Busa Land Use Proposal Committee Report 03-14-2011

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1. INTRODUCTION Overview The Busa Land Use Proposal Committee (BLUPC) is a Selectmen- appointed Town committee charged with evaluating proposals for the Town's use of the "Busa Land" along Lowell Street and making recommendations to the Selectmen for its use. The Selectmen will make the ultimate decision. This Report presents background, a detailed description of the property, a record of the Committee's work, evaluations of the proposals for the use of the land, the Committee's recommendations, additional questions /outstanding issues, and supporting documentation or references. 1.1 Busa Land Purchase The Town of Lexington purchased the Busa Land on December 2, 2009, for $4,197,000 pursuant to a vote to authorize the purchase taken at a Special Town Meeting on May 6, 2009. The motion voted at that Town Meeting read (Italics added): "ARTICLE 6: LAND PURCHASE — OFF LOWELL STREET MOTION: That: (a) the Selectmen be authorized to purchase or otherwise acquire, or to take by eminent domain, for recreation, and /or affordable housing, and /or open space purposes any fee, easement or other interest in all or any part of land shown as lots 38, 40A and 43 on Assessor's Property Map 20 on such terms and conditions as the Selectmen may determine; that the sum of $4,197,000 be appropriated for such land acquisition, and that to raise such amount, the Treasurer, with the approval of the Board of Selectmen, is authorized to borrow $4,197,000 under M.G.L. Chapter 44, Section 7 (3), as amended, or under M.G.L. Chapter 44B, as amended, or any other enabling authority; (b) $98,000 be appropriated from the Undesignated Fund Balance of the Community Preservation Fund for debt service and related borrowing costs of the Community Preservation Fund for fiscal year 2010; and (c) the Board of Selectmen be authorized to lease to the seller all or any part of such land for farming purposes for a period not to exceed three years on such terms as the Board of Selectmen shall determine, as part of the consideration for the acquisition." The purchase agreement provides that the Town can lease the land to others for up to 3 years for farming, while the Town decides what to do with the land. It was leased back to Dennis Busa for farming through the 2011 growing season. The Community Preservation Fund (CPF) referred to in the motion is a fund set aside for particular purposes (Open Space, Historic Resources, Community Housing, and Recreation) under the Community Preservation Act (relevant descriptions of the Act are in Appendix 7.6). The CPF is funded with a 3% surcharge on residential and commercial property taxes (according to a formula involving the tax rate and the assessment of the property; and there are exemptions), and the amounts raised are matched at a varying rate by the state. Proposals for use of the CPF are made to the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) of the Town; those that are accepted by the CPC are brought forward to Town Meeting for a decision on whether or not to appropriate money for them from the CPF. Since there has been some public discussion and debate about the intentions of various proponents of the purchase leading up to the Town Meeting vote, the Committee thought it appropriate to lay out some of the steps. The following excerpts from the public record are presented to show the evolution Busa Land Use Proposal Committee Report Page 4 / 52