With a majority of calls being medical in nature, our nationally accredited Fire Department does more than fight fires. Last year, our staff responded to 4,761 medical calls and 202 fires. They recently launched their second Quick Response Vehicle as part of a better, cheaper and faster business model.

Our hard working Sanitation Division staff tipped 30,925 garbage cans per week last year. That's more than 1.6 million cans in 2014! The Public Services Department responded to 5,970 calls for service and maintained 189 Town assets. As part of a Clean Water Act unfunded federal mandate, staff found a cost effective way to educate the public on water quality: they are wrapping garbage trucks with educational messages.

Our Recreation Department held a cost-recovery study that validated the outstanding work done by our employees. Last year, 45,618 individuals registered for at least one program and 10,150 households had at least one participant enrolled in a recreation program. During a single week in October, a resident had 529 recreational programs to choose from.

The Planning and Development Department staff was equally busy in 2014. They issued 8,098 permits, performed 25,742 inspections, and annexed 56 properties for a total of 51.57 acres. The Town grew its inventory of single family dwellings by 622 and multifamily dwellings by 596. The Planning Department received the following submittals: Planning Commission (121), Board of Zoning Appeals (27), Old Village Historic Commission (94), and Design Review Board (99 - or 62 projects).

The Administrative Services Department received the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting (CAFR) for the 26th consecutive year and the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for the third consecutive year. Additionally, the department oversaw an increase in our bond rating for Moody's Investor Service (Aa1) and Standard and Poor's Rating Service (AAA).