Windsor board keeps $1.2 million for LaBue Park design in proposed 2027 budget, drops rain garden

Windsor Town Board members backed $1.2 million for LaBue Park design, $60,000 for a historical bronze art project and a $100,000 down-payment assistance reserve in the proposed 2027 budget during a Nov. 9 wrap-up session, but did not support funding the Middle School Rain Garden at that time.

All board members supported including park design money for LaBue Park in the proposed 2027 budget. A phasing plan is proposed, with phase 1 in the 2028 budget. The revised Capital Improvement Plan lists $1,200,000 for the design in 2027, $8,000,000 in 2028 and $15,000,000 in the long-term column, for a total of $24,200,000.

The board supported $60,000 for Windsor Severance Historical Bronze Art in 2027 and a $60,000 placeholder in 2028. Staff included $60,000 in the proposed 2027 Mayor & Town Board General Fund budget. Board Member Ron Steinbach said four or five years would be the maximum timeline for the project, while Mayor Julie Cline said three years would allow for possible delays.

A staff member said there was "not a ton of recourse" if the project was not completed after its funding was spent. The staff member suggested discussing the project's timeline and assurances at a board meeting.

The board sought to reserve 2027 funding for a potential down-payment assistance program if DOLA or NoCo Foundation grants or matching opportunities became available. Four members favored $100,000 and three favored $125,000, and staff included $100,000 in the proposed budget. The ad hoc committee that worked on the topic recommended initial eligibility that included teachers and fire personnel, while staff awaited board direction on how to implement the program.

The board did not support funding the Middle School Rain Garden at that time, and staff removed it from the proposed Water Fund Capital Improvement Plan. One board member supported the proposal with $50,000 and possible grants, while other members considered its cost too high for curb-area improvements.

A staff member said the board was willing to pursue grant funding if a grant covered 100% of the cost, asking whether members would be okay with it "if we were able to get a grant to pay for 100% of it."

The proposed 2027 Capital Improvement Plan includes $2 million for shooting-range design and construction. Staff said the proposed location is in a floodplain, that fencing is permitted there and that raising the range out of the floodplain is not recommended.

Staff estimated that a local range would provide nearly all of the department's firearms training and eliminate commuting and rental costs. Staff planned to schedule a first-quarter 2027 work session on the range's location and design assumptions.

Steinbach questioned why five additional positions were needed after six positions had been approved for district policing. He estimated that approving the lieutenant and Deputy Chief positions would result in 17 supervisors for 64 staff members, or about 2.7 officers per supervisor.

A police official said the department's first-line supervisors lacked a management backstop and that a commander was the only management level working in the field. Board Member Brian Jones said, "I don't want to be the one to micromanage" staffing positions, which he viewed as the chief's responsibility, and that he expected no reduction in service.

The budget discussion compared a finance projection of more than $800,000 in police overtime for 2026 with approximately $200,000 budgeted for 2027. The police official said the 2027 figure was a judgment call made while new hires came on board, and that "I didn't want to use the levels in which we had staffing issues as the baseline."

Staff gave two assumptions for reducing 2027 overtime. One is a capped, structured plan for approving outside training, which staff expect to reduce open shifts and training costs. The other is enforcing a flex policy for hourly employees' time at internal meetings and training, which often occurs on off-duty days.

An assessment found approximately 105 acquired streetlight locations had reached or exceeded their useful service life. They include approximately 25 degraded fiberglass poles and 80 fixtures mounted on Xcel Energy distribution poles. The proposed Capital Improvement Plan budgets $175,000 for streetlight safety and modernization in 2027 and $420,000 annually from 2028 through 2031, for a project total of $1,855,000.

A staff member said the town had acquired 2,800 Xcel lights, of which 105 were in poor condition, and that the plan this year included work on 15 lights.

Staff recommended setting aside $1 million for advance vehicle purchases. Staff said they anticipated several years of large Police Department replacements and that the fleet budget was typically around $1.3 million.

Police vehicle replacements were projected at 14 units totaling $1.4 million in 2028, 10 units totaling $1.1 million in 2029 and 14 units totaling $1.4 million in 2030. Police Department replacements follow a seven-year cycle.

Proposed Personnel Services spending rises from $34.8 million in 2026 to $37.5 million in 2027, an increase of 7.7%. Staff listed four drivers:

• $1.3 million for new personnel and reclassifications
• $0.8 million for merit and step increases
• $0.3 million for pay-study differentials
• $0.4 million for medical premiums