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Home My WebLink About2013-11-05-CEC-minp 4iOJS M C � A ; Minutes of the Lexington Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) Meeting APRIL 19ix November 5, 2013 L £xrxr;T�� Location and Time: Cary Memorial Building, Ellen Stone Room; 8:30 A.M. Members Present: Jill Hai, Chair; David Kanter, Vice - Chair; Bill Hurley; Wendy Manz; Beth Masterman Members Absent: None Others Present: Michael Martignetti, Commission on Disabilities; Bob Hausslein, Parker Meadow Working Group; Meg Landers, Parker Meadow Working Group; Keith Ohmart, Parker Meadow Working Group; Karen Mullins, Conservation Administrator; Deb Mauger, Chair, Board of Selectmen; Rob Addelson, Assistant Town Manager for Finance; Theo Kalivas, Budget Officer; Sara Arnold, Recording Secretary Documents Presented: • Community Development's FY2015— FY2019 Capital Improvement Projects (CIPs) • Parker Meadow Working Group's PowerPoint presentation regarding Parker Meadow trails • Parker Meadow Working Group's map of Parker Meadow trails • Mr. Addelson's Memo, October 31, 2013, "Proposed Supplemental Appropriation, 4 Nov 2013 Special Town Meeting, Article 2(d)" Call to Order: Ms. Hai called the meeting to order at 8:32 A.M. Community Development's CIPs: • Historical Commission Inventory Forms for listed buildings ( #890): Ms. Mullins, who provides staff support for the Lexington Historical Commission, explained that the Historical Commission has a Cultural Resources Inventory of culturally relevant buildings, but some of the properties are identified as provisional because their inclusion is based only on visual review. The $30,000 being requested, if approved, will be used to hire a professional preservationist to complete Massachusetts Historical Commission inventory forms for up to 150 provisional properties. This process will verify whether the properties should remain in the Inventory, in which case there will be justifying documentation. This will improve customer service when discussing these issues with the owners of the properties. The Committee strongly recommended that all of the affected property owners receive formal communications throughout this whole process, not just at the end when they will be told whether or not their property remains in the Cultural Resources Inventory. Additionally, Mr. Kanter suggested the CIP identify the exact number of properties being addressed and there be funding including to cover the formal communications. Pagel of 3 Minutes of the Lexington Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) Meeting November 5, 2013 • Parker Meadow Accessible Trail Design and Construction Plan ( #882): Ms. Landers distributed a map showing the trails and other features in Parker Meadow Conservation Area and presented a PowerPoint description of the project. She explained that the current path is inaccessible for those in wheelchairs, and Ms. Hai added that it cannot even be used with strollers. Parker Meadow is relatively small and flat, making it conducive to being made universally accessible. The $34,500 design and engineering (D &E) request is for an accessible path that is less than one mile long. It is anticipated that a variety of surfaces will be recommended, including boardwalks in wetland areas. People will not be restricted to using the path in appropriate areas, such as the meadow. This project will help inform the Town about future such projects —with the D &E results providing information for similar efforts that could be accomplished by volunteers under the guidance of the Lexington Conservation Stewards. The follow -on construction of the project is being presented as a separate CIP ( #880 by the Recreation Department) with the expectation it would be eligible under the Community Preservation Act (CPA), but with the presumption that the D &E is not. Mr. Kanter questioned that presumption and this Committee asked for additional information explaining why this is the case. Ms. Mauger urged this Committee to visit Parker Meadow. In response to concerns about maintenance, she noted that the Lexington Conservation Stewards are dedicated residents who contribute considerable talent and time to maintaining the Town's conservation areas. She supports having an annual operating appropriation to assist them in their work, which is currently funded by donations, but this has not made it through the budget process. She would welcome support of this idea. Mr. Kanter asked that a scale and a locus block be added to the map, which could be included in this Committee's Report to the 2014 Annual Town Meeting. With regard to the Recreation Department's Project #880, he would like that CIP to include an estimated cost for the construction whose funding is expected to be requested in FY2016. ACTION ITEM: Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, will be contacted by Ms. Masterman regarding Project #880. Update Regarding Article 2 at the November 4, 2013 Special Town Meeting: Mr. Kanter discussed with the Committee the background to what had been the last- minute decision by the Town to increase the appropriation for the FY2014 State - supplement distribution amount under the CPA by $824,273 —with those additional funds being allocated into the four Reserves under the CPA. With Town Meeting's approval of that increase, the total estimate for that distribution is now $1,786,230. Page 2 of 3 Minutes of the Lexington Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) Meeting November 5, 2013 Member Concerns and Liaison Reports: • Committee's Five -Year Capital Plan (FYCP) There was discussion about projects that financially impact outlying years and whether those projects should identify a figure for such years even if the figure has minimal supporting data and may change considerably. In past FYCPs, such figures have been included with footnotes explaining their vulnerability to change. One suggested alternative is to use TBD (to be determined) with footnotes that include references to a possible cost. In reviewing the last FYCP (FY2014- 2018), it was noted that although the Cary Memorial Library included a project for FY2014 funding, it had not included a funding request for any of the future years, and it did not submit a CIP in the current round of requests. ACTION ITEM: Ms. Manz will contact Koren Stembridge, Library Director, to ensure this was not an oversight. • Deliberations on the Recreation and Fire Departments CIPs. It was agreed to ask each Department if it could have someone available for the Committee's December 10, 2013, meeting for those deliberations. ACTION ITEM: Ms. Hai will confirm availability of Recreation and Fire Departments for that date. Tracking Follow -Ups on CIP Deliberations There was also discussion about how to capture and follow up on questions that come up during discussions with the different departments about their CIPs. ACTION ITEM: An effort will be made by the Committee to clearly track questions /requests that need responses to ensure appropriate follow up. • Capital and Maintenance Expenses Triggered by concerns relating to maintenance of an upgraded Parker Meadow trail, there was discussion about the difference between capital and maintenance expenses. Routine maintenance is covered in the operating budget while renovations or upgrades above $25,000 are considered capital expenses; however, there can be a grey area between the two categories. Next Meetings: The next meeting will be held on November 12 and the Department of Public Facilities (DPF) is scheduled to present. (It isn't clear at this time whether DPF will discuss its projects at the schools as well as those elsewhere in the Town projects.) The Department of Public Works is scheduled to present at the meeting planned for November 19 Adjourn: A Motion was made and seconded at 10:01 A.M. to adjourn. Vote: 5 -0 These Minutes were approved by the CEC at its meeting on November 19, 2013. Page 3 of 3