Council Reviews Fire, Planning Budgets for FY27

Select Board · Meeting of June 9, 2026

BEVERLY — The Beverly City Council's budget committees reviewed fire and planning department spending plans for fiscal 2027, with the CADA shuttle service set to end June 30. Planning Director Darlene Nguyen said her department's budget is dropping to $577,221 from over $784,000 as an associate planner position is cut through attrition, and the consulting line falls nearly 41 percent. Fire Chief Peter O'Connor presented an $8.824 million budget, 94.3 percent of it personnel costs, and said the department will lose its full-time training officer for the first time since the early 1990s.

City Council Budget Analyst Jerry Perry warned overtime appropriations have needed correction in multiple recent years and said, "I pray to God that the chief is right." Councillor Hausman said the current budget "continues to dig" the city's structural deficit rather than resolving it. No votes were taken on either department's budget.

In the full story:

• Planning Department Budget and Staffing
• CADA Shuttle Service Discontinuation
• Consulting Budget and Community Engagement
• Fire Department Staffing and Minimum Coverage
• Overtime Lines and the Structural Deficit Debate
• Turnout Gear, PFAS, and Equipment Costs
• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report: 2,917 words

Source: the Select Board meeting of June 9, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.