Hello, Burlington!

Coaches are seeking students 8th grade and up with competitive swimming experience to join the boys’ swim & dive team this winter. Practices are weekdays from 4-6 at Shawsheen Tech pool and occasionally at the BHS weight room. Meets are typically at the same time as practices. For more information reach out to Coach Vito Costa.

Burlington’s Tax Rate Set for Upcoming Fiscal Year

Burlington’s Select Board met last night to set the tax rate for fiscal year 24. The process for setting the town’s tax rate goes like this:

Each year at the May Town Meeting, your representatives approve the budget for the upcoming Fiscal Year, which runs from July 1 through June 30. That’s after several months of pre-Town-Meeting meetings involving the various town departments and the Ways and Means Committee, which is the town’s financial advisory committee.

Once the budget is set, the Select Board and the town assessors work for several more months to determine the tax levy necessary to fund that budget. In Burlington, our target tax levy increase target is between about 4.4 and 5.5% each year, according to Assistant Town Administrator, John Danizio. Last year’s incrase was 5.4% after all was said and done.

The job of the Select Board is to approve the tax levy, divided between residential and commercial property tax. Businesses here in Burlington take care of about 2/3 of our tax levy, and the Board aims to keep that proportion; otherwise, residential taxes would go up by a lot (40%, if businesses and residences were taxed at the same rate). Burlington’s residential tax rate is the lowest of all but one neighboring towns and has been trending downward for the last decade, though increasing property values have caused an increase in tax payments each year.

Last night, Town Assessor Paul Tierney presented several scenarios for the FY24 tax classification, and once again the Select Board voted unanimously for the one that would result in the lowest possible increase in tax payments for residents—$292.17 for the median homeowner.

Check out the backup, starting at page 9, for more info about the tax classification.

Also at Select Board:

A few police promotions were made last night; positions were open as a result of the retirement of Mike McDade, a 30-year department veteran:

• Christopher DiDonato was promoted to Lieutenant.
• Vito Costa, who has served as the School Resource Officer (SRO) to MSMS since 2020 and overseer of both MSMS and BHS SROs since August 2023 (and Varsity swim coach—see above!), was promoted to Sergeant.
• Retiring Lieutenant, Mike McDade, was appointed as a Special Police Officer; these officers take on details and perform other supplementary tasks for the police department.

Alex Ferguson was appointed as the final resident member of the Police Station Building Committee. After only having three applications for four spots previously, the Committee had to choose between four applicants for the single remaining slot.

An updated and streamlined taxi/livery policy was presented; see page 19 of the backup for the full text of that policy.

The Police Department received a $35,000 Edward Byrne grant.

The Fire Department installed 20 smoke detectors around town on November 18; they had a busy month in October with 556 runs, 320 of which were medical in nature.

Keep your eye out for info on a Civic Expo, where residents will be able to learn more about the local town departments, non-profits, and more.

The Wish Tree is up at the second floor of the Burlington Mall; come by to donate a gift for Burlington families who could use help this holiday season. Stop by with your donation this December, and meet Select Board Chair Mike Runyan and representatives from the American Legion there on December 4.

Today in Burlington

Municipal Meetings and Community Events

• 8:30-9:00 AM - Ways and Means DPW/Recreation Subcommittee will review potential January Town Meeting warrant articles involving vehicle replacement. (61 Center Street, Ceramics Room)
• 1:00-7:00 PM - Red Cross Blood Drive - Schedule your appointment by calling 1-800-RED-CROSS (Sponsor Code: Burlington) (American Legion, 162 Winn Street, Burlington)
• 5:00 PM - Shawsheen Policy Subcommittee - Policy Manual Update with MASC. (Shawsheen Tech)
• 6:30 PM - BHS Building Committee - A very full agenda including swearing in of members, designer timeline, educational and non-educational programming, and more.  (BHS School Committee Room and Virtual)
• 7:00 PM - Board of Health Meeting [CANCELLED]
• 7:00 PM - Shawsheen School Committee - A full agenda includes student report, an update from Principal Cook, updates from the business manager, superintendent and subcommittee and much more. (Shawsheen Tech and YouTube)
• 7:00-9:00 PM - FRIENDS Theme Trivia hosted by Quirk Events - 100% Proceeds to the Matthew Perry Foundation - Grab some friends, test your FRIENDS knowledge and raise money for a great cause - a WIN WIN WIN! (Common CraftRegister)

Sports and Activities

Day 1 of winter sports is in the books, and from the sound of it there were a lot of hard-working athletes at yesterday’s tryouts and practices. Keep up the hard work in preparation for the season openers coming up before you know it!

That’s all I’ve got for you today. Have a great one!

Nicci

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