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NORTON - If only money flowed into Norton in 2009 the way that water and road projects will.

A number of road and water improvement projects are scheduled this year, including construction of an Interstate 495 southbound slip ramp to Route 140, near the Comcast Center in Mansfield, Town Manager James Purcell said.

At the same time, Purcell expects Norton's state aid to be cut twice - including "a couple hundred thousand dollars this year."

Revenue streams already are so dry that Norton reduced its library and senior center hours and cut school spending by almost $400,000 this year.

Purcell said his budget priorities for July 1 remain public works, public safety and public health. "Which is not to say there won't be some negative impacts in those areas, either," he said.

Nonetheless, a number of infrastructure projects should make a positive impact on Norton, Purcell said.

By early summer, water crews should finish replacing about seven miles of water line throughout town.

"I think we made terrific progress on that," Purcell said.

Town and Wheaton College officials also continue discussing connecting the school to the municipal wastewater treatment plant used by Norton, Foxboro and Mansfield.

"It's just a numbers game at this point," Purcell said.

"All institutions are going to do what's in their fiduciary interest."

Two road projects should interest commuters.

Route 123 from near Route 140 to the Attleboro line should be newly paved this year.

Contractors hired by the state highway department have been working on the road since October. "The residents of the town, and the traveling public as a whole, has really endured a lot," Purcell said. "But, you do this sort of thing once every 30 years or so."

On the other hand, developing a school budget proposal for the fiscal year starting July 1 has been a rough ride for Superintendent Patricia Ansay.

Ansay said her first draft was a level-funded budget.

That request now seems less realistic, she said.

"We'll have to really set priorities, and different items may have to be put on the back burner, something that here in Norton we've been doing for too many years," Ansay said. "If you do that for too many years, you don't seem to be able to recover from it."

Special education spending will increase, Ansay said, and the refurbishing of four Norton High School science laboratories continues.

School officials also plan to promote more school events and accomplishments on local cable, Ansay said.

MICHAEL GELBWASSER covers Norton for The Sun Chronicle. He can be reached at 508-236-0439 or at mgelbwasser@thesunchronicle.com.