Scarborough Town Hall. Maxen Ryder

The Scarborough Town Council has approved the fiscal year 2024 municipal budget after a second reading at its June 7 meeting.

The budget is the result of months of work between town departments, the board of education, and Scarborough schools. There were also budget roundtable discussions to involve public engagement.

According to town officials, the budget was affected by factors such as inflation, increased demand for social services, and a competitive job market. The effects of inflation extend to factors such as wages, utilities, electricity, and more.

The fiscal year 2024 budget includes funding for two more law enforcement officer positions and four more full-time firefighters. The budget will expand the general assistance budget and hire a full-time social services coordinator who will support the social services navigator.

The town will also amend the 2011 Red Brook Watershed Management Plan to improve the water quality of the stream. The area is designated as an Urban Impaired Stream by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

The town is also looking to address Sawyer Street, which frequently floods. The budget will also address Eastern Trail maintenance, traffic improvements, a Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) system upgrade for public safety, the replacement of the catch basin truck, and more.

The proposed budget was first presented in March by Town Manager Tom Hall and Superintendent Geoff Bruno. The budget has gone through multiple review sessions and meetings since then.

The final budget has a 3.96 percent mil rate increase, following the council’s 2023 goal to stay “as close to plus-3 percent as possible.”

For more information and view the document, visit https://www.scarboroughmaine.org/budget/fy2024.

A validation vote on the school budget will occur on June 27.