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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-10-17-AC-min 10/17/13 Minutes Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee October 17, 2013 Place and time- Ellen Stone Room, Cary Memonal Building, 7 30 p.m Members present. John Bartenstem, Vice Chair and Secretary; Mollie Garberg; Alan Levine, Susan McLeish, Enc Michelson, Richard Neumeier, Jonma Schonfeld, Rob Addelson (non-voting, ex officio) Members Absent Glenn Parker, Chair, Robert Cohen In Mr Parker's absence, Mr Bartenstem called the meeting to order at 7 35 p.m. 1 Minutes. A motion was made to accept the September 25, 2013 Minutes as edited by Mr Levine The motion passed. VOTE 6-0 A motion was made to accept the October 10, 2013 Minutes The motion passed. VOTE 6-0 2. Announcements and Liaison Reports. There were no reports or announcements 3 Committee Report to the November 4, 2013 Special Town Meeting (STM). Mr Bartenstem said that to the extent feasible, votes on the sections of the report will be taken later dunng the meeting, and those who are absent can record their votes at the next meeting. Mr Addelson noted that final recommendations for Articles 2, 3, 4, and 5 will go to the Board of Selectmen on October 21, 2013 He will distribute that information to this Committee as soon as possible • Introduction There were no comments on the draft that Mr Parker had distributed. Comments should be submitted to Mr Parker by Saturday • Article 2, $86,554 Grant for the Schools Ms Garberg explained that the School Department is funding several programs with grants that have been reduced in size pnmanly because of the federal budget sequestration. In the budget developed for and approved at the 2013 Annual Town Meeting, the Town set aside $750,000 to address potential reductions in revenue from the State and federal governments, but none of those funds have yet been appropriated. Those funds currently form part of free cash, which was recently certified, so they are now available for appropnation Mr Addelson said that it may be possible to use supplemental revenue from FY2014 rather than free cash as a source for this appropnation. It was noted that, in the past, the Town has funded programs when a grant has ended, but rarely, if ever, has there been a grant that was terminated or cut back prematurely There was a motion to recommend approval of the portion of Article 2 seeking appropnation of$86,554 to fill gaps in grant money The motion passed. VOTE 7-0 • Article 2, Municipal Budget Mr Michelson and Mr Addelson explained that the Town Clerk's office needs an additional $54,500 to cover expenses for the pnmary and general elections to fill the congressional seat left vacant by Senator Markey It is anticipated that there will be some state funding but the timing and amount of any reimbursements are unknown. Additionally, there is a request to transfer $40,000 within the Assessors 1 10/17/13 Minutes Department budget so that the funds can be used for contractors rather than additional staff. There was a motion to recommend approval of appropriations and transfers in the municipal budget to address the portions of Article 2 mentioned above The motion passed. VOTE 7-0 • Article 2, Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) Mr Bartenstem explained that the proposed revision of the Water and Sewer Enterprise Fund budgets is a bookkeeping matter to adjust for the finalized MWRA rates that were set in June These are usually less than the estimated rates used in the budget that is finalized each spring. There was a motion to recommend approval of the section of Article 2 regarding the Water and Sewer Enterprise Fund budget adjustments discussed above The motion passed. VOTE 7-0 • Article ?, additional component regarding Commzmity Preservation Act (CPA)Funds Mr Addelson reported that the state is likely to distribute CPA funds at a rate greater than anticipated. If this is accomplished before the special town meeting, staff will recommend that, under Article 2, Town Meeting approve adjustments to the Community Preservation Fund budget in accord with the State distribution. Mr Michelson agreed to write this up for the Appropriation Committee report, and he will inform Mr Parker • Article 3, Stabilization Funds Mr Addelson explained that this article will request an appropriation of money into three of the Town's stabilization funds the Debt Service Reserve Stabilization Fund (about $1 8 million, probably from FY 2014 supplemental revenue), the Transportation Demand Management Stabilization Fund (roughly $50,000 contributed by developers), and the Traffic Mitigation Stabilization Fund ($40,000 to $50,000 contributed by developers) Mr Addelson reviewed the history of the recently created Debt Service Reserve Stabilization Fund and how it has helped mitigate exempt debt service He explained that in the future it is anticipated that it will help mitigate both exempt and non-exempt debt service, as well as provide funds for baseline capital improvement expenditures The Selectmen will vote on a financing plan on October 21 There was a motion to recommend approval of Article 3 as discussed above The motion passed. VOTE 7-0 • Article 4, High School Modular Buildings Mr Levine has prepared his draft for this article and is still waiting for the 90% construction-document cost estimate and the amount of borrowing (non-exempt debt) that will be requested in the motion. Mr Addelson said the range is $6 7 to $7 7 million. There was a motion to recommend approval of Article 4, assuming the appropriation request is between $6 7 and $7 7 million. The motion passed. VOTE 7-0 • Article 5, Community Center Mr Parker has circulated a first draft, but it was noted that the initial recommended funding request of approximately $1 0 million may change Ms Arnold, who was at an Ad hoc Community Center Advisory Committee (AhCCAC) meeting held earlier in the day, explained that Mr Goddard, Director of Public Facilities, had discussed plans there to expand the scope of work in the Phase 1 project. He will present a proposal to the Selectmen on October 21 for a revised Phase 1 plan that would cost about $3 0 million. The ongmal estimate of about $8 million to upgrade the building (not including the cost to construct a gym or other large-space facility, which would add another $3 million)has not increased, however, in this scenario, more of that total would be requested at the November 4th STM Town Counsel will be determining how much is CPA- eligible Mr Addelson commented that free cash, which was recently certified, is a potential source for funding any portion deemed not CPA-eligible This Committee agreed that they could not vote on this article until more information is available 2 10/17/13 Minutes Mr Bartenstem asked that comments on the current draft material be submitted by Saturday Final drafts for the report should be completed by the October 24, 2013 meeting. Ms Schonfeld will prepare a first draft for Article 3 by Sunday It is anticipated that Mr Parker will assemble the write-ups that have been done so far into a complete draft report that will be circulated before the next meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 8 38 p.m A list of documents and other exhibits used at the meeting is set forth below Respectfully submitted, Sara Arnold Approved October 24, 2013 Exhibits 1 Meeting Agenda posted by Glenn Parker, Chair 3