Council Wraps Three Nights of Budget Hearings
Chelsea City Council closed three nights of fiscal 2027 budget hearings without a vote, setting a June 8 vote date. Vice President Norieliz DeJesus presided as officials walked through the clerk, parking, legislative, auditing and debt budgets.
City Council · Meeting of May 20, 2026
Chelsea City Council closed three nights of fiscal 2027 budget hearings without a vote, setting a June 8 vote date. Vice President Norieliz DeJesus presided as officials walked through the clerk, parking, legislative, auditing and debt budgets. City Clerk Jeanette Cintron-White reported voter turnout rose from about 9 percent to nearly 12 percent and said a mobile clerk van, costing roughly $300,000, remains on hold.
Parking's enforcement-contract line rose about $90,000 on living-wage increases, drawing pushback from Councilor Taylor, who said the explanation "doesn't suffice." City Auditor Sochet Tote reported 26 straight years of clean external audits. The city manager called this year's roughly $1 million in new growth "embarrassing," citing figures four times higher three years ago, and urged the council to "spend less, and grow more."
In the full story:
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Source: the City Council meeting of May 20, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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