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DECEMBER 15, 2022
WILLISTON’S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1985
WWW.WILLISTONOBSERVER.COM
Town budget draft shows 6.5% increase Wells presents $14 million proposal for upcoming year BY JASON STARR Observer staff It will cost the Town of Williston an additional $857,000 to maintain current operations through the upcoming fiscal year, according to a draft annual budget Town Manager Erik Wells presented to the Williston Selectboard last Tuesday. The $14 million draft budget represents several weeks of preparation by town administrators and department heads and the beginning of selectboard input and consideration. The board plans to host a Jan. 3 public hearing then to finalize a proposal on Jan. 17. The selectboard-approved budget will be up for voter consideration on Town Meeting Day (March 7). The $857,000 spending increase amounts to a 6.5 percent increase over the current fiscal year. It would cost Williston homeowners an additional $32 in property taxes annually for every $100,000 of assessed property value, Wells estimates. On a median-priced ($300,000) home, for example, the annual property tax bill would rise roughly $96. The proposal meets Wells’ goal of increasing less than the rate of inflation, see BUDGET page 2
Rec the halls… Holiday lights are on display and ready to be judged in a friendly competition organized by the Williston Recreation and Parks Department. Residents are encouraged to view the entrants’ displays and vote online for their favorites. Judging begins this Saturday and runs through Dec. 22. More information is available at www.willistonrec.org. OBSERVER PHOTO BY AL FREY
St. Hilaire resigns from selectboard
Gordon St. Hilaire resigned his seat on the Williston Selectboard Tuesday in a statement read by board chair Terry Macaig. “I consider my service to the Town of Williston an honor and have enjoyed my time on the board,” St. Hilaire said, according to Macaig’s reading at the outset of Tuesday’s board meeting. “It has been a pleasure to work with the Williston community.” St. Hilaire had been absent
from the past two board meetings since he was arraigned in Chittenden County Criminal Court on Dec. 1 on charges of stalking and unlawful mischief. He has declined to comment on the charges. His statement Tuesday was his first public statement since the charges were filed; it did not address the charges. St. Hilaire pleaded not guilty in court. The charges stem from a series of incidents this fall when St. Hilaire is alleged to have
gone to the home and workplace of his ex-girlfriend and deflated the tires on her car. According to police, an officer staked out the workplace in Williston and caught St. Hilaire carrying three cartons of eggs. According to Williston Police Officer Avery Lemnah, St. Hilaire admitted he was there to “do some not good things.” He also admitted to deflating the woman’s car tire on multiple occasions,
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Gordon St. Hilaire
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