Budget talks underway in Kennett Twp.

Posted by Monica Fragale on November 22, 2019

The Kennett Township supervisors will continue the 2020 budget discussion at a special meeting Monday, where they are expected to discuss the possibility of a sewer rate increase. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at the township building.

The township manager and finance director discussed the general fund budget with the supervisors and the public at Wednesday’s almost four-and-a-half hour-long meeting but were not able to fully discuss budgets for the sewer and open space funds because of time constraints. Both the sewer and open space funds are projected to have deficits in 2020.

Township Manager Eden Ratliff said the overall township budget will be formally presented at the supervisors’ Dec. 4 meeting for approval by the end of the month.

Draft budget documents can be found on the township’s website at kennett.pa.us.

Budget documents presented both on Wednesday and at a Nov. 13 budget meeting go in-depth into where money is coming from, where it is being spent, and ways in which costs could be reduced.

“We really appreciate all the community’s input,” township Manager Eden Ratliff said.

All revenue and expenditure requests for the general fund – which included EMS and general fund capital expenditures – came in with a deficit of $569,226. Between Nov. 13 and Wednesday — and armed with suggestions from the public about where they would rather see money spent – Ratliff and Finance Director Amy Heinrich took a closer look at where they could save money. The version presented Wednesday projected a surplus of $55,224.

About Monica Fragale

Monica Thompson Fragale is a freelance reporter who spent her life dreaming of being in the newspaper business. That dream came true after college when she started working at The Kennett Paper and, years later The Reporter newspaper in Lansdale and other dailies. She turned to non-profit work after her first daughter was born and spent the next 13 years in that field. But while you can take the girl out of journalism, you can’t take journalism out of the girl. Offers to freelance sparked the writing bug again started her fingers happily tapping away on the keyboard. Monica lives with her husband and two children in Kennett Square.