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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-09-18-AC-min 9/18/14 Minutes Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee September 18,2014 Place and time- Selectmen's Meeting 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, Eric Michelson, Andrei Radulescu-Banu, Rob Addelson (non-voting, ex officio) Members Absent Susan McLeish, Richard Neumeier Other attendees none The meeting was called to order at 7 35 p.m. 1 Minutes. A motion was made and seconded to approve the Committee's September 4, 2014 minutes for both the open and executive sessions The motion passed. VOTE 6-0 2. Liaison Reports. Visitor's Center Mr Addelson reported that, next Monday, staff will be presenting the Board of Selectmen (BoS)with a proposal for the Town to assume responsibility for operating the Visitors' Center starting as soon as possible There are two parts of the proposed process that require action on the parts of the BoS and this Committee • The BoS will be asked to recommend a reserve fund transfer of$35,000 to $40,000 to go into the Economic Development Department's budget. Assuming BoS support, approval for the transfer will be asked of this Committee These funds will be used to start the Town's operation of the facility, i e , to pay for immediate expenditures, pnmanly staffing and the purchase of gift shop inventory Gift shop revenue will be used to cover operating costs going forward. • The BoS will be asked to approve the creation of a revolving fund for the Visitor's Center Assuming BoS approval, this Committee will also be asked for such approval Revenues from the gift shop will be paid into the revolving fund, and the fund will have a spending limit of$100,000 Gift shop sales reached $200,000 in 2005, then declined to $137,000 in 2013 These steps are needed to keep the gift shop open until the end of fiscal year(FY) 2015 Going forward, funding for the Visitor's Center, as needed, and/or continuation of the revolving fund will be brought to the Annual Town Meeting for re-approval each year Mr Addelson explained that the goal is to preserve the integrity of the Visitor's Center and the important role it plays in the Town. The extenuating circumstances associated with this issue warrant the Town taking these actions at this time In response to questions, he said that it has not been determined whether any funds being requested from the Reserve Fund will be reimbursed or whether the Town will seek another operator for the Visitor's Center in the near future It was 1 9/18/14 Minutes noted that the Town owns the Visitor's Center and the Chamber of Commerce has been operating the Visitor's Center, including the gift shop, for the Town. Ad hoc School Master Planning Committee (AhSMPC) Mr Levine and Mr Radulescu-Banu reported on last Tuesday's School Committee meeting, during which the Supenntendent's Enrollment Working Group explained that Lexington's schools can expect a 675 (+/-100) increase in enrollment over the next five years This estimate is based on a linear projection with some "tweaking," rather than on the more commonly-used Cohort Survival Method, because Lexington's experience shows that the Cohort Survival Method is consistently underestimating student increases A straight-line approach is the only available alternative At yesterday's Clarke Middle School meeting with parents, Supenntendent Ash said he did not recommend adding modular classrooms at the school, but parents at the meeting were not convinced that this was an appropriate position considering the space needs Another meeting is being scheduled, and the dialogue is continuing. A fall 2014 special town meeting will be required if the schools are to add any modular units 3 Water/Sewer Rates. Using a handout, Mr Bartenstem reviewed the Town's process for calculating the water/sewer rates each year and certain issues pertinent to the pending rate-making proceedings for FY2015 He explained that the Town has three rate tiers Tier 1 for the first 40 one hundred cubic feet (hcf) used, Tier 2 for the next 40 hcf; and tier 3 for usage above 80 hcf. There is a graduated water and sewer rate for each tier If a property has a separate meter for irngation only, the Town charges the Tier 3 water rate for all of the irrigation water used and doesn't apply a sewer charge Each sprang, Town Meeting approves a budget for the Water and Sewer Enterpnse Funds for the coming fiscal year In the fall of that fiscal year, the rates that need to be charged to meet the budget are determined based on projected usage Over the years, there have been upward and downward trends in water and sewer usage for a variety of reasons Water conservation efforts implemented in the 1980s resulted in dramatic reductions in water use statewide, and there is now a perennial water surplus at the MWRA's Quabbm Reservoir storage facility Sewer usage has increased because the number of septic systems in Lexington has decreased as Title 5 has required more stringent standards and more houses have been connected with the Town sewers In recent years, Lexington has experienced an increase in the number of irrigation water meters Projecting irngation water use is complicated because weather patterns can impact that use Since 2009, significant retained earnings (surpluses)in the Enterpnse Fund have resulted from usage in excess of projections, particularly at the Tier 3 level The greatest contributor to this surplus has been Shire's heavy use of water for its pharmaceutical processes It was noted that retained earnings in excess of the amount prudent to be held in reserve can be used as a subsidy to decrease the water/sewer rates or can be used as cash capital to fund capital projects There was general agreement that improving water and sewer use projections would be desirable and would allow a more accurate projection of anticipated revenues Although it is not possible to know all the summer irrigation water usage levels before the fall billings are issued each fiscal year, Mr Bartenstem believes the use of sample data, which is available, can inform the process and improve projections Mr Addelson reported that the FY2015 rates which will be recommended at the BoS meeting next week will result in a combined 2 1% increase for the average user 2 9/18/14 Minutes 4 Next Meeting. To avoid the Jewish holidays next week, the next meeting will be Tuesday evening, September 23, 2014 5 Adjournment: A motion was made and seconded to adjourn the meeting at 9.20 p.m The motion passed. VOTE 7-0 The documents used at the meeting are listed in the Exhibit below Respectfully submitted, Sara Arnold Recording Secretary Approved September 10, 2015 Exhibit 1 Agenda, posted by Glenn Parker, Chair 2 FY201 5 Water/Sewer Rate-Setting Issues, prepared by Mr Bartenstem, September 18, 2014 3 Water Usage Trends Graphs, prepared by Mr Parker, September 18, 2014 3