Moorestown council will hold a public meeting on the municipal budget – and possibly adopt it – on Monday, May 4, at 7 p.m.
The budget was initially presented last month with two workshops on March 26 and April 1. Since becoming mayor, Quinton Law has wanted to expand the process and make it more transparent for residents.
“This year is a tough budget year, so my goal is to over-communicate our decision making and make it easy for residents to stay informed,” he explained. “Getting questions answered is always positive because you’re helping residents understand where their taxpayer dollars are going.”
Moorestown’s budget, Law added, centers on keeping core focuses like public safety, public works, sanitation and township parks strong, while managing real cost pressures being faced by many New Jersey towns. Council approached the budget process with discipline by looking for savings, delaying certain purchases that don’t affect day-to-day services and making fiscally responsible choices.
The biggest pressures on the budget include health care, police salaries, sanitation, debt service and additional expenses. But Moorestown, Law noted, is facing the same difficult financial reality as many Americans. Although costs are going up across the board, he and council want to make sure Moorestown’s services for residents are protected.
The proposed budget estimates a tax increase of roughly $180 per year – or $15 per month – a hike that Law said he doesn’t take lightly but that is necessary to maintain core services.
“I want to make sure that we only ask residents for what we truly need, and after that, we work to control the costs,” Law pointed out. “That’s why we held public workshops, took people’s feedback seriously and pushed staff to find savings without cutting services.”
The township also wants to increase the open-space levy to 2 cents from 1 cent. Council is committed to protecting and preserving Moorestown’s open spaces, but to do that, the mayor said, it needs a sustainable plan.
“Council has taken this step of increasing the open-space levy to preserve, protect and maintain our open spaces for the next generation,” Law revealed. “Places like Swede Run and Esther Yanai Preserve … There’s money that goes into maintaining these places, and we can’t deplete our open-space trust fund.
“We need to make sure that we have funds in there to do the things that we need to do … “
To view the budget presentation and workshops, visit www.moorestown.nj.us.
