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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-07-10-AC-min 7/10/14 Minutes Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee July 10, 2014 Place and time- Reed Room, Town Office Building, 7 30 p.m Members present Glenn Parker, Chair, John Bartenstem, Vice Chair and Secretary; Mollie Garberg; Alan Levine, Beth Masterman, Susan McLeish, Eric Michelson, Andrei Radulescu-Banu, Rob Addelson (non-voting, ex officio) Members Absent Richard Neumeier Other attendees Carl Valente, Town Manager, Theo Kalivas, Budget Officer, David Kanter, Capital Expenditures Committee, Robert Cohen, Town Meeting Member The meeting was called to order at 7 32 p.m. 1 Announcements. Changes in the Appropnation Committee membership were reviewed. Mr Radulescu-Banu and Ms Masterman have joined the Committee filling vacancies created by Ms Schonfeld and Mr Cohen. Mr Cohen reported that he recently resigned because his professional commitments conflict with serving on the committee He thanked the members for their support. 2. Liaison Reports. Mr Levine reported having attended a meeting regarding the 20 year contract that the Town is negotiating for solar panels on six buildings in Lexington. Solar panels for the Hartwell Avenue town property are not included. Mr Levine is comfortable that the financial analysis for this project is reasonable It is anticipated that the contract will be presented to the Board of Selectmen on July 28th It was noted that this is a complicated project,partially because the regulations governing solar electncity have been fluid. There is a 2016 deadline for accessing a capacity restriction. Mr Levine suggested talking directly to Mark Sandeen, Chair of the Sustainable Lexington Committee, for more detailed information. Mr Levine reported that he attended the first meeting of the Ad hoc School Master Planning Committee The consultant for this project is currently meeting with the principals of all the schools to assess the capacity of the buildings as they are presently used. The School Administration Building will also be evaluated. The next meeting of this committee is tomorrow (July 11th) The consultants expect to issue a report in early September that will be used to determine the need for expanding school capacity in the near future A need for such funding will influence the decision whether to hold a fall Special Town Meeting(STM) It was noted that the Town has not yet set a date for a special election to replace Deb Mauger, who is resigning as a member of the Board of Selectmen. 3 Adjustments to the FY2014 budget- Mr Addelson reviewed the three transfer accounts/mechanisms that he recommends using to balance line items in the FY 14 budget: 1 7/10/14 Minutes • Reserve Fund. The Appropnation Committee controls the use of funds in the Reserve Fund that can be used to cover line item deficits that result from unanticipated expenses The current balance of the FY2014 Reserve Fund is approximately $900,000 • Salary Adjustment Account: Some salaries are not finalized at the time of the Annual Town Meeting. With BoS approval, funds from this account can be transferred to the appropriate line item for the finalized salaries • 3% Transfer. The "3% transfer rule" allows the town to transfer unused funds from a departmental budget to cover deficits in another part of the budget. The transferred funds cannot be more than 3% of the budget of the department from which they are transferred. The Appropriation Committee and the BoS must approve these transfers Mr Addelson reviewed the recommended amounts to be transferred, the sources for those funds, and the purpose for the transfers as outlined in the handout that included the FY2014 Proposed Year End Budget Adjustments The BoS has approved/endorsed the proposed transfers from all three sources, although two of the amounts have increased since they voted. They will be asked to revote, as follows • To increase the Salary Adjustment Account transfer by $12,000 This will allow a 50-50 split between the budgets for the two fiscal years that are included in the first payroll check each year Past practice used a 60-40 split. • To increase the transfer authorized by the "3% transfer rule"by $6,700 to cover Legal Services associated with the current contract negotiations for the solar panels Based on Mr Addelson's recommendations, the following votes were taken • A motion was made and seconded to approve the transfer of$76,000 from the Reserve Fund to cover unanticipated expenses for unemployment insurance and property insurance, as discussed and as outlined in the handout. The motion passed. VOTE 8-0 • A motion was made and seconded to approve the transfer, under the 3% rule, of$110,370, which includes the $6,700 discussed above, as outlined in the handout. The motion passed. VOTE 8-0 • A motion was made and seconded to endorse the transfer of$128,400, which includes the $12,000 discussed above, from the Salary Adjustment Account for salaries in specific departments, as recommended above and as outlined in the handout. The motion passed. VOTE 8-0 Mr Addelson's handout also identified a Snow and Ice FY14 budget deficit of$652,712 He explained that the deficit would likely be funded, without the need for further Town Meeting action, from the following sources • $300,000 from the set-aside in the FY15 budget for FY14 snow and ice removal, a mechanism that is allowed by state regulation. 2 7/10/14 Minutes • The balance of$352,717 from the increase in FY2015 state aid, which exceeded the estimate used in setting the FY2015 budget at the Annual Town Meeting by approximately $890,000 4 FY15 Reserve Fund Transfer Request: Mr Valente asked the committee to consider a FY15 Reserve Fund transfer to support the Hartwell Avenue/Alewife Station shuttle service, which has recently experienced a significant cut in federal funding. The non-profit 128 Business Council, a local Transportation Management Association, operates the service and guarantees a taxi nde home, if necessary Passengers from contributing properties pay $1 00 each way; others pay $3 00 Town support of this service is part of the Town's effort to promote business activity on Hartwell Avenue and minimize single car tnps The Council reports that ridership has been exceptionally good for a new service The program's gross costs are $172,000 annually The Town received a federal grant covering 80% of the costs to pilot this service from August 31, 2013 to August 30, 2015 During the first year, four of the seven property owners on Hartwell Avenue provided most of the remaining 20% and the Town contributed $3,500 The Town recently learned that the federal grant is being terminated as of August 30, 2014, primarily because of the federal sequester The Town is asking the Hartwell Avenue property owners to assume 60% of the next year's costs with the understanding that the Town will assume 40%, i e $69,120 The Town has received a verbal commitment from two of the participating property owners and a wntten commitment from the other two One possible source of the Town's contribution would be the Transportation Demand Management (TDM) Stabilization Fund. Both the BoS and the Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC) supported the use of those funds for this purpose, although TAC asked that this be a one-year-only request. However, because TDM funds are not available without Town Meeting approval, and Mr Valente needs assurance of available funds by early August, he did not pursue this option. Discussion focused on the value of having this service, the desire for the Hartwell Avenue property owners to contribute as much as possible, and support for having the bus provide service to Lexington residents Mr Valente said that the 128 Business Council has been asked to include a Lexington stop during its reverse commute It was generally agreed that an immediate vote to release the funds would be premature as a wntten commitment has not yet been received from all participating Hartwell Avenue property owners A motion was made and seconded to indicate the Committee's willingness to support the 40% funding from the Reserve Fund when the need anses The motion passed. VOTE 8-0 5 Minutes. A motion was made and seconded to approve the Committee's minutes for February 26, 2014, March 19, 2014, April 6, 2014, and May 7, 2014 The motion passed. VOTE 6-0-2 6 Future Meetings. It is unlikely that there will be an August meeting. Mr Parker will distribute a Doodle poll for an early September meeting; election of officers will be included on that 3 7/10/14 Minutes agenda. It is probable that there will be a November STM, which will require weekly meetings in October An effort will be made to hold meetings on Thursday evenings, the next best day of the week is Tuesday, followed by Wednesday The meeting was adjourned at 8 57 p.m A list of documents and other exhibits used at the meeting is set forth below Respectfully submitted, Sara Arnold Approved September 4, 2014 Exhibits 1 Agenda, posted by Glenn Parker, Chair 2 Agenda Item Summary, Lexington Board of Selectmen Meeting, Jame 30, 2014, including FY2014 Proposed Year End Budget Adjustments 4