Voters appeared to have the volatile economy on their mind as they voted on town warrant articles on Tuesday, March 11.

The operating budget, a new public works facility, improvements to Bolton Field and many fire and police department staffing requests were denied.

About 27 percent of voters showed up at the polls to shoot down the requests.

The town’s proposed budget of $4,658,578 failed with voters, even though it was just $128,708 higher than the default figure, by 803-734.

Town officials hoped to get a proposed budget passed to cover increased fuelrelated expenses.

The tax rate with the default budget will be $2.12 per $1,000 of assessed property value. There is a difference of about $45 between the projected tax bills the proposed and default budgets would result in for a $300,000 home.

The passing of all warrant articles would have added another $1.52 to the rate already determined by the budget.

The $975,000 bond to construct a new public works garage in town failed 779-759 vote.

A warrant item asking voters to authorize the Board of Selectmen to enter into a bond for $435,000 to fund the first phase of necessary improvements to the Bolton Field Memorial Complex failed by a wide margin of 1,293 to 246, even after the original bond for $1.25 million was reduced by voters at the deliberative session.

Warrant articles asking voters to fund two new full-time police officers and two firefighter/ EMTs also failed.

An article proposing $57,028 to implement a new pay scale for town employees failed 779-790.

Republican Gary Hopper won the state representative vote over Democrat Stephen Brzozowski 851-599.

Keith LaCasse and Richard Butt were elected to the Board of Selectmen; Joshua Solomon and David Bougher were also running.