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Home My WebLink About2013-11-08-CCAC-min$ MVgh7�, =A TOWN OF LEXINGTON 1 Ad hoc Community Center Advisory Committee (AhCCAC) APAA4i9"' M inutes L�k7MGT4� inutes Date: November 8, 2013 Place and time: Cary Memorial Building, Estabrook Hall, 9:00 A.M. Members Present: Michelle Ciccolo, Chair; Betty Borghesam; Harry Forsdick; Laura Hussong; Leslie Zales Members Absent: Mary Ellen Alessandro; Florence Koplow Liaisons Present: Linda Vine, Vice chair of AhCCAC, Town Manager's Office; Charlotte Rodgers, staff, Human Services; Norm Cohen, Board of Selectmen; Jon Himmel, Permanent Building Committee; Beth Masterman, Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC); Glenn Parker, Appropriation Committee; Jessie Steigerwald, School Committee; Karen Simmons, staff, Recreation Liaisons Absent (liaisons only attend as- requested and as- available to address relevant agenda items): John Mazerall, staff, Police Department; John Wilson, Chief, Fire Department; Chris Filadoro, staff, Public Works; Shawn Newell, staff, Public Facilities; Koren Stembridge, staff, Library; Dorinda Goodman, staff, Information Technology Consultant Representative Present from Steffian Bradley Architects (SBA): Teresa Wilson, Richard Berry Also present: Pat Goddard, staff, Facilities; Sheila Butts, staff, Recreation; Carroll Ann Bottino, COA Board; David Kanter, CEC; Steve Daniels, resident, senior citizen advocate; Anne Frymer, resident; Dorothy Tutko, resident; Gloria Bloom, resident and Town Meeting member; Rita Sagalyn, resident Recording Secretary: Sara Arnold The meeting was called to order by Ms. Ciccolo at 9:05 A.M. 1. Opening Comments: It was noted that LexMedia was not recording the meeting. Those in attendance introduced themselves. 2. Minutes: There was a correction to the October 30, 2013 Minutes: Ms. Borghesam's name should be added to those who agreed to document programming ideas. It was moved and seconded to approve the Minutes for October 22, 2013, and for October 30, 2013, as amended. The motion passed. VOTE: 5 -0 3. Work Plan Update: The following was reported: • The meeting on November 13 will beat 8:30 A.M., not 8:00 A.M. • This Committee will be allowed access to the 39 Marrett Road building one day next week. • This Committee needs to make plans for the December 14 open house. Perhaps there should be tours, welcoming activities, refreshments; there should be a method for receiving public input. ACTION ITEM: Ms. Hussong, Ms. Borghesam and Mr. Forsdick will work with Town employees Ms. Vine, Ms. Simmons, and Ms. Rodgers to develop plans for the Open House. 4. Correspondence: Ms. Ciccolo referred to a handout that included three emails received from residents regarding the future Community Center. She is monitoring comments on various Lexington Lists and shared a possible general response. She reminded members to forward to her any substantive emails received by Committee members regarding the Community Center so they could be distributed to the entire committee. 5. Comparable Community Data: Ms. Wilson used PowerPoint to present Community Center data collected from 12 comparable Towns. The presentation and subsequent questions triggered the following comments: • Community Centers in some Towns have computer rooms. • The need for an emergency shelter should be discussed with the Fire and Police Departments; if the building is to be used as an emergency shelter, this will impact the need for showers, an emergency generator and a kitchen. ACTION ITEM: Ms. Vine will talk to the police chief and the fire chief about this issue. • When discussing Community Centers in other towns, it is necessary to know what other resources these towns have (e.g. how much gymnasium space is available per capita) or whether there is a recreation center in addition to a community center. Ms. Alessandro and Ms. Steigerwald agreed to pursue identifying gyms per- capita for the comparable communities in an effort to understand how that compares to Lexington's available gym space. • When evaluating Lexington's needs, it is necessary to understand what space is currently available in the Town. Mr. Forsdick is preparing a list of space that can be leased or may be available to outside groups. He is also trying to determine if rental fees are charged for various spaces. • Mr. Goddard's department manages the scheduling of the Town's resources. Data that he has may help this Committee understand how frequently groups are turned away, and whether these groups are public or private. Mr. Goddard's data may also help in understanding demand for various types of Town spaces. Mr. Goddard added that there are fees for the use of Town facilities, but in some circumstances those fees may be waived. • In response to a comment about the high demand for meeting space, Mr. Goddard said that the anticipated Cary Memorial Building renovations will increase the number of meeting rooms for use by town committees. It was noted that Town Meeting purchased the buildings at 39 Marrett Road for a Community Center, not to expand meeting space. • The net -to -gross space factor at 39 Marrett Road as compared to other towns should be made available along with information about the impact of constructing a new building vs. renovating an existing one. Ms. Wilson noted three reasons the 39 Marrett Road building has a low net square footage for community center use as compared to its gross square footage: ➢ The basement has a large area that is not accessible and can only be used for storage. ➢ There is a large mechanical area in the basement. ➢ The building has long hallways. • Ms. Mullins and Ms. Rogers emphasized that the PowerPoint graphs that identify the number of requests for different kinds of space reflect the demand for current programs; they do not include any new programs. It was also noted that these graphs do not include any weighting to indicate scheduling demand by time -of -day; thus, the perceived adequacy of the space based on this data may be skewed. • The use of outside space will not involve creating playing fields. It was noted that historic preservation restrictions will be placed on the property after the purchase is finalized. Those restrictions might impact outdoor uses and should identify both what is and what isn't of historical significance so the planned and likely work for both Phases 1 & 2 is established as allowable. 6. Next Steps: SBA will be creating three scenarios with schematics based on a space needs analysis. This will include identifying generic spaces, dedicated spaces, and Phase 1 unmet space needs. ACTION ITEMS: This material will be distributed on Tuesday, November 12 and the Committee will hopefully be prepared to discuss it the next morning, Wednesday, November 13 The Committee will have an opportunity to visit the 39 Marrett Road facility on Thursday, November 14 at 2:00 P.M. This will hopefully be a posted meeting so that there can be discussion and /or positions taken, as needed. This will ensure that the Committee's comments can be incorporated into the material before it is presented at the 7:00 P.M., Tuesday, November 19 open- comment session. The November 19 evening meeting needs to be publicized. ACTION ITEMS: Ms. Vine agreed to update the flyer that was used for the first evening meeting that was open to public comments. Copies will be distributed as was done previously. It was noted that Ms. Hussong, Ms. Koplow, and Ms. Borghesam will continue to create a list of program ideas that have been identified, while Ms. Allesandro will continue to identify dedicated space needs. Ms. Steigerwald reported that transportation to the community center is being considered by the School Department because students will want to take a school bus to the Community Center immediately after school. It was noted that the Transportation Advisory Committee is also looking for opportunities to serve the new center. Ms. Hussong showed a mug and a key chain that might be appropriate marketing tools for the Community Center. Those in attendance applauded Special Town Meeting's support on November 4 th of the Article that requested funding for the completion of Phase 1 of this project, for the design of a sidewalk from Marrett Road to the Center, and for an increased effort in the Schematic - Design phase for Phase 2. 7. Adjourn: The meeting was adjourned atl0:05 A.M. These minutes were approved on November 12, 2013. Materials used at the meeting: ➢ Public Meeting Agenda, November 8, 2013, AhCCAC ➢ Proposed 2013 Meeting Schedule and Work Plan 1110812013 ➢ Emails: Rosemary Levy to Michelle Ciccolo, November 7, 2013, RE: Community Center; John Zhu to Leslie Zales, November 6, 2013, "Classroom availability in Lexington Community Center?"; David Lang to Michelle Ciccolo, November 7, 2013, "Correspondence TBN -3" ➢ `Rough Conceptual Estimates ofLand Value Cost Comparison, " DRAFT by Michelle Ciccolo, November 7, 2013 ➢ Lexington Community Center AhCCAC Meeting November 8, 2013; PowerPoint presented by SBA