Economy guides Town Council goals for 2010

The annual goals set by the Town Council for their upcoming year are driven by current economic conditions, and expand upon the council's consistent goal to provide quality services with as minimal impact as possible on the property tax rate.

The council on Jan. 11, 2010 adopted six overall categories for their goals this year, each separated into actions to seen as "priorities" and "highest priorities."

"The council has been working for a number of weeks on these goals," said council Chair Anne Swift-Kayatta. "I think we've come up with an excellent, though quite ambitious list of things to do this year," she said.

To that end, the council adopted a separate list of "champion" assignments of staff and councilors to specific actions.

The highest priority listed is to advocate with legislators and state officials the need to fairly address the impacts of state funding shortfalls on school funding and other programs. Second highest priority, as in many years past, is to ensure that quality services and programs are maintained with as minimal impact as possible on the property tax rate.

Following these the goals list several means for generating revenue outside of property taxes, with an agressive program for revenues from Fort Williams, and considering a pay-per-bag system of waste disposal at the Recycling Center, as highest priorities.

Other goals are to seek more effective citizen participation in local government, and to practice greater environmental stewardship. Remaining goals look to complete work on various ad hoc committee projects for alternative energy, municipal operations review, and employee health insurance review. The council also seeks to determine the future of library space and library service needs, improve road safety especially in the town center, and complete the Spurwink Church renovation project.

Lastly, the council plans to recognize staff and volunteers for their dedication to Cape Elizabeth.

Cape Elizabeth Town Council
2010 Work Plan/Goals - approved Jan. 11, 2010
Click here for Council Goal Champions

1.   The Town Council, seeking to recognize the challenges faced by citizens in this economy, will:

   Highest Priorities

a.   Advocate in a coalition with other regional communities, and independently, the need for legislators and state officials to fairly address the impacts of state funding shortfalls on school funding and other programs.

b.   Ensure that quality services and programs are maintained with as minimal impact as possible on the property tax rate.

   Priorities

c.   Limit spending to necessary amounts.

d.   Collaborate with other local governments and regional entities in advancing cost savings to effectively provide services.

e.   Continue to work with the Cape Elizabeth School Board on cooperative efforts to maintain an effective education program for our youth.

f.   Prioritize in writing services and infrastructure improvements utilizing extensive citizen input.

g.   Right-size our building infrastructure for current and future services.

h.   Improve financial decision making by appropriately allocating all costs for programs and services.

i.   Continue benchmarking with other communities and undertaking quarterly financial reviews by the Finance Committee.

j.   Direct staff to assist residents with access to programs such as federal fuel assistance, the Maine property tax relief program and the Thomas Jordan Trust.

2 The Town Council, seeking to enhance revenues from sources other than the property tax, will:

   Highest Priorities

a.   Aggressively seek revenues from Fort Williams Park.

b.   Consider a pay per bag/pay per throw option for the Cape Elizabeth Recycling Center.

   Priorities

c.   Review the potential of revenue sharing from Portland Head Light including licensing the Portland Head Light image.

d.   Ask all boards, commissions and committees to provide a report to the Town Council identifying revenue opportunities and request the Town Manager to ask municipal departments to provide similar information.

e.   Review the utilization of space in municipal buildings to determine if underutilized space is available to generate income.

f.   Explore grant opportunities for open space, for alternative energy, for the Shore Road pathway and for other needs.

g.   Collaborate with the School Board to review revenue opportunities suggested at the December public forum on the school subsidy curtailment.

3.   The Town Council, seeking to enhance more effective citizen participation in local government, will:

   Highest Priorities

a.   Re-engineer Town policy development processes to provide for increased and earlier citizen input on key decisions.

b.   Implement a communications strategy to more effectively provide information to citizens on municipal services and on local issues.

   Priorities

c.   Make the municipal website more navigable.

d.   Consider use of surveys and greater use of e-mail distribution lists by the municipal government.

e.   Facilitate collaboration and dialogue among boards and committees.

4 The Town Council will practice greater environmental stewardship and will:

   Highest Priorities

a.   Increase recycling of materials by citizens, the local government and the school department.

b.   Adopt new ordinance provisions to preserve agricultural opportunities in Cape Elizabeth.

   Priorities

c.   Continue implementation of the Comprehensive Plan including the review of new land use regulations.

d.   Review progress on making Cape Elizabeth a “cool community” through the US Conference of Mayors Climate Protection resolution locally adopted in 2009.

e.   Better manage the Town’s open space and the town greenbelt through the development of an Open Space and Greenbelt Management Plan.

f.   Collaborate with the Cape Elizabeth Land Trust and the Cape Elizabeth Farm Alliance to achieve shared goals and objectives.

g.   Provide members of all boards and commissions including the Town Council the opportunity to electronically receive meeting agendas and packets.

h.   Provide citizens the opportunity to conduct more online transactions with the local government including tax bill payments.

5.   The Town Council will collaborate with municipal staff and other parties to:

   Highest Priorities

a.   Act on recommendations from the Alternative Energy, Health Insurance Review, and Municipal Operations Review committees.

b.   Review the Town Center Plan and update as needed.

   Priorities

c.   Complete the restoration of the Spurwink Church.

d.   Determine the future of library space and library service needs in Cape Elizabeth.

e.   Improve road safety especially in the town center.

6.   The Town Council will recognize staff and volunteers for their dedication to Cape Elizabeth.