Page 2 THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, JUNE 13, 2025 City Council subcommittee budget discussions continue over public safety, DPW Advocate Staff Report T he City Council’s Ways and Means Subcommittee spent two days this week combing through individual city department budgets prior to the council’s vote on the 2026 budget later this month. It was a smooth couple of days: no raised voices, no disputes. Councillors took advantage of the time to compliment department heads on diff erent programs and services and to ask what type of support would best suit their needs. Department heads described the past year’s accomplishments and most presented level funding budgets. Even the big three, Police, Fire and Public Works, were not asking for any major increases. The School Department was also scheduled to present the district’s budget, but school offi cials are in the process of fi - nalizing the numbers. “Our budget is pretty much the same as last year,” acting Fire Dept. Chief James Cullen told the committee. “We’re down a couple of positions we didn’t fi ll and will remain unfi lled. Other than that, everything is pretty much as it is.” Interim Police Chief Maria LaVita had similar news about the Police Department. “Everything looks in line with the way it looked last year,” LaVita told councillors. Some department heads notHappy Memorial Day Weekend! 2.79 24 Mid-grade Regular $3.37 24 Over 47 Years of Excellence! 1978 - 2025 Full Service ULS TRUCK STOP $2.73 Order online at angelosoil.com ed it is a diffi cult time for the city and they will focus on the future when more funding may be available. Throughout the budget presentations, there was a sense of the city pulling together to get over the hump. Some trends did emerge during the discussions. Staffing seems to be a challenge for diff erent departments. The Dept. of Public Works is down a couple of laborers. The Police Department is budgeted for 112 offi cers. Currently, there are 102 on the force. The Fire Department has 119 uniformed fi refi ghters. Last year, there were 122. “We hope to get manpower up over the next few years,” said Cullen. Chief Financial Offi cer Richard Viscay fi lled in details for several budgets, such as the reorganization of Public Works and other effi ciencies found through consolidation or technology. The City Council is scheduled to vote on the budget at their meeting on June 23. COMMITTEE | FROM Page 1 at McKinley School, and transportation costs are expected to continue to increase. Still, committee member John Kingston felt the district should leave the transportation program as it is. “We’re rushing a process,” said Kingston, who felt that making major changes this late in the school year is too much. Kingston felt that the better choice is to wait until next year and hold parent meetings to discuss all the options, including eliminating the middle school lottery and moving to neighborhood middle schools. “If these two changes are made, we can look at the lottery and think through what impact neighborhood middle schools would have on school culture,” said Schools Supt. Dianne Kelly. However, Kelly also warned that some data suggests that when transportation becomes more difficult, attendance, especially with adolescents, decreases. “That would be something we would want to watch,” said Kelly. Other committee members said that students have asked for CharlieCards, and the passes will benefi t students who work in Boston after school or students who want to visit friends and still have a ride home. The cost of CharlieCards is $30 a month, $300 a year per student, which is significantly less than the buses needed to transport those students. Kingston stressed to any families listening to the meeting, “We have done nothing with elementary transportation. Elementary is untouched.” RevereTV Spotlight C ongratulations to the Revere High School Class of 2025! RevereTV live streamed the graduation ceremony on all outlets last week and is now replaying it on television on the Community Channel through the month of June. To view it at your own convenience, you can fi nd full coverage of the ceremony posted to the RevereTV YouTube page. Covering the graduation ceremony is a tradition at RTV and includes the procession, speeches and conferring of degrees. This year it was a beautiful evening at Harry Della Russo Stadium. This week on “In the Loop,” the liaisons were here to remind you that summer is here, which means the Revere Beach Farmers Market is just around the corner! The market brings together farmers, artisans and small businesses, along with their fresh produce, baked goods and handmade products, all to serve our community. This year, the market runs every Friday from July 11 through September 26, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Waterfront Square at Revere Beach. The market accepts SNAP, HIP, WIC and senior vouchers. Once the Farmers Market starts, RevereTV will produce a short video tour of the market to preview this year’s vendors. Stay tuned for that! Right at the end of May, local chef and registered dietician Victoria Fabbo recorded another episode of “Fabulous Foods” to highlight Asian American and Pacifi c Islander Heritage Month. In this exciting new episode now airing on the Community Channel, Victoria is joined by special guests Stephanie from Boston RevereTV | SEE Page 31 FLEET CARD Check Out Our LOW PRICES!
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