RICHMOND — Despite concerns about the relatively new town manager’s salary and raise, and debate over whether the town’s transfer station is necessary, residents approved school and town budgets expected to result in a tax increase at the annual town meeting Tuesday night.

About 60 voters took 1 1/2 hours to approve spending items that make up the $3.6 million town budget and $9.1 million school budget. Together, they are projected to increase the tax rate by less than a $1 per $1,000 of assessed property value.

All 57 warrant articles passed, but not without debate.

Gerard Roy asked the $69,376 budget for solid waste and why the town continues to have a transfer station, because not all of the roughly 3,500 residents use it. Roy said because some local private trash haulers pick up recycling for their paying customers, the transfer station, which accepts residents’ wood, mixed recyclables as well as lumber, bulky items like furniture and metal, serves no real purpose.

Wilfred Berdan, a member of the Budget Committee, who also works as manager of the transfer station, estimated between 700 and 800 residents use the transfer station in a typical year.

Other residents noted those numbers reflect the number of households that use the facility, which is open Wednesdays and Saturdays, as often only one resident will bring recyclables to the transfer station from a household that contains multiple members.

Other residents countered that the transfer station provides a valuable service and said they use it often.

“I’m one of those that uses the transfer station and it’s one of the few benefits I get,” from the town, resident Steve Woodcock said. “And it’s a good service to keep, in my opinion.”

A majority of other residents at the meeting agreed, and the funding was approved by a wide margin.

Alice Knapp questioned the $312,312 budget for administration, asking for details on how much town officials paid from that fund make. She also asked, later, for salary information for nearly all town positions.

She said the approximately $110,000 salary that will be paid to Town Manager Jim Chandler for the coming year seemed excessive for Richmond, especially because he’s been on the job about eight months and has been granted a raise.

Chandler said he’s getting a raise of about 5%. That’s in addition to a 3.5% cost of living increase he said all town employees are getting.

Knapp said it seemed like, so far, Chandler was doing a great job for the town but “$110,000 is a lot of money. It seems to me an 8% increase for somebody who has been on the job eight months is a bit much. No offense.”

Chandler said he took no offense.

Laurie Boucher, finance director, said the town manager in neighboring Bowdoinham makes “way more” than Richmond’s manager.

The warrant article funding administration was overwhelmingly approved.

Proposed town spending is up about $6,000, or .27%, from the current year’s budget, Chandler said, with $2.2 million coming from local taxes.

School spending is proposed to increase by about $289,000, or 3.3%, with $5.4 million coming from local taxes, an increase of $210,000, or 4%, according to Superintendent Chad Kempton.

Before the meeting, Chandler estimated the town’s tax rate, currently at $11.20 per $1,000 of assessed valuation, would increase to less than $12 per $1,000 of assessed valuation with voters approving all funding articles put before them. Chandler noted that’s an estimate, as the final numbers won’t be clear until the town’s overall property valuation is set by the state.

State funding for Richmond schools, at $3.4 million, is down $103,000 from the current year.

The school budget must also be approved by voters at the polls in the June 9 elections. Voting will be at the town office at 26 Gardiner St., with polls open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

That’s also when and where residents will pick local elected officials including selectmen and school board members, and consider two proposed amendments to the town’s land-use ordinance in secret ballot voting.