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Home My WebLink About2015-11-19-CPC-min Minutes of the Community Preservation Committee Thursday, November 19, 2015 Parker Room, Town Office Building 1625 Massachusetts Avenue 3:00 PM Committee Members Present: Marilyn Fenollosa, Chair; Richard Wolk, Vice-Chair; Richard Canale, Norman Cohen, David Horton, Jeanne Krieger, Leo McSweeney, Bob Pressman, Sandra Shaw. Administrative Assistant: Elizabeth Lane Other Attendees: David Kanter, Vice-Chair of the Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC); Susan Bennett, Executive Director, Lexington Historical Society; Russ Tanner, Bill McKenney, Margaret Counts-Klebe, First Parish Church; Patrick Guthrie, Spencer and Vogt Group; Tom Whelan, Lexington Arts and Crafts Society. Ms. Fenollosa called the meeting to order at 3:02 PM. st 1)Committee Business- The Committee agreed to make December 1 the deadline for all comments/updates to their Needs Assessment Report and December 17 th the date for the public hearing. Final votes on FY17 projects and the Needs Assessment Report th would be taken at the end of their meeting on December 10. The Committee reviewed the notes from their informational meeting on November 12. Due to improper posting of the meeting, minutes were not recorded and an official meeting was not called to order. One revision was requested for the meeting notes. Ms. Fenollosa polled the members in a straw vote in order to capture, for the record, their decisions on the Recreation Depa. The Committee voted unanimously (9-0) to support those projects presented at the informational meeting on November 12. Ms. Fenollosa updated the Committee with the recently released state-match figures. was considered good news. Ms. Fenollosa also reminded the Committee of the need to complete the required Ethics Training. After a motion duly made and seconded, the Committee voted 9-0 to approve the meeting minutes from November 5, 2015, as submitted. 2)Munroe Tavern Restoration and Rehabilitation- Susan Bennett, Executive Director of the Lexington Historical Society, presented the request for CPA funds to the Committee. The Society plans to add an addition to Munroe Tavern to house archives. The new construction is ineligible for CPA funds but the Society seeks $15,000 for the required archaeological dig that precedes the construction. The Committee discussed details of the project, including design and the possibility of repurposing existing structur. There was also discussion about certain findings being unearthed that may halt the dig. Ms. Bennett expressed doubt that any such findings would be unearthed since a previous dig in the vicinity uncovered little of historical significance. The Committee voted 9-0 in a straw poll to support the project. 3)First Parish Church Exterior Preservation and Structural Priorities- An Historic Structures Report prepared by Spencer and Vogt Group and partially funded with FY16 CPA funds identified priority needs of the First Parish Church. The current request seeks CPA funds to remediate those priority needs identified in the report, including repair and restoration of the main meetinghouse windows, repair and strip the cladding and trim on the meetinghouse and repaint to its historic color, and specific structural repairs to the meetinghouse roof. Patrick Guthrie, architect with Spencer and Vogt reviewed the details of the proposed scope of work, including current conditions and suggested remediation techniques. The Committee further discussed the specifics of the proposal, including potential lead paint removal and the restoration of the windows. specifically noting action that would require funds during fiscal year 2016 instead of fiscal year 2017. Mr. Tanner noted that this was previously brought to his attention but wanted to wait until meeting with the CPC to revise their application recommendations. The current request for CPA funds total approximately two thirds of the total project cost ions fund approximately one third. Mr. Cohen noted the importance of the Church to the community as a whole but stated that he would have liked those amounts to be reversed, with the Church responsible for two thirds of the cost and the Town responsible for one third. The Committee requested a break-down of costs for both past and future Church projects. Members reasoned that such a break-down could help the Committee put the current request into perspective by illustrating the overall contributions made by both the Church and the Town. Mr. Wolk noted that the Church is an historic structure but expressed discomfort with institutions in town to maintain their structures in a responsible manner. The Town funding such upgrades was cause for concern. In response to concern expressed by the committee that they may return in subsequent years for future CPA application was guided by the results of the Historic Structures Report and they are requesting money for those projects that were flagged as priorities. First Parish is asking the CPC for help on capital improvements because the scope of work and associated costs exceed what the church is capable of raising. The Committee also expressed concern over funding capital repairs that could possibly be prevented with regular upkeep and maintenance. Mr. Guthrie suggested that not all of the improvements could have been maintained with general up-keep, specifically mentioning dequately installed. The CPC decided against taking a straw vote until the finalized Historic Structures Report and break-down of past and future projects are provided. The Committee also suggested the Church re-evaluate their fundraising capabilities to allow for more private funds to support the project. The Church will be called back at a later date to present the additional information. 4)Parsons Gallery Lighting Renovation- Mr. Wolk recused himself from voting on the project application since he is a member of the Arts and Crafts Society. Tom Whelan from the Lexington Arts and Crafts Society presented the application. Their request includes $32,000 in CPA funds to replace the lighting system in the gallery, remove the existing track system and light fixtures, install a new track system and fixtures, install new dimmer switches and re-wire as needed. He pointed out that the current lighting system was installed in the early 1970s and is falling apart. With the understanding that Town Counsel had yet to provide an opinion on the project, the Committee discussed the request, noting in particular that the request could be viewed as a capital improvement instead of just decorative lighting. Without adequate lighting, the gallery would not be functional for its intended use. Mr. Pressman voiced concern over the disparity between the amount of private contributions and the amount of requested CPA funds. With membership in the Society exceeding 330 members, Mr. Pressman argued that the private contribution to the project should be more than the proposed $4,280. Mr. McSweeney asked if there is a mechanism to ensure that the anticipated private funds are actually available at the onset of the project. Mr. Whelan said there is no concern that those funds would be available in the capital improvement project accounts. They also have additional fundraising efforts planned. The Committee decided to take a straw vote on the project in the event that Town Counsel provides a favorable opinion. The Committee voted in favor of the project, 5-1 with two abstentions. The Arts and Crafts Society was asked to attend an additional CPC meeting The meeting was adjourned at 5:07 PM. ŷĻ ŅƚƌƌƚǞźƓŭ ķƚĭǒƒĻƓƷƭ ǞĻƩĻ ƭǒĬƒźƷƷĻķ ğƷ ƷŷĻ ƒĻĻƷźƓŭ ЊΜLƓŅƚƩƒğƷźƚƓğƌ aĻĻƷźƓŭ bƚƷĻƭ ŅƩƚƒ ЊЊΉЊЋΉЊЎ