Norwich - City employees and residents opposed to last-minute staff and program cuts being considered by the City Council packed the Council Chambers Monday, angrily arguing that the cuts would devastate city services, hurt the tax base and cause the city to lose grants.

Employees, residents, supporters of city recreation and senior programs protested that the cuts arose just two weeks before the final budget adoption, with no public discussion prior to Monday night's council meeting. The public comment period Monday night lasted two and half hours.

Staffing cuts alone totaled about $1.1 million and include eliminating two Human Services caseworkers and an account clerk in that office, merging the recreation and senior center director positions, eliminating the recreation administrative secretary, eliminating the emergency management director's position, the blight enforcement officer and code enforcement secretary and a street foreman position.

The cuts would reduce the projected tax increase from 5 percent to 2 percent, putting it at 27.07 mills.

The City Council postponed discussion on the proposed budget cuts to next Monday. The council must adopt a budget by June 10.

Human Services Department officials said the agency provides vital resources to struggling families in a poor community with 14 percent of the population at or below the poverty line.

If the cuts are made, the department would lose "hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants" because the agency would not have the staff to run grant-funded programs. Lee Ann Gomes, social work supervisor, said when families come to the office - 176 in the past week alone - they receive referrals to programs and services, not a straight check.

"When we write a grant that helps a family pay their rent," Gomes said, "the beneficiary is the landlord, who then can pay his property taxes. When we administer Operation Fuel, or Project Warm Up that helps a working poor family pay their electric bill, the beneficiary is (Norwich Public Utilities) who then contributes to the general fund. … Without people to do this work, we lose real dollars to our community."

Todd Guertin, president of the Police Athletic League youth sports program, said the Recreation Department Director C. Roger Moss and his staff put in long hours to support the city's youth. Like several others, Guertin said he was surprised and "saddened" to hear of the proposed cuts so late in the budget process.

Residents Kent Kirkpatrick and Rodney Bowie, however, received a smattering of applause from the more than 150 people in attendance when they told the council that residents on fixed incomes can't afford high tax increases each year.

Kirkpatrick said he has seen a decrease in his income during the recession and urged the council to keep the tax increase down or eliminate it. Kirkpatrick asked the council to consider rolling furloughs to save money and avoid layoffs.

Resident Linda Lancz said she was "appalled" that the cuts are being announced at the last minute, calling it unfair that the council is considering layoffs one week from the budget vote. A retired public employee, Lancz said public employees are doing the jobs of two and three workers already.

Lancz also questioned why some city employees are getting raises while others are getting jobs cut. Lancz became angry when Mayor Peter Nystrom asked her to summarize as she listed several items she considered wasteful city spending - including a $100,000 deposit for a failed police station relocation and $275,000 in the budget for a police armored vehicle.

Ulia Rauez said she faced an eviction notice and electricity shutoff five years ago when she went to Human Services for help. Caseworker Mary Bartlett, who would be laid off in the budget cut, worked with her. Now, she told the council, she has a job and helps other needy families at the nonprofit agency Madonna Place on Franklin Street.

Retired Rose City Senior Center Director Janice Stewart, who uses the programs, said she has seen only one alderman and the city manager attend programs there. She called it "ludicrous" that the senior center and recreation director positions be merged. She said hundreds of families with children in the city schools use the programs.

"It would take two people to do each of these jobs to replace these people," she said.

Michelle Picard-Doyle, a parent of two boys in PAL, said she and her husband recently decided to send her children to other schools, because the public schools are not as good as when they attended. But Picard-Doyle said she would gladly pay the 5 percent tax increase, $290 per year for her small house, if it meant improved city schools and city services.

"I love this city," she said. "I would do anything for this city."

c.bessette@theday.com