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Click here to read a letter from Robert Protano about his decision not to run for re-election to the Planning Board.
New class: Yogalates
First class is Free!
Yogalates classes will run from February 1 to March 9 at the 1835 Town Hall, 31 Main St., Sterling center.
Jennifer Davidson has combined the idea of creating balance, energy, and flow of breath with the principles of defining long, lean muscular strength and flexibility. This workout will be a challenge. It includes yoga postures, as well as a combination of movements that boost your metabolism, and build strength and flexibility.
Classes are built on one another, so walk-ins are not permitted. This is a four-week intensive class that meets three days a week: Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. The cost is $120. The first class is free.
Register with Jennifer at j.davidson@comcast.net or 978-793-3347. Bring a mat, some water, and dress in active wear.
New date for Applewild School’s Open House
Applewild School’s Open House has been rescheduled due to last Saturday’s snow. The open house will be held on Saturday, January 28, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., with tours beginning at the Marshall Building, 98 Prospect St., Fitchburg. Applewild is a K-8 coeducational, independent day school serving families in central Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire.
Selectmen’s meeting update
by Susan Staudaher
Direction of town budget for next fiscal year discussed
In August, selectmen agreed on a goal of reducing the town’s budget for the next fiscal year by $60,000 to $100,000.
Town Administrator Terri Ackerman has suggested three ways to accomplish that goal: request cuts from town departments, raise fees charged by town departments, and reduce health insurance costs.
Selectman Russ Philpot asserted that raising fees should not be part of the process to reach the goal. “A fee is a tax,” he said on December 21. The goal is not to find revenue, he added, the goal is to spend less and give relief to the taxpayers.
Reducing operating costs could mean cutting personnel, as well as services provided by the town, Selectman Paul Sushchyk said.
Finance Committee Chairman Larry Pape offered the opinion at the January 4 selectmen’s meeting that direction from the Board of Selectmen regarding the budget has been lacking in the past.
“If you would like to direct the town to reduce expenses,” Pape told selectmen, “the department heads have to hear that from you.”
There would need to be a discussion in public session, Sushchyk said, if department heads are going to be asked to reduce their budgets.
Pape offered the opinion that selectmen don’t need to “overly obsess on expense cutting.” The direction could be to spend more for some purpose, he said.
Philpot suggested that selectmen should meet with the Finance Committee and the Capital Fund Committee regarding strategic planning.