LEWISTON — Some last-minute wrangling among councilors led them to adopt a  2015-16 city budget Tuesday night.

Councilors walked out of a pre-meeting workshop saying they would not be able to settle their budget without more information about the costs of replacing public works vehicles. They made tentative plans to push a scheduled vote on the budget back to a special May 12 meeting and took a short break.

During the break, Councilor Mark Cayer got councilors to agree to a capital projects plan that cut a $250,000 street sweeper and delayed $250,000 worth of work on the River Front Island Master Plan but added $475,000 in street pavement projects.

“I appreciate all the councilors taking a moment to talk to me,” Cayer said. “Several have different ideas, but I think we can work this out.”

It allowed councilors to adopt a budget on first reading Tuesday night and schedule a final budget hearing for May 19.

Councilors approved the $43.4 municipal spending plan, including $29.9 million in property tax collections for city services and $2.37 million for Androscoggin County.

Combined with school and county taxes, it would give the city a property tax rate of $27.37 for every $1,000 of assessed value and a tax bill of $4,105 on a $150,000 home. That’s a $117 increase compared to the 2014-15 fiscal year budget.

Councilors also approved a $3.7 million school budget increase, that would increase the city’s tax rate by 4.3 percent. Members of the Lewiston School Committee approved their budget April 8.

Councilor Mike Lachance said the school budget was not popular with anyone.

“While I don’t particularly like it, I understand it,” Lachance said. “I have heard from constituents who’ve implored me not to approve and others that implore me to approve it. I’ve heard from constituents who want more high school teachers and others who want more elementary school teachers.”

Voters will have their say on the school budget at the polls May 12. The sole poling place will be the gymnasium at Longley Elementary School, 145 Birch St.

Councilors began the evening working to balance debt that would be due in 2017 with today’s needs, scrutinizing a list of public works equipment in a workshop meeting. The city would borrow to buy that equipment and do road projects.

Lachance argued for cutting equipment, including the sweeper, a bulldozer and equipment for repairing hot asphalt in favor of paying for more road repairs.

But Public Works Director Dave Jones said that much of the equipment was near the end of its useful life and would require expensive repairs to remain operable. Those would come out of the city’s general fund, which would require councilors to raise taxes this year.

City Administrator Ed Barrett said he understands councilors want to avoid new debt as much as possible, but said they’d have to make a tough decision some day.

“Our fleet is aging and one of these days our $6 million bond limit is going to go to two things — trying to replace vehicles and pave streets,” Barrett said.

He urged councilors to stick with the staff suggestions, make some repairs and replace some vehicles. Cayer argued that the city should not be borrowing to buy any vehicles.

“At some point, we need to figure out how we stop bonding things we should not be bonding,” Cayer said.

“We raise taxes,” Barrett replied.

During the break, councilors agreed to put most of the vehicles back in the capital plan and add paving projects for Park Street between Pine and Main streets, and Orange Street between Sabattus and Webster streets.

“Orange was just one of the worst streets,” Cayer said.

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