KEENE, N.H. (MyKeeneNow) The Keene City Council tackled a wide-ranging agenda Thursday night that included housing policy, neighborhood concerns, downtown infrastructure projects and the first formal steps in reviewing the city’s proposed fiscal year 2027 budget.

Among the most notable items was a request from several councilors to begin implementing housing-related recommendations from the city’s 2025 Comprehensive Master Plan. The proposal was referred to the Joint Planning Board and the Planning, Licenses and Development Committee for discussion at its June 8 meeting.

Councilors also referred a draft resolution from Councilor Phil Jones opposing the continued “downshifting” of costs from the state onto local property taxpayers to the Finance, Organization and Personnel Committee. The discussion followed a recent public town hall on state funding issues hosted by Mayor Jay Kahn and moderated by Sen. Donovan Fenton.

City Manager Elizabeth Ferland referenced that meeting during her comments, saying the issue of state aid and local tax burdens remains a major concern for municipalities and school districts across New Hampshire. The City plans to distribute scanned copies of unanswered town hall question cards to Cheshire County officials, school representatives, Sen. Fenton and the mayor so responses can still be provided publicly.

The council also addressed several neighborhood and quality-of-life concerns. A request from resident Terri O’Rorke seeking regulations for excessive daytime dog barking was referred to the Municipal Services, Facilities and Infrastructure Committee for review.

Five reports from the Municipal Services Committee were accepted as informational, covering issues ranging from parking enforcement on Marlboro Street to future parking plans near the skate park, proposed changes to dog regulations at Woodland Cemetery, updates on the 2026 construction season and progress on the city’s downtown infrastructure project.

A major focus of the evening was Ferland’s presentation of the proposed FY27 budget. The spending plan includes a roughly $57 million general fund operating budget and would increase the city portion of the tax rate by approximately 6.7%.

Ferland said rising personnel expenses continue to be the largest driver of the budget, alongside increases in utilities, insurance, infrastructure maintenance and the city’s transition to cloud-based technology systems.

Public safety spending accounted for a significant portion of the proposed increases. Ferland said the fire department has already added eight firefighter positions in recent years to maintain service levels, with wage costs increasing by approximately $1.4 million. The city is now exploring the addition of four more firefighters — one per shift above minimum staffing levels — to help reduce overtime demands.

Councilors agreed to continue discussions on that proposal in the coming months. Ferland also emphasized the city’s reliance on outside funding sources to complete major projects, noting the budget includes more than $9.3 million in grant funding for capital improvements and infrastructure work.

The council scheduled a public hearing on the proposed budget for June 4 and will begin detailed budget workshops with the Finance, Organization and Personnel Committee starting May 12.

Other actions Thursday included accepting $10,450 in donated funds for designated municipal purposes, granting additional time for committee work on traffic congestion concerns on Royal Avenue during school pickup hours, and approving procedural steps related to zoning ordinance amendments.