PLYMOUTH, Vt. – At the Nov. 8 election, voters approved both Article 1a and 1b, which inadvertently contradict each other.
Article 1a asks the voters to approve or deny “an additional $800,000 through a Municipal Bond to pay for the full and proposed weatherization/deferred maintenance project to be paid back over a 25-year period,” which was approved with 161 votes. Article 1b requests that voters decide if they would rather “proceed with the weatherization/differed maintenance project and complete portions of the project with the funds previously authorized by the voters in the amount of $950,000,” which passed with 194 votes.
The Town of Plymouth was trying to be open and clear that the original approved budget of $950,000, funds the town already has in the bank, would not complete the weatherization project due to inflation. Therefore, the project can be partially completed with that pre-approved budget, or voters must approve an $800,000 bond to complete the project in its entirety. The bond would increase residents’ taxes, while the original budget would not impact taxpayers’ dollars.
The League of Cities and Towns as well as the town’s bond attorney, Robert Fletcher, are now reviewing the contradicting results of the vote to determine how the town will proceed.
Chair Jay Kullman states, “We are not going to take any action right away.” The attorney-reviewed voting results will be discussed at the next selectboard meeting on Nov. 21. Kullman assures the town wants to move forward “legally and correctly.”