Rochester’s Park Commission on August 21 focused its discussion on needing a bigger budget for FY26.
Commission Chair David Sylvia said the board hasn’t had a budget increase since he began serving on the board 21 years ago. Its annual allotment is $25,000 for expenses and another $7,000 for salaries. He said the department will likely exhaust its salary account by November due to a part-time employee, an Old Colony Regional Vocational-Technical High School student who is currently maintaining the town’s athletic fields.
The commissioners concluded they will ask for funding increases as high as double current levels when the next budget cycle rolls around, early next year. As examples of the dilemmas they face, commission member Kenneth Ross said fencing around the athletic fields needs replacing every year. Sylvia said the commission cut back on fertilizer for the fields’ grounds in 2025 to use the funds on other important projects. That cut shaved from the budget $2,000-3,000 for a single application, but the commission said it’s a move that should not be repeated.
The commission cannot keep cutting back on fertilizer every year, member Nathan Reece said. “Rochester people don’t want their fields to turn into a dust bowl,” he said. The commission needs to update its budget to make it realistic, he noted, as the cost of everything keeps going up.
The commission agreed to seek some kind of budget increase based on exact calculations of what extra funding they need.
The commission did not set up its next meeting before adjourning.
Rochester Park Commission
By Michael J. DeCicco