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COMMUNITY PRESERVATION FUNDS FOR THE LEXINGTON DEPOT ELEVATOR The Lexington Historical Society has requested funding in the amount of $44,000 for an elevator to make the Lexington Depot functional as a multi - purpose community facility. The Depot building is made available for rental only to Lexington organizations and individuals. The Society charges non - profit and governmental groups a fee of $200 for the use of the building, designed to simply cover operating and maintenance expenses. The groups that have used or booked the building over the past year include: the Belfry Hill Neighborhood Association, the Meriam Hill Association, the Lexington Players, the Lexington Lions Club, the Lexington Field and Garden Club, Selectmen Peter Kelley's election campaign, Backers of Lexington Debate, the Yes for Lexington campaign, Lexington Community Education, the Munroe Center for the Arts, the Lexington Board of Selectmen, Stand for Children, Representative Kaufman's monthly Forum meetings, Eagle Scouts for recognition ceremonies, and the Bowman PTA. Organizations that have rented the Depot have found the fee to be reasonable and the facilities and location to be convenient. Currently, the Depot has no access — other than by ladder — to the storage area over the function space and offices. There is no place except the elevator shaft itself to store the tables, chairs, sound system, lectern, platform that are used by organizations renting the building. Crowding these items into the elevator shaft has been difficult and unsafe. Once the elevator is installed, these items and others can be brought upstairs to the storage space and readily retrieved as needed. The elevator is designed for freight because there is nothing overhead except a storage area. The Community Preservation Act permits the funding of projects for the preservation and rehabilitation of a town's historic assets — including improvements that make them functional for their intended use — whether the buildings in question are owned by government, private non- profit organizations, or privately, The Act recognizes that in many cases, a town's historic assets are not owned publicly and gives a town the latitude to preserve such assets regardless of ownership status. Public - private partnerships for the preservation of historic structures are common. In Lexington, for example, the Historical Society paid one -third of the purchase price for Buckman Tavern in the early 1900s with the Town paying two- thirds. While the Town owns the Tavern, it has been leased to the Society long -term. The Society pays virtually all operating and maintenance costs at Buckman Tavern with the Town paying for capital improvements from time to time, most recently a new roof. The Lexington Historical Society is a non - profit organization with 501(c)(3) status that has a long history of providing stewardship for the town's historic structures. The purchase and restoration of the Lexington Depot— an elegant and historic jewel in the center of town — has been paid for entirely with private funds with this single exception. The Society intends to continue operating the Depot as a community center for all of Lexington, and we believe maintaining the building in this status lends vitality to Lexington Center and provides a service to the entire community.