Granby Drummer (https://granbydrummer.com/author/mike-walsh/)
Granby’s Budget Workshops on the FY27 operating budget will start in early March (5, 9 and 12 at 5 p.m. in Town Hall for town spending and March 11 at 7 p.m. at the Senior Center for the board of education spending, culminating with a board of finance public hearing on Monday, April 6, at 7 p.m., at the high school.
Two years ago in this paper, I introduced myself to the community of Granby. In that introduction, I offered up a host of financial metrics on the Town of Granby.
In this Drummer article, I’ll refresh some of those metrics as an introduction to the coming FY27 budget process.
Granby is a town that practices “direct democracy.” What does that mean? It means you, the voters, through the ballot box, choose your elected officials every other November, you approve the town’s annual budget in April and, periodically, you are asked to go to the polls to approve spending and funding for large infrastructure (capital) improvements.
Each year after the budget is approved, department heads prepare work plans for the initiatives they plan to complete with the approved funds. Departmental work plans focus on initiatives over and above daily operations with the overarching goal to “move the town forward”.
Who remembers the Blizzard of 1978? Or the 24 inches of snow Granby received in early 2011? Or the 2011 October snowstorm when we lost power for over a week? How about Superstorm Sandy in 2012?
At the May 18 annual meeting of Holcomb Farm, I was asked to share a few thoughts with the many volunteers of the Friends of Holcomb Farm.
The Broadleaf Solar Project and its potential impact on Granby and its waterways is an ongoing concern to residents.
For this Drummer segment, let’s talk about the Granby Police Department (GPD). In October 2023, Police Chief Scott Sansom was hired to lead the GPD. Before his arrival and especially today, the GPD is well run, and while calls for service are up, crime year-over-year is down.
The Government Finance Officers Association of the United States and Canada (GFOA) has awarded the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting to the Town of Granby for its annual comprehensive financial report for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2024. This is the 19th consecutive year that Granby has been so recognized by the GFOA.
As I write this column, it’s the morning after Granby voters approved the FY26 budget.
A direct budget vote on the operation of our town is democracy in action and an important act in the self-governance of our community. Of the more than 8,500 registered voters in Granby, 1,126 exercised their voting privilege.