West Springfield Mayor William Reichelt kicks off the budget presentation at the Town Council meeting on May 18.
Photo credit: West Side Media
WEST SPRINGFIELD — West Springfield Mayor William Reichelt is emphasizing the town’s strong financial position after releasing the fiscal year 2027 budget.
Reichelt and Chief Financial Officer Sharon Wilcox presented the FY27 budget at the Town Council meeting on May 18, where a public hearing on the capital and operating budget was held.
The town’s operating budget is currently proposed at around $137.2 million with a capital budget of $8.6 million.
Reichelt said budgeting was fairly straightforward, but that many other communities were facing tough economic challenges like budget overrides or significant cuts to departments.
“We are thankfully not in that scenario,” Reichelt said. “Thanks to the department heads that are here behind me, we are in a good position.”
Reichelt wrote in a letter to the Town Council on May 1 that the financial strength didn’t happen by chance, but as a result of “disciplined budgeting, difficult decisions and a decade of careful management on both the municipal and school sides of government.”
Reichelt said that the town was looking at a projected 2.8% increase in property taxes, which stems from a $3.8 million increase from FY26 in the proposed FY27 general fund expenditures.
He added in the letter that “the town never loses sight of what a tax increase means for residents, particularly seniors living on fixed incomes, working families managing rising household costs and longtime homeowners who want to remain in the community they helped build.”
“At the same time, affordability is also central to attracting new families, encouraging
businesses to open or relocate here and supporting continued economic growth,” Reichelt said in the letter. “Our objective is to remain affordable while continuing to provide strong value through reliable services, quality schools, safe neighborhoods and sound infrastructure.”
Wilcox said the FY27 budget is primarily funded by real estate taxes at 58.1% of general fund revenue, followed by state aid at 33.9%. State aid revenue came in at approximately $47.1 million, a 0.91% increase from FY26.
Reichelt said that Chapter 70 state aid did take a hit due to a decrease in school enrollment by 166 students since last year. This decrease led to around $3 million in cuts from the School Department, including the closing of Mittineague Elementary School for a decrease of around $1 million in operating costs annually. He added the cuts were done without any workforce reductions to teachers or paraprofessionals.
The School Department is the biggest expenditure of the general fund, coming in at around $58.75 million, or 42.5%. Municipal costs are next at around $38.75 million, 28.1%, with employee benefits close behind at around $30.2 million, 21.9%.
Wilcox said the budget is a level service budget and a significant change in the operating budget is an increase of municipal recurring expenditures by 5.41%. The school side of recurring expenditure increase is just 0.07%. Pension costs are estimated to increase by 5.4% and health insurance at an estimated 8% increase.
The town has also introduced the new central dispatch station into the budget, which has been fully funded for the first full year of operations and opens at the beginning of July. The station will be a hub for all emergency calls, combining the police, fire and EMS under one roof to improve efficiency and safety. Reichelt recommended $977,076 be put toward the station in the FY27 budget.
There were no public comments during this hearing, so the council voted to keep it open to allow residents the chance to comment at a later meeting. The Town Council will continue to examine the budget over the next few weeks before a final vote is made.
