WINDSOR — Residents approved all items within a $2.09 million town budget, a 4.9% increase to current spending, at Wednesday night’s annual Town Meeting in Windsor.

About 50 voters took a little more than an hour to go through the annual Town Meeting warrant, approving each article posed to them without any audible opposition, including $194,940 for public safety which, Town Manager Theresa Haskell explained in response to a resident’s question, includes funding for the fire chief, emergency medical services director, animal control officer, dispatching services and ambulance services.

This year, for the first time, the budget included about $40,000 to pay Delta Ambulance to provide ambulance services to the town.

Haskell said previously that Delta did not charge the town a per capita fee and recouped money only by billing individuals or their insurance companies for transport calls, but because it recently lost revenue from serving Waterville and Winslow, Delta is now assessing towns that use its services a per capita fee to help cover its costs.

Haskell said spending in the town budget is up a bit, about $97,000, but is offset by increased revenues of $98,000. Most of the increased revenues comes from an increased use of fund balance, funds unspent in previous years and used to offset the impact on taxes.

Haskell said the town’s share of the budget should not result in a property tax increase. He said there is about $1.3 million in the town’s fund balance, which is well within auditors’ recommendations for funds to have on hand in case of emergencies.

“This budget was a struggle, with the rate of inflation, cost of living and the cost of goods and services increasing across the board by 8%,” Haskell said. “By increasing our revenue side, as the expense side went up, it created a flat budget for the town’s share of the mill (property tax) rate.”

Haskell said, however, that the school budget, approved by voters Tuesday, had an increase of $182,000 in Windsor’s share of the Regional School Unit 12 spending plan.

Shortly after the meeting began, Select Board Chairman Ray Bates paused for a moment to recognize outgoing board members Rick Gray and Ronald Brann for their years of service to the town. Both declined to run for reelection.

Gray’s service included 15 years on the Select Board and 16 years on the budget committee, while Brann served 18 years on the Select Board and six years on the budget committee.

Both men, in elections held Tuesday, were elected to return to the budget committee. And Gray joked that he planned to run for Bates’ position.

In municipal elections held in secret balloting at the polls Tuesday, Tom McNaughton, with 101 votes, and Chester Barnes Jr., 95 votes, were elected to the Windsor Select Board, defeating Kyoko Roderick, 51 votes, and Ed Pollard II, 36 votes, in a four-way race for two seats on the board.

Pollard was elected to the RSU 12 board of directors, with 134 votes. He was unopposed on the ballot for the seat.

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