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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-10-03-min-summit1October 3, 2012 Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee October 3, 2012 Place and time: Public Services Building, 7:00 p.m. Members present. Glenn Parker, Chair; Joe Pato, Vice Chair; John Bartenstein, Vice Chair and Secretary; Alan Levine; Richard Neumeier; Robert Cohen; Mollie Garberg; Rob Addelson (non- voting, ex officio) Members Absent: Eric Michelson; Jonina Schonfeld The Appropriation Committee joined the Board of Selectmen, School Committee and the Capital Expenditures Committee for the first Budget Collaboration - Financial Summit for FY2014 (Summit 1). Other parties were also in attendance. The meeting commenced at 7:00 p.m. The agenda items were: 1. Procedure for Meeting Minutes for Summit Meetings 2. FY2014 Budget/Financial Discussion • Overview — Lexington's Financial Condition (Carl Valente) • FY2014 -2016 Revenue and Expenditure Forecast (Rob Addelson) • FY2014 Budget Calendar 3. Ivey Policy Issues Related to FY2014 Budget (Carl Valente, Paul Ash) 4. Special Town Meeting: FYI Proposed Budget Adjustments, Options for Unallocated Revenue and Other Warrant Articles 5. Establish Date: Summit Meeting 2 The Board of Selectmen assumed responsibility for recording and maintaining the minutes of the Summit portion of the meeting. Please see the minutes of the Board of Selectmen, which are published on the Town web site at http: / /lexin tog nma.�4ov /selectmen.cfm and which are also available in the Town Clerk's office, for details. The Summit was completed at 8:20 p.m. The Appropriation Committee continued in session with Carl Valente, Town Manager, in attendance, to discuss preparation of the Committee's report to the special town meeting. The following matters were addressed: 1. Future Meetings: Glenn Parker recommended meeting on October 11, October 16, October 23, and during the first week of November in preparation for the November 19 special October 3, 2012 town meeting. As Sara Arnold will be out of town during the last week in October, he suggested that week be used by Committee members to prepare their reports. Additional meetings will be scheduled as needed. The goal is to publish the Committee's report by November 12, which means that article write -ups must be completed by November 8. 2. Ledgemont Tax Increment Financing (TIF): Vistaprint, currently located at Ledgemont 2, has presented the Town with a TIF proposal associated with its potential expansion into a proposed new building to be constructed at the site, to be known as Ledgemont 3. Vistaprint would like to take this proposal to the November special town meeting. Carl Valente has created an internal negotiating team and invited the Appropriation Committee to send a representative. Robert Cohen will attend the next meeting of the team, to be held on October 16 and Joe Pato will attend an October 18 meeting. Additional meetings are expected to follow; Joe Pato and Robert Cohen will coordinate attendance. Also, a tour of the Ledgemont property is being planned, probably on October 11 at 11 a.m. The Selectmen are expected to discuss the Vistaprint TIF proposal at their November 5 meeting. There was concern about the Appropriation Committee taking a position before the Selectmen vote, but given the short time frame, this may be necessary. It was noted that Waltham has not accepted the TIF enabling legislation, but Burlington has. There was discussion about the process. When Shire proposed a TIF several years ago, the Selectmen met with stakeholders who provided feedback about its prospects of passage at Town Meeting, following which adjustments were made. It is anticipated that there will be a similar process in the present case. Carl Valente noted two changes to the law regarding TIFs: • Personal property taxation can now be included. A formula is no longer used to determine whether a company is eligible for state tax relief, while the state committee that oversees these decisions has some discretion, companies are more likely to receive state assistance than previously. 3. School Committee: The School Committee will be holding a meeting on Saturday, October 13, to discuss increases in the estimated cost of building a new Estabrook School. Mollie Garberg will attend. 4. Special Town Meeting Warrant Articles: Glenn Parker asked Committee members to think about who should be invited to future meetings to provide the Committee with additional information needed for warrant article write -ups. Rob Addelson will help on the article proposing the appropriation of additional funds to the OPEB trust account to address unfunded liabilities. He was urged to work on scheduling a meeting of the OPEB working group. There was general consensus that it would be helpful to engage actuary Dan Sherman to review and confirm calculations and policy suggestions of the OPEB working group. It was suggested that DPW Director Bill Hadley or Town Engineer John Livsey would be helpful when discussing Article 5 Estabrook School Access Improvements. 2 October 3, 2012 The follow -up portion of the meeting was adjourned at 8:55 p.m. A list of documents and other exhibits used at both portions of the meeting follows. Respectfully submitted, Sara Arnold Recording Secretary Approved October 23, 2012 Exhibits 1. Agenda posted by Board of Selectmen of Budget Collaboration- Summit Meeting 1 2. Financial Summit I — Indicator Analysis: Fiscal Years 2000 - 20012; Revenue and Expenditure Projections: Fiscal Years 2014 -2016 dated October 3, 2012 3. Memorandum from Carl F. Valente, Rob Addelson and Theo Kalivas to Summit 1 Participants, dated 10/2/12, re "Summit Agenda Item 4 — Special Town Meeting: FY13 Proposed Budget Adjustments, Options for Unallocated Revenue and Other Warrant Articles." 4. Agenda of follow -up meeting of the Appropriation Committee posted by Glenn Parker, Chair