2016-03-21-CEC-ATM-rpt - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

CAPITAL EXPENDITURES COMMITTEE REPORT TO 2016 ATM When projects are funded under the CPA, a debt- exclusion vote is not required. An example of this is the authorization at the March 18, 2013, STM of $7,652,500 toward the $11,212,500 purchase expenses of the land off of Marrett Road now in use as the Town's Community Center. The Projects Agenda The following is a fairly comprehensive list of big - ticket items that are under consideration in Lexington. Except for the first three items having been identified by the BoS as the Town's highest priorities —and with which this Committee agrees —no such ranking is intended and the rest of this listing as it is simply alphabetical. • Fire Station Central Headquarters — Renovation or Replacement • Police Station — Renovation or Replacement • School Buildings— Expansion, Renovation & Reconstruction. Additional space is needed imminently at the Pre -K, elementary -, and middle - school levels to accommodate growing enrollment. (See this Committee's Report to the Special Town Meeting (STM) 2016 -3, Article 2, addressing the middle - school level.) Expansion of existing buildings, replacement of the Maria Hastings Elementary School —now with Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) partnership —and ultimately renovation or replacement of the High School are all contemplated in upcoming years. • Community (Affordable) Housing — Development and Acquisition. (See Article 8(e)) • Conservation/Open Space Land — Acquisition and Enhancement (See Article 8(g & o)) • Center Streetscape Improvements (See Article 10(a)) • Greenways Corridor— Implementation. Projects to link open spaces with trails. The major West Lexington Greenway Project —the proposed trail network west of I -95 /Route 128 linking all Town -owned open space with the centerpiece of the project to consist of a universally accessible trail linking the Minuteman Bikeway with the Battle Road Trail in the Minuteman National Historic Park —has been studied. • Hammond A. Hosmer House, 1557 Massachusetts Avenue (previously called the White House) —It has been stabilized; will now require build -out for a use. • Hartwell Avenue Transportation Management Overlay District Improvements • Munroe School • Muzzey High Condominium Unit (former Senior Center), 1475 Massachusetts Avenue • Recreation Facilities —A continuing need (See Articles 8(h –m) & 9) • Roads —A continuing need (See Article 10(c & g)) • Sidewalks —A continuing need (See Articles 10(h, k, & 1)) • Stone Building, (East Lexington Library) 735 Massachusetts Avenue • Transportation Mitigation —A continuing need (See Article 11(q)) (Actions taken are often an element of road - related projects, rather than being solely to achieve the mitigation • Visitor Center— Expansion & Renovation. The BoS, School Committee, Community Preservation Committee, and Permanent Building Committee will continue to evaluate, refine, prioritize, and schedule these projects for the next several years. Realistic cost proposals should be incorporated in the 5 -year projections. The Town -wide Facility Master Plan, still a work in progress, will contribute to that process. The Community Preservation Act (CPA) On March 6, 2006, Lexington voters approved adopting the CPA for our Town at the level of a 3% surcharge on property taxes. In addition to the funding provided by that surcharge on its taxpayers, the CPA provides a process by which all municipalities that have adopted that Act are eligible for supplemental State funding provided from surcharges on the transaction fees charged by the State's Registries of Deeds. Those funds are 5