Stoneham Override Study Committee Sets Working Cost Baseline Ahead of September 30 Report Deadline

STONEHAM -- September 10, 2025, Stoneham Override Study Committee builds a preliminary department-by-department cost baseline, targeting a September 30 report to the Select Board. Meeting for more than three hours on September 10, the committee reached working consensus, without formal votes, on restoration figures for several departments: approximately $136,000 for the Council on Aging, roughly $232,000 to $247,000 for the public library, $415,000 for police, $366,000 for fire, $128,325 for DPW mechanics, and $1.4 million for shared services costs like health insurance. Town Administrator Dennis Sheehan cautioned repeatedly that one-time funding sources used in the FY26 budget, including a $100,000 free cash transfer to the library and a $1.2 million stabilization fund draw for schools, inflate the apparent baseline and must be accounted for in any sustainable override figure. One member who assembled an independent composite estimate put the total at roughly $9.7 to $9.8 million before school department figures are confirmed; the superintendent is scheduled to present at the committee's September 16 meeting, when the state legislative delegation will also appear. A resident presenting outstanding tax receivables totaling $2,574,271 as of June 30, 2025 warned that a tax increase could worsen collection shortfalls, noting, "This is a vicious circle."