KEENE, N.H.  (MyKeeneNow) Following weeks of debate and public input, the Keene City Council on Thursday night approved an $82 million municipal budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, with changes that increase funding for local nonprofits including Arts Alive, The Community Kitchen, Keene Housing Kids Collaborative, and the Keene Senior Center. The new budget will take effect July 1.

The final vote on the operating budget passed unanimously after councilors spent over an hour reviewing proposed amendments and last-minute funding adjustments. Most notably, councilors voted 8-6 to increase the city’s contribution to Arts Alive from the initially proposed $500 to $10,000, in response to the nonprofit’s significant loss in federal and state funding.

Councilor Bobby Williams, who co-sponsored the successful amendment alongside Councilor Laura Tobin, emphasized the importance of keeping the arts vibrant in the region. Councilor Michael Remy had proposed a competing amendment to allocate $7,000 to Arts Alive by reducing the Senior Center’s funding by $6,500, but that motion failed.

The adopted changes included modest increases for other organizations: The Community Kitchen will receive $115,000 (up from $110,000), the Keene Housing Kids Collaborative will get $13,000 (up from $12,500), and the Senior Center’s funding rose by $1,250 to $17,750. In total, outside agency funding now stands at $344,350 — a small but important slice of the city’s $82 million budget.

Budget Breakdown and Tax Impact

The approved general fund includes $30,307,615 to be raised by taxation and $45,888,796 in estimated operating revenues, totaling $76,196,411, with an additional $5,566,255 allocated for capital expenditures and reserves.

This results in a projected tax rate of $13.59 per $1,000 of assessed property value, a 2.1% increase over the current rate of $13.31. That means the owner of a $300,000 home will pay about $4,077 in city property taxes — an increase of about $84.

Finance department staff noted that while state municipal aid remains flat, the city expects $600,000 in added interest income and a $100,000 boost in motor vehicle registration fees to help offset some spending increases.

Key spending priorities include:

  • $648,000 for four new firefighter positions and wage adjustments

  • $126,000 for expanded part-time library staffing

  • $1.49 million for personnel increases across all departments

Nonprofit Requests and Budget Debate

The budget process began in early May and drew significant public engagement, particularly around allocations to local nonprofits. At the June 5 public hearing, Iris shared that Arts Alive had lost a $25,000 National Endowment for the Arts grant and turned down a $30,000 federal grant due to compliance issues with federal restrictions on DEI programming. A proposed cut of nearly $1.3 million to the N.H. State Council on the Arts also raised concerns.

Meanwhile, Keene Senior Center board president Ockle Johnson asked the city to increase its allocation from $16,500 to $20,000, citing their role serving nearly 300 Keene residents. Executive Director Kimberly Rumrill said the nonprofit is currently operating at a $94,000 deficit and may have to raise membership fees — a move that could put services out of reach for fixed-income seniors.

Councilor Bryan Lake ultimately championed increases for all four major nonprofits, noting in a letter to the council that “reduced federal and state support for community-based organizations is shifting the burden onto municipalities.” His proposal to draw $9,500 from capital reserves helped make the increases possible.

This story was updated to correct the proposed cut to the N.H. State Council on the Arts