Tax hikes prove to be hard sells in these tough economic times

As municipal budgets tighten and the economy gets worse, towns and cities throughout the region still must decide what to do about overcrowded schools, deteriorating town halls, and attracting and keeping qualified teachers, fire fighters, and police officers.

And, while many are trying to hold off on some spending as long as possible, some are going forward with proposed tax hikes in these lean economic times.

In Needham, for example, voters will be asked Nov. 4 whether to approve a tax increase of $1.9 million to operate its new High Rock School for sixth-graders, which would help alleviate overcrowding at the Pollard Middle School.

Last week, Town Meeting in neighboring Wellesley voted to build a new high school rather than renovate the existing one.

A portion of the $131 million cost will be paid by state funds but the $86.6 million property tax increase going before the voters Dec. 9 is the largest such hike ever proposed for a capital project in the town.

Meanwhile, Upton's Board of Selectmen is expected on Tuesday to leave off its Nov. 18 Town Meeting agenda a proposal to advance a $6 million renovation of the town's 120-year-old Town Hall building.

A proposal to fund design and bidding costs for the project was recently rejected by the town's Community Preservation Committee.

These decisions come at a time of growing economic gloom. Housing prices have plummeted, joblessness is increasing, living costs are up, and a financial crisis has cut into savings and retirement accounts, leaving people uncertain about the future.

At the same time, revenue on both the state and local levels is in decline. Just this month, Governor Deval Patrick announced he was cutting 1,000 state government jobs and more than $1 billion from the budget in response to diminishing tax receipts. Patrick spared aid to towns and cities but some local officials fear a further erosion of state tax revenues may change that situation.

The tax increase vote in Needham was already on the ballot before the financial crisis set in in late September.

But James Healy, the selectmen chairman, acknowledges that town officials are "very concerned" that taxpayers may balk at the increase now, even though they agreed to the $21 million spent to build the new school.

"But we desperately need to open High Rock School," says Healy. Pollard Middle School is overcrowded, and the "compelling need still exists" to get the sixth-grade center open.

Meanwhile, Healy said plans to renovate the Town Hall for $18.5 million and build a new public services administration building for about $6 million can continue regardless of the economic situation.

That, he says, is because neither will require a tax hike. Both will be built with Community Preservation Act funds. The act allows towns to collect a small amount of money through property taxes for a fund to pay for affordable housing, community open spaces, and historic preservation.

In Wellesley, town officials have been so concerned about the timing of the high school vote that they held a special meeting Oct. 18 prior to Town Meeting to discuss specifically whether the current economic crisis should affect the town's decision to proceed.

"We wanted to reassess things in light of the economic situation," said Katherine Babson, chairwoman of the town's School Building Committee.

"But the vote was unanimous to move forward. We have the right project at the right cost at the right time." Plus, they got a letter from state Treasurer Timothy Cahill, saying the Massachusetts School Building Authority will be able to meet its $44 million anticipated funding commitment to Wellesley for the high school project.

If the project is delayed, said Babson, there would be "no assurance" that the MSBA funding would still be there.

Wellesley Town Meeting voted overwhelmingly to build the new high school, which would be opened by January 2013 at the earliest.

But to save money, officials decided to reduce the number of additional classrooms they were planning to create at the current school to offset overcrowding.

And there were some at Town Meeting who disagreed with the new high school decision.

Roy Switzler, a well-known fiscal conservative who helped write the state law Proposition 2 1/2, which limits town budget increases, said he was opposed to proceeding with the new building during an economic crisis.

In Upton, meanwhile, the town has been banking on Community Preservation Act funding for the proposed renovation of its Town Hall building.

But the Upton Community Preservation Committee voted this month to reject the town's request for $583,000 to cover design and bidding for the renovation. CPC member Alfred Holman said the committee was reluctant to contribute the funds "only to have an expectation of failure when the final numbers are asked for."

Needham's Special Town Meeting convenes Monday, Oct. 27, at 7:30 p.m. at the Newman Elementary School on Central Avenue .