2022-09-08-AC-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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09/08/2022 AC Minutes 2 oversees the High School project process and is responsible for selecting the architectural design team. The process is described in detail on the MSBA web site. Water/Sewer Rate Setting Mr. Bartenstein briefly reviewed the context for setting water/sewer rates. The amount of revenue received by the Town from the water/sewer fees depends on how much water is used. The volume of irrigation water use, most of which is separately metered and charged at the highest rate, depends on the weather and is therefore rather volatile since the amount of rainfall, particularly in the summer months, varies greatly from year to year. The Select Board will set the rates for the current fiscal year (FY 2023) this fall. Since the rates must be set using projections of water usage which, in the case of irrigation water, fluctuate substantially, the water rates can increase substantially when a “dry year” is followed by a “wet year”. Mr. Bartenstein proposed that when the calculations are done to set the rates, the projected irrigation usage be based on a 5 or 10-year rolling average, rather than on a projection from the most recent June through September time frame. This would tend to “smooth” rate increases as revenue surpluses generated during a dry year, separately accounted for in retained earnings, could then be applied to offset revenue deficits incurred in wet years. Mr. Bartenstein suggested that FY2023 would be an ideal year to initiate such a practice as: (1) the FY2023 water budget is increasing minimally over last year (0.66%); (2) projected irrigation usage will increase substantially this year as FY2022 was an unusually wet year and FY2023 will be an unusually dry year; and therefore, (3) projecting FY2023 irrigation usage at the 5 or 10-year average should generate a substantial surplus in the water fund with a minimal increase in the water rate. Ms. Kosnoff noted that a number of other factors have also affected the amounts of water/sewer revenues received by the Town in the past year or two. These factors include a decrease in water use at Hanscom Air Force Base, closure of the Boston Sports Club, closure and sale of the hotel on Bedford St., and effects of the pandemic on the numbers of people in office buildings. The implementation of automatic meter reading (AMR), which is in process, will yield information on water use in a more timely way than has been the case. AMR will also make it easier to go to quarterly rather than semiannual billing, which would tend to reduce year-to-year revenue changes as it will minimize the spill-over of end-of-year payments from one fiscal year to the next. Minutes of Prior Meetings There was a motion and a second to approve the minutes of the AC meetings of April 13, 2022, and June 23, 2022. The motion was approved by a roll call vote. VOTE: 6-0-1. Mr. Osborne abstained. Future Meetings There will be a fall special town meeting (STM), scheduled for November 1, 2, and 3. The warrant for that meeting is expected to be closed on October 3. The warrant is expected to include an article for routine budget adjustments, for a supplementary appropriation for the renovation of the Center Recreation bathrooms, for transferring an expected large surplus in new growth revenue to a stabilization fund, for beginning the planning for the 2025 celebrations, for addressing a reorganization of LexHAB, and for establishing an affordable housing trust. Mr. Parker noted that the AC report to the STM should be published on October 25. It was therefore agreed to schedule AC meetings for October 6, 13, and 20, and to tentatively schedule a meeting for September 21. Budget summits are scheduled for September 29, October 27, and November 16 so those are not good dates for the AC to meet on its own.