WESTHAMPTON — At Westhampton’s annual Town Meeting this Saturday, voters will consider a $7 million budget for fiscal 2025 and decide whether to fund a solar installation project atop the new Public Safety Complex.

The budget represents a modest 4.4% increase from the current fiscal year, reflecting the desire to keep costs low for residents, said Douglas Finn, Westhampton’s town administrator.

“Property values are rising every year here, which presents a challenge for aging residents trying to stay in their homes. When we build a budget, we make sure to keep that in mind. For that reason, we try to keep expenses to a minimum.”

The biggest project being proposed this year is the installation of a solar photovoltaic energy generation system at the town’s Public Safety Complex, which finished construction in 2023. The vote on this article will include “design and engineering services, permitting, installation, interconnection services, any other necessary equipment or services, and all other incidental and related expenses” for the project, according to the language of the article.

The project has been anticipated by the town government since the completion of the new Public Safety Complex, which was built with a solar energy system in mind.

“The complex was always designed to have a solar array on the roof,” said Finn. “The building is in a spot that gets plenty of sun, and the roof is built at a particular angle specifically for that reason.”

The overall project is estimated to cost roughly $182,000, but the town expects to receive about $54,720 from a federal energy investment tax credit available to towns and businesses. This makes the proposed net cost to the town $127,680, and Town Meeting voters will be asked to approve the borrowing this amount over the next 10 years.

According to Finn, the solar energy generation system is expected to “completely offset the energy use of the building,” by generating a surplus of energy to be sold back into the power grid, resulting in a net zero energy budget for the building and a savings of more than $1,000 a year.

If approved, the system would be installed in the summer of 2025.

In the future, the town hopes to also install solar photovoltaic systems at the Town Hall and the neighboring Town Annex building, achieving net-zero energy efficiency for these sites as well.

Budget, other items

Education expenses are expected to come in at 3.1%, $4.2 million, more this year over the current year. That’s ??% of the town’s total budget.

In the coming year, town officials plan to examine the town’s per-resident education cost and seek opportunities to mitigate the cost burden on residents.

“The biggest challenge for us in any given year is the education budget,” said Finn. “Westhampton’s per-resident education cost is higher than in any of the surrounding towns. We’re going to start working at that — getting solid answers on why that’s the case and what we can do about it.”

Residents who attend this year’s Town Meeting will also be asked to approve the purchase of a $70,000 wheeled excavator for the Highway Department to use in future development and maintenance, as well as replacement of office equipment including “computer workstations, laptops, monitors, printers, and accessories” for municipal employees at the Town Hall, Town Annex, Westhampton Public Library, and Public Safety Complex.

Voters will also decide on the approval of $10,000 to be allocated for town’s sestercentennial celebration, or “Westhampton’s biggest birthday party ever,” as stated on the town’s website. The celebration will commemorate the 250th anniversary of the town’s incorporation as a Massachusetts municipality in 2028 with a “year-long series of talks, presentations, musical performances, and other events, to celebrate Westhampton’s History.”

Town Meeting takes place Saturday at Town Hall. Doors will open at 9 a.m.

Alexa Lewis can be reached at alewis@gazettenet.com or on Instagram and Twitter @alexamlewis.