2018-06-27-CEC-ATM-rpt (Combined Report with Updates & Errata)

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CAPITAL EXPENDITURES COMMITTEE REPORT TO 2018 ATM(incorporating Updates&Errata) Project Description Amount Funding Committee Recommends Requested Source (i) Public Facilities Mechanical/Electrical System $544,500 GF(Debt) Approval (6-0) Replacements "This request is part of an annual replacement of HVAC and electrical systems that have exceeded their useful lives and require replacement before excessive failures occur. The FY2019 appropriation will be used to replace the HVAC systems that provide cooling and heating to the Selectmen's Meeting Room and the Main Server Room in the Town Office Building. The mechanical systems have exceeded their life cycles and require replacement in order to prevent unplanned interruptions. If failures occur, it would severely impact the Town Office Building's ability to conduct public meetings during the height of cooling season. (Brown Book XI-9) Article 22:Appropriate Funding Amount Requested Committee Recommends For Visitors Center— Source Construction/Bid Documents & $200,000 GF(Free No Position $4,575,000 Cash) + $4,375,000 Construction GF (Debt) (3-3) "$21,000 was appropriated by the 2017 Annual Town Meeting to enable the Visitors Center replacement project to proceed through development of a schematic design estimate. The schematic design estimate provided an estimated project cost of $4,549,000. An additional appropriation of $150,000 was appropriated by the 2017-3 Special Town Meeting to continue the design through design development. During design development, a value engineering process will explore opportunities to reduce the project cost and find alternate funding sources. $200,000 requested for FY2019 to prepare construction/bid documents. The existing facility opened in 1970 and the last upgrade was performed ten years ago when the restrooms were made handicap accessible. A new Visitors Center aims to improve the experience of visitors and maximize economic development opportunities." (Brown Book XI-19) Since the Brown Book was published, the Board of Selectmen (BoS) voted to include, in addition to the earlier planned request for $200,000 for the construction/bid documents, an additional $4,300,000 in construction funds—for a total of$4,500,000. The staff then had a proposal to increase the construction funds to include an additional $200,000 associated with the temporary facilities (yet to be determined) that would provide the Center's services during the demolition of the current building and the construction of the new building—raising the total to $4,700,000—the amount this Committee had supported (4-2) with the extra $200,000 as a placekeeper to ensure there would be sufficient funds to achieve all the proposed objectives. The staff subsequently provided to the BoS at its March 26, 2018, meeting a draft Motion with a revised proposal that reduces the additional funding related to the temporary facilities to $75,000—revising the total to $4,575,000. The BoS did not take a vote of its position on that Motion, but the majority would support the $4,575,000 over the $4,500,000. At this Committee's meeting later that evening, after further deliberations, this Committee re-voted its position on including the construction funding (without regard to which final amount the BoS would support) and the result was 3-3; therefore, no position. At the BoS meeting on April 2, 2018, it voted to support this Article at$4,575,000. Note: The following is based on the spoken report made by this Committee during the Town Meeting deliberation, April 2, 2018, on this Article. This Committee unanimously supports an updated and expanded Visitors Center to provide enhanced services to Lexington's growing visitor population. Further, we recognize the long planning and funding period that this project has endured. We accept that the program developed by the Board of Selectmen 58