A street reconstruction project that has grown by almost $600,000 in the last month may signal the end of the village's almost decade-long era of holding the tax rate steady.

Trustees sent taxpayers an early warning last Monday night that the unchanging tax rate enjoyed for the last nine years may be headed upward.

Driving talk of an increase in taxes is a commitment on the part of the mayor and board to begin work on resurfacing and repairing streets. How aggressively the board approaches the project will determine the need for and amount of a tax increase.

Mayor Wendell Tripp said during the meeting that the sections of Main and Chestnut Streets targeted for work would be enough to gobble up the village's budget surplus which has been growing in recent years and is now approximately $800,000. Working on both those streets at the same time - which would be preferable - would wipe out the surplus, he said.

"There would be no problem in spending the money we have managed to accumulate," Tripp said. "If we were to pursue the project quickly, it would eat up the surplus and we would have to raise taxes."

Last month the board received a first estimate for the project from its engineers with a price tag of slightly more than $1.2 million. Since then, the water, sewer and street departments have gone back over the estimate and have asked that additional work be added to the project, according to DPW Coordinator Brian Clancy.

The village, he said, wants to avoid the classic blunder of repaving streets only to turn around and dig them up a short time later for sewer or water work. Sometimes it is unavoidable, but engineers and village officials are trying to coordinate activities to avoid the situation. The result has been increased cost.

Project spending is divided into three categories depending on whether it is for sewer, water or street work. Costs attributed for streets rose from a little more than $1 million in the first estimate to almost $1,280,000; for sewer the estimate climbed by over $140,00 and water was up $125,000.

Not all of the money for would come from the general fund, but the general fund would "take the biggest hit," Tripp said.

The funds to pay for upgrades to the water and sewer systems come from ratepayers as part of their bill and is based on their usage.

Street repairs would be paid for through the general fund, separate from the work done to sewer and water lines in conjunction with the reconstruction project. Money raised for general fund spending through the village tax rate is not based on a property owner's usage, as in the case of the water and sewer bills, but is based on the assessed value of the property.

In addition to the general fund surplus, the village also has approximately a quarter million dollars in a reserve fund earmarked for street improvements, but it would still be short of the estimated cost.

The shortfall would be made up in a tax increase unless the village can spread the project over a long enough period in an effort to set aside money in anticipation of the future work.

The $360,000 portion of the project for the sewer and water work will be figured into the rates charged users.

The village is already involved in a major capital project to upgrade its sewer system in an effort to reduce the amount of storm and ground water that has been infiltrating the system and taxing the treatment plant. There were also improvements made to the water system to increase its pumping capacity and there have been talks of building a new reservoir. Both measures address worries about not being able to process sufficient water during peak demand in the summer season.

The streets under consideration and the cost estimate are: Main Street from Pine Blvd. to River Street, $536,000; Chestnut Street from Main Street to Glen Avenue, $442,000; Susquehanna Avenue from Elm Street to Susquehanna River, $523,000; Beaver Street from Susquehanna Avenue to Fair Street, $107,000; and Beaver Street from Susquehanna Avenue to Delaware Street, and Eagle Street south 200 feet, $198,000.

The proposed street work is an effort to solve some long-standing problems that patching can no longer fix and represents the beginning of what could be a 10-year program that would see all the streets in the village repaved, Tripp said earlier this year. The program came out of an agreement by the trustees at budget time this year to spend surplus funds on street improvements rather than giving it back to taxpayers in the form of a tax cut.

Earlier this year, trustees approved hiring Lamont Engineers to assess the work necessary to bring the streets up to par and give the board an idea of how much it will cost.

Mayor Tripp, streets committee chairman Ed Tripp, streets superintendent Carter Coleman and DPW coordinator Brian Clancy walked over village streets they believed need repair with representatives from the engineering firm.

The streets targeted, Ed Tripp said, represent a combination of the highest traffic areas and some of the worst surface conditions.

The village and engineers anticipate the work will include selective curb replacement, handicap ramps for the sidewalk at street crossings, selective storm sewer and catch basin replacement, drainage improvement and milling and repaving the streets.