Stonington — With the departure of the town’s longtime sanitarian and health director this spring, the town is revisiting a previously controversial proposal to join the Ledge Light Health District or another regional health agency.

Town Sanitarian Karen Weiss, who has worked for the town since 2005, has told the town she plans to resign as of May 1, while Dr. Michael Blefeld, the director of health for the past 36 years, also plans to depart, according to First Selectman Rob Simmons.

He said Wednesday the departures have created a situation in which the town has to decide whether to remain one of the few municipalities in the state to have its own health department or join a regional provider such as Ledge Light or Uncas Health.

Simmons met Tuesday with Ledge Light officials and learned it would cost the town $135,000 a year to join the agency, which would provide a wide range of services such as restaurant and septic system inspections as well as others the town does not have now.

The cost to maintain the town’s health department is estimated in the proposed 2017-18 budget at $140,000. Simmons said one benefit is that Ledge Light would handle septic system inspections, freeing up town building inspectors to do other work.

But while the cost to the town might be less, Simmons said, Ledge Light fees for things such as restaurant permits would increase for businesses, as the town has not hiked its fees in years.

Simmons said that the town’s 150 food establishments play a crucial role in the local tourism economy.

“So we can’t afford to have any problem with the food we serve,” he said. “We’ve been able to maintain safety with Karen and Michael but we have to take a serious look at Ledge Light because they would provide more services for us.”

If the town did decide to contract with Ledge Light, Simmons said he would want a Ledge Light employee based at Town Hall.

In 2012 Ledge Light approached the town about joining the health district. A large group of local business owners and organizations successfully opposed the idea, saying they were worried about an increase in fees.

In her letter of resignation, Weiss said the responsibilities of her job have continued to grow while the town has not been financially willing to provide her with an additional full-time or consistent part-time assistant. She said the job has become too much for one person to handle and has caused her to worry about what is not getting done.

The proposed 2017-18 budget includes $33,000 to hire a part time sanitarian but adding positions may be difficult with a projected cut in state aid of more than $2 million.

j.wojtas@theday.com