2011-03-CEC-ATM-rpt - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

CAPITAL EXPENDITURES COMMITTEE REPORT TO 2011 ATM Executive Summary Over the past several months, the Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) has reviewed proposals from the municipal departments and school administration as well as various citizens groups. We have fully vetted all the capital requests, except those listed as "pending"in the table on the insides of the covers and in the Warrant Article Recommendations. Elimination, refinement, and fine-tuning of these requests have taken place during this process; therefore, even though not all of the original requests appear in the Capital motions, Town Meeting will generally observe consensus among the boards and committees relative to capital articles. The Community Preservation Act (CPA) in Lexington is now five years old. Article 17 proposes to reduce the CPA surcharge from 3% to 1%. Please refer to the discussion of this Article beginning on Page 51 for more detailed information regarding the issues, as we see them, regarding this measure. Proposals to perform major renovations of the Bridge & Bowman elementary schools and reconstruction of the Estabrook elementary school are being advanced under Article 13(a) and (b). Because those appropriations are candidates for inclusion into the estimated full-project costs presented, likely this Fall, to a Special Town Meeting and then to the Lexington voters in a Proposition 21/2 Debt-Exclusion Referendum Town Meeting Members are encouraged to give serious consideration now to understanding the necessity for, and process involved in,these projects. The Town continues to confront many "big ticket" projects (i.e., over $1 million), including (in no particular order and not meant to be all inclusive): • Roads and Sidewalks a continuing need • Stone Building (previously the East Lexington Library)post-stabilization renovation • Police Station renovation • Fire Headquarters renovation • Town Office Building renovation currently underway • Senior/Community Center • Use of the "White House" Site (1557 Massachusetts Avenue;previously the Barnes property) • Traffic Mitigation a continuing need • Community(Affordable) Housing • Conservation/Open Space Land • Recreation Facilities a continuing need • West Lexington Greenway Implementation • School Buildings Renovation& Reconstruction • Minuteman Career& Technical High School renovation Continued leadership and cooperation by the Board of Selectmen, School Committee, Community Preservation Committee, and Permanent Building Committee are needed to rationalize, refine, prioritize and schedule these projects for the next several years with realistic numbers put forth in the 5-year projections as it is certain that we cannot afford to do all of them within the foreseeable future. (Important: See Pages 15-17) 3