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4 1 2011 Annual Report Town Government Board of Selectmen ELECTED by the voters at large to 3 -year terms: Hank Manz, Chair, Peter Kelley, Norman Cohen, George Bur- nell, and Deborah Mauger. With the re- election of both Norman Cohen and Hank Manz to third terms, there was no change in the membership of the board. In April Hank Manz was chosen to be Chair for the second year. Fiscal As in previous years, Lexington avoided fiscal pneumonia even with reduced state aid and rising energy costs which were higher than even our most pessimistic projections. Healthcare costs also rose, but not nearly as much as pro- jected. The Selectmen once again had as a goal that there would be no operating override and again we were able to keep that promise. Unlike many other towns, Lexington has enjoyed reasonable revenue growth, low debt service, stable labor costs as a percentage of operating costs, low debt service, and growing reserves. Moreover, while hous- ing prices throughout most of the country fell, in some cas- es precipitously, Lexington has been insulated, for the most part, from that problem. Housing prices and new construc- tion have both remained relatively stable. Absent a national change in the way healthcare is delivered, the cost is likely to remain a major factor in employee com- pensation. The Town has over the past several years been able to make modest inroads in this expense through ne- gotiation with our union coalition, but progress is neces- sarily slow given the process that must be followed. How- ever, after several years of asking for legislative relief, we are cautiously confident that starting in 2012 we will be able to effect change through plan design, joining the Group Insurance Commission (GIC), or other measures. We rec- ognize that any change will mean a great deal of work by all concerned to make the transition a smooth one with the least impact on Town employees. A major fiscal glitch last year was the unexpected expense of hazardous material mitigation at Estabrook School. There was something of a silver lining to that cloud when the emergency contributed to the decision by the Massachu- setts State Building Authority (MSBA) to fund the project at approximately a 38% level. Given the projected cost of the new school at $41 million, that represents a significant return on investment on the roughly $1 million which was spent on mitigation. Another positive outcome to the miti- gation effort and the lengthy discussion which surrounded it was a renewed interest in the hidden costs of deferring maintenance and a determination to address our mainte- nance needs in a timelier manner. The winter of 2010 -11 seemed never ending with a total of close to six feet of snow falling by the time spring arrived. Fortunately, there seems to be some compensation for last year with what so far has been an exceptionally warm fall and winter with almost no snowfall. The hoped for new - growth revenue from Shire and Cub- ist made an appearance this year, although the increased development was not without increased impact on adjacent neighborhoods. How to mitigate those impacts is certain to occupy a significant amount of our time in 2012. Getting Things Done 2011 was a reminder that even the best plans can take lon- ger than hoped for. The project to replace all existing incan- descent streetlights with a more energy - efficient model was accomplished quickly, but then what has been diagnosed as a manufacturing defect led to the early failure of at least a quarter of the new installations. The replacements will be installed at no cost to the town, but we will probably be well into 2012 before the project is truly complete. Final plans for both the Leary and Busa parcels are not complete even though a great deal of time has been devoted to both. On the other hand, the first phase of a major proj- ect to improve the drainage of the entire Center Playfield area is very near completion and in 2012 will mean a much improved experience for those using the softball and base- ball fields although it is not clear just how much more we can expect from the Blue Sox, the perennial champions of the Boston Intercity Baseball League. Surprises continued and here Lexington responded in a manner to which we have become accustomed. Late in August, Hurricane Irene struck. While we were spared the brunt of the storm and suffered far less than other parts of the state, the resulting down trees and wires left the town with the need for a huge cleanup effort and portions of the town were without power for several days. The winter through December has been exceptionally warm and almost devoid of precipitation, but an October storm dumped five inches of very wet snow on the town which caused little damage to structures, but which once again did extensive damage to trees and wires. The cleanup effort was several times more extensive than the one needed to recover from Irene and, once again, portions of the town were with- out power for several days.