Members of the Board of Aldermen, School Committee, department heads, and citizens of Melrose,

I stand before you tonight with my 8^th budget presentation as the mayor of your city. Without doubt, each budget cycle presents its own unique challenges and decisions for the Board of Aldermen, the School Committee, and my administration.

However, the one variable that has been unfortunately constant in my tenure as mayor has been the steep uphill climb to return to the stable levels of state aid the City could count on prior to 2002.  It is with sadness, but not surprise, that I report to you that the state cavalry is not coming to the rescue yet again in Fiscal Year 2010. In fact, they are not even visible from the horizon. In fact this year, sadly, I don’t think they even know where their guns and horses are.

The crises we now see at the state and federal levels of government are a culmination of overwhelming debt, an excess amount of unsustainable spending, lack of political will and courage to make difficult decisions, public and private sector greed, and sadly, in some cases, corruption.

However, in Melrose we have taken the road less traveled, and that is where we proudly stand today. Because of the reforms, consolidations, and revenue streams that we have created over the past seven years, the city has knocked down old budgetary walls and created the strong building blocks needed to construct a sturdy foundation.

It is a foundation that now has the budgetary structure and balance to sustain the current fiscal tsunami…..a strong foundation in the worst of conditions.

I can proudly say that each of my eight budgets as Mayor has been balanced and transparent in order to rein this City into a structural balance, all the while remaining equally cognizant of the fact that we must continue to improve on all aspects of life in Melrose. The fiscal crisis will not cause our city to grind to a halt, become stagnant, or as you will ultimately see in other municipalities…go in reverse in terms of providing services.

The FY2010 budget is the combined result of the hard work and hard decisions of the past, as well as new cost saving reforms, reorganizations, and continued community involvement from an active citizenry.  This budgetary model we have created will keep all of our quality of lives intact today and into the future.

Fiscal 2010 Budget:

The FY10 budget preserves and expands the three goals set forth by my administration when I began as Mayor

n     Protect residential and commercial property values

n     Support businesses and local commercial districts

n     Maintain a high quality of life for all Melrosians

In this budget, we are achieving that goal while lowering the city’s bottom line. Spending will drop from approximately $60.5 million in FY09 to $60.3 million in FY10, although our schools will see an increase of $800,000.

I cannot believe that at any other time in this city’s history the operating budget has less than the previous year.

This is first and foremost done through fiscal responsibility. We know state aid is going to be reduced by at least $1.2 million in FY10. However, through health insurance and pension related reforms achieved by the City, we will offset this loss and achieve savings of $1.2 million as a result of switching to the GIC and a reduction of about $400,000 in the pension appropriation from the new funding schedule.

This budget also focuses on helping struggling citizens. Since 2000, Melrose has had one of the lowest increases in property taxes in the entire state. In addition to very modest tax increases, we have expanded eligibility for trash fee discounts and exemptions and increased limits on the senior tax deferral program. Soon we will be expanding eligibility for the senior water discount program.

We have all heard the horror stories on the nightly news of cities and towns cutting hundreds of police and fire personnel, teachers, aides, and nurses from city budgets because of multi-million dollar deficits. We have put an emphasis on making city departments more efficient through reorganization, consolidation, and alternative funding sources in order to keep job loss citywide to a minimum.

We will in fact hire four new firefighters this year, funded by a federal grant.  We are hopeful that two new police officers, also funded by a federal grant, will also be added in FY10. We will see significant savings in overtime costs while at the same time increasing visibility with these hires. Our public safety departments will save money by streamlining two administrator jobs into one business manager.

Public Works, which has done an excellent job in securing state and federal grants in recent years to fund projects and save taxpayer money, will save $300,000 in savings due largely to reorganization and consolidation in the Sanitation Department. We will implement a hybrid public/private model of trash collection that will net significant savings.

This year, we will hopefully be one of the first communities in the greater Boston area to begin breaking down the walls and implementing “regionalization.” We are exploring many areas in this regard and are encouraged with our findings thus far.

In our schools, we will continue to have one full-time nurse in every school while also hiring a full time librarian at Melrose High School. That was not achieved in last year's budget. Our school department will have only one non-tenured teacher position cut, and all courses and extracurricular courses will be preserved. Fees and tuitions will not be raised, and class sizes will be maintained.

Our library will also remain a top priority. The city will continue to purchase new books with the help of $33,000 from the Board of Trustees. In times of recession, libraries see an increased volume of users, and I believe it’s shortsighted to not continue our support for this valuable community resource.

To build a successful community, there must be ongoing responsible financial investment in the community.  Even in these difficult economic times, it is crucial that we continue to invest in the city’s schools, businesses, and infrastructure, and promote smart development.

Our beautiful downtown area did not become the jewel of the city overnight or by accident.  It was done by Mayor Milano and countless citizen volunteers and business owners through smart and responsible growth as well as reinvestment and commitment to our Historic District. We continue that responsible approach this year with the second phase of the Oak Grove Village development, the re-zoning and development of Washington Street, as well as the extension of the historic district to Grove Street.

But this year we recognize the importance of spreading this vision to our other smaller business nodes in Cedar Park and West Wyoming Square. We will use a federal grant along with a 20 % city match to improve and give identity to these smaller business districts.

The work will be highlighted by the addition of Victorian lighting and new concrete sidewalks in Cedar Park as well as new crosswalks, sidewalks, and increased tree screening along West Wyoming and Berwick Streets.

I do not believe there can ever be too much emphasis placed on “community.”  It is the glue that has made and will continue to make Melrose the unique, wonderful place that it is to live. It is a place where neighbor helps neighbor, neighborhoods come together at local parks and schools and churches, and local government and constituents work together to accomplish a common goals.

There are countless successful partnerships formed between our businesses, civic groups, clergy, athletics, and fine arts programs. We are fortunate to have a facility such as Memorial Hall to help foster these relationships and create new business opportunities in Melrose. In 2008, Memorial Hall welcomed over 11,000 patrons through its doors. Earlier this month, the city partnered with Melrose/Wakefield Hospital, and over 30 local vendors to hold the first Healthy Melrose Fitness Fair. This great event was just one example of how this building is used to bring local businesses, volunteer organizations, and citizens together.

“Community” also means improving the quality of life of our residents in need and lifting up our neighbors. The Melrose Emergency Fund raised an amazing $40,000 in donations in 2008 and 2009. We will remain committed in 2009 and 2010 to the highly successful Community Dinner as well as weekends at the Teen Center (Common Ground).  We will open the new Lebanon Park and its beautiful girls’ softball field this spring and create a neighborhood group to help improve the Melrose Common Tot Lot, and we have assembled a working group to develop in conjunction with the city its first dog park. This fall, due to the efforts of Margaret Driscoll, a great city/school partnership will start that will ensure that every second grader in this city gets their own library card and is properly introduced to the joys of reading and the educational opportunities available, free of charge, at our public library.

This budget is a clear recognition of the city’s commitment to improving neighborhoods. This past year saw the completion of the second outlet for Ell Pond, which has had a tremendous impact on improving localized flooding in the area near the Lynn Fells Parkway, Melrose High School, and Melrose Towers. The drain improvement project for the Converse Lane area in Ward 5 was also completed and has kept this area dry, which was once thought impossible.

This year, we continue the third phase of the Ward 2 Drain Improvement. This area, which was devastated in the Mothers Day floods of 2006, will benefit from $6 million spent to help protect over $500 million in properties.

The City will also be working with the MWRA this summer on a sewer improvement project to eliminate sewer discharge at the Roosevelt School. This project will be funded by the MWRA and will help alleviate a serious public health concern in that area, taking all the sewerage out and leaving only water to reach the ground surface.

In conjunction with water, sewer, and drainage projects comes roadway reconstruction. Since the beginning of 2007, over 20 Melrose roads have been reconstructed and re-paved. In addition to the eight roadways scheduled for resurfacing as a result of the Ward 2 project, West Wyoming and Bellevue avenues are scheduled for improvements in 2009. It is my hope that the Board supports our ongoing effort to ensure that there is firefighting capability in every neighborhood in the City of Melrose and funds the projects planned for Boston Rock Road, Willard and Forest streets.

The budget also includes funding for a major expansion of the City Tree Planting Program. We have committed to planting 120 trees this year, as well as an additional 120 trees in calendar year 2010 throughout local neighborhoods and business districts throughout the City.

In these trying times, we can never rest upon our past successes. We must build upon them and improve. As an example, you cannot find a better educational facility in this area than the Melrose Veterans Memorial Middle School. That being said, I feel strongly that our children deserve no step backward when they enter Melrose High School.

As part of a phased-in plan, new infrastructure and equipment has been placed in every classroom to prevent any drop-off from middle to high school in terms of technology. An aging, leaking roof will be replaced by a new, energy-efficient roof with solar panels and possibly a rooftop garden. We will paint the interior walls of the building and make significant bathroom and locker room improvements. We will work with the educational leaders of this city, the superintendent and the high school principal, to give them the tools and environment they need to deliver the best education to our high school students.

In closing, there are many current and future challenges that our city faces. We must maintain our financial stability and find ways to create new revenue. At the same time, we are witnessing the largest reductions in local aid in the history of our state, historic unemployment, the collapse of financial institutions that have stood for over 100 years, and two wars fought by brave soldiers that include our neighbors and their families. These are truly historic times.

But….we have prepared for this day the best we can. We have prepared for this day by our actions over the past seven years. Is this year’s budget perfect?  No. Did every department or community group get what they wanted? No. But it is an honest budget that I feel you, and I, and the citizens of Melrose can be proud of.

Thank you for your ongoing support and consideration.