Chatham Cuts Budget by $706,000, Spends $650,000 on Emergency Stage Harbor Dredging

CHATHAM — August 11, 2020 — Chatham officials outlined a $706,000 operating budget cut and a $650,000 emergency Stage Harbor dredging bill in the Summer Residence Advisory Committee's first-ever virtual annual presentation, aired August 11, 2020 on Channel 18. Town Manager Jill Goldsmith and Finance Director Alex Halela described how the fiscal year 2021 operating budget was reduced to $31,826,221 and local estimated receipts were slashed to $4,772,000 — about 57 percent of prior-year actuals — as meals and hotel-motel tax revenue collapsed during the spring shutdown. The estimated fiscal year 2021 tax rate stands at $4.98 per thousand, still the lowest on Cape Cod, and the town's AAA bond rating was reaffirmed with a stable outlook in June. Coastal Resources Director Ted Keon warned that Stage Harbor's severe shoaling, which required both a federal hopper dredge and a $650,000 private dredging contract in one season, "is not going away" and will demand continued large-scale investment.