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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-12-03-CPC-minMinutes of the Community Preservation Committee Thursday, December 3, 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); Bill Kennedy, Chair, LexHAB; Caileen Foley, Executive Director, Lexington Housing Authority; Melisa Tintocalis, Economic Development Director; Fred Johnson, Chair, ad -hoc Grain Mill Alley Steering Committee; Dave Pinsonneault, DPW Operations Manager. Ms. Fenollosa called the meeting to order at 3:04 PM. 1) Committee Business- The Committee approved the minutes (9 -0) from the CPC meeting on November 19, 2015, as amended. Updates to the Committee's Need Assessment Report were due. The full draft report will be circulated for final review and comment so it can be voted on during the next CPC meeting on December 10th The Committee spoke briefly about the status of the on -going Community Center Sidewalk Design project for which CPA funds were approved at the 2015 Spring Annual Town Meeting. Mr. Kanter reported that construction costs are still pending. Ms. Fenollosa also relayed that Town Counsel provided a favorable recommendation of the Greeley Village Rear Door and Porch project. 2) LexHAB Property Purchase at Keeler Farm- Bill Kennedy presented LexHAB's request for $180,000 in CPA funds to potentially fund the purchase of one unit of affordable housing at the new Keeler Farm development. Mr. Kennedy presented the request to the CPC as a placeholder since LexHAB is pursuing alternate funding for the purchase. If received, the alternate funding would be used to purchase the property in its entirety. He confirmed that all banked money appropriated to LexHAB in previous funding cycles has been allocated to other projects and no balances remain. The Committee briefly discussed maintenance of common -areas within the development since it will be overseen by a homeowner's association and Mr. Kennedy confirmed there would be no condo fees associated with the unit. LexHAB would hold it as a rental property for tenants chosen through a lottery system. The Committee voted to approve the project as a placeholder in a straw poll (9 -0). After the vote, Mr. Kennedy updated the CPC on several on -going LexHAB projects that were supported with CPA funds. 3) LHA- Greeley Village Rear Door and Porch Preservation Project- Prior to the start of the presentation, Ms. Fenollosa advised LHA Executive Director, Caileen Foley that Town Counsel had recently provided a favorable opinion on the revised project application. Ms. Foley distributed a handout to the CPC that detailed existing conditions of the rear doors and porches of the units at Greeley Village. The proposed project would replace existing storm and screen doors, frames and trims. The porches and steps would be made more stable and more supportive railings would be constructed. LHA seeks $263,250 in CPA funding which was decreased from their initial request of $415,711. Ms. Foley explained that the original funding request was submitted prior to her start date as LHA's new Executive Director. Once she was able to review the request in more detail, Ms. Foley was able to reduce the numbers and make the costs more manageable. The revised application also responded to Town Counsel's initial concern about applicability under the CPA statute. Greeley Village units were not purchased with CPA funds, therefore the proposed project would only qualify for CPA funding if the purpose of the improvements was to preserve and protect the real property from 'injury, harm or destruction'. Town Counsel argued that the initial application did not demonstrate preservation of the building from harm so much as the protection of building users from harm. Mr. Kanter cautioned Ms. Foley on the use of the phrase 'loss of energy' in the revised application; Town Counsel specifically recommended the CPC condition any recommendation against the use of CPA funds for construction costs to renovate the building unrelated to the existing structural problems. Ms. Foley noted that the phrase would be stricken from the application. The CPC voted to support the project in a straw poll, 9 -0. 4) Grain Mill AIIev Improvements- Economic Development Director, Melisa Tintocalis and ad -hoc Grain Mill Alley Steering Committee Chair, Fred Johnson came before the Committee to present their request for additional CPA monies to fund the further design and construction of the alley that connects Mass Ave and the Minuteman Bikeway. FY16 CPA funds were utilized for design development and the current request would bring the conceptual design to completion and fund the construction of the project. Ms. Tintocalis and Mr. Johnson reported that an agreement between the Town and the alley's adjacent property owners was currently being reviewed by Town Counsel. Town Counsel has advised the CPC that any recommendation of CPA funds for the project be contingent upon acceptance of the agreement by all three parties. Ms. Tintocalis and Mr. Johnson presented a design proposal and reviewed the specific aspects of the project such as lighting, seating and plantings. A break -down of construction costs had been provided to the CPC earlier in the week which reduced the construction estimates from $427,000 to $337,383. Ms. Shaw and other Committee members expressed concern about the number of proposed seating places, they did not think that there was adequate seating in the alley. Mr. Johnson said that Bank of America had expressed some concerns about additional seating which could pose a safety threat to their facility. Ms. Tintocalis added that there is the possibility of utilizing seasonal installations in the alley to help keep the space fresh. Such installations may include moveable furniture that would increase the number of seats. Mr. Pressman asked about the period of time specified in the agreement that the property owners would allow the space to be utilized by the Town. Ms. Tintocalis responded that the time period is 30 years. There was also discussion about the proposed lighting and how accessibility for those with disabilities was being addressed. The CPC voted in favor of the project (8 -1) as a placeholder for an amount not to exceed $350,000, subject to acceptance by all parties of the legal agreement between the Town, Bank of America and Condo Association. Mr. Pressman opposed. Ms. Tintocalis reported that the deadline for acceptance of the agreement is December 10tH 5) Antony Park- Return Interview- Dave Pinsonneault, DPW Operations Manager, appeared before the Committee for a second time regarding the proposed Antony Park project. Mr. Pinsonneault was called back because the CPC had additional questions about the project for which $60,000 is requested in CPA funds. Mr. Pinsonneault responded directly to a list of questions that had been submitted by Mr. Wolk and then additional discussion ensued. Mr. Pinsonneault mentioned that the DPW was brought in after the Board of Selectmen authorized the Tourism Committee to build the park in honor of Lexington's sister city, Antony, France. CPA funds are required to complete the project due to private fundraising being at a standstill. Donors are not unwilling to contribute more money to the project but they wish to see progress made before those funds are donated. Mr. Horton recognized that the DPW was 'stuck' with a partially completed project and mentioned that it was a lesson to be learned about the control of privately raised funds for such projects. Mr. Wolk objected to the handling of the project, noting that it was inappropriate to reimburse such mismanagement. Ms. Fenollosa voiced objection to the design of the proposed park, pointing out that Tower Park is rural in nature and such a stylized design would appear out of place. The Committee approved the project in a straw poll, 7 -2. Mr. Wolk and Ms. Fenollosa opposed. The meeting was adjourned at 4:59 PM. The following documents were submitted at the meeting: 1) Greeley Village Rear Door and Porch Preservation Project 2) Revised Lexington Housing Authority Greeley Village Rear Door and Porch Preservation Project 3) Grain Mill Alley PowerPoint Presentation