and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy will cut an additional $400 million from the state budget. If unions vote against the labor deal Gov. Malloy would have to cut a total of $2 billion. In either scenario the cuts could impact the funding Stonington receives from the state.
Here is a breakdown by polling location of the budget referendum:
District Yes No Total Voted Total Eligible Percentage First And Third Districts 355 127 482 3,394 14 Second District 480 175 655 5,354 12 Fourth And Fifth Districts 248 92 340 3,627 9 Total 1,083 394 1,477 12,375 12Districts One and Three voted at the at 100 Main St., in Stonington Borough.
District Two voted at the at 33 Liberty St. in Pawcatuck
Districts Four and Five voted at the B.F. Hoxie Engine Company at the at 34 Broadway Avenue in Mystic.
