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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-09-21-AC-min 09/21/2022 AC Minutes 1 Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee (AC) September 21, 2022 Place and Time: Remote Participation: in accordance with “An Act Relative to Extending Certain State of Emergency Accommodations”, signed into law by Gov. Baker on July 16, 2022, communication took place via a Zoom teleconferencing session that was open to the public; 7:30 p.m. Members Present: Glenn Parker, Chair; Sanjay Padaki, Vice-Chair; Anil Ahuja; John Bartenstein; Alan Levine, Secretary; Eric Michelson; Sean Osborne; Lily Manhua Yan; Carolyn Kosnoff, Assistant Town Manager, Finance (non-voting, ex officio) Member(s) Absent: none Other Attendees: David Kanter, Capital Expenditures Committee At 7:35 p.m. Mr. Parker called the meeting to order, confirmed attendance by roll call, and stated that the meeting was being recorded for the purpose of creating minutes. Mr. Levine agreed to take minutes in the absence of a recording secretary. Announcements and Liaison Reports Mr. Parker reported that the Select Board had informed him that the Town’s public safety radio system is plagued with problems, and that the Board will request that this Committee approve a Reserve Fund transfer to help address the problems. Mr. Parker said that the Appropriation Committee should plan to meet on Thursday, September 29, at 6:30 p.m., i.e., 30 minutes prior to the beginning of the budget summit scheduled for that evening, to act on the transfer request. Committee Article for the Town Report Mr. Parker asked for approval of the Committee report for the 2022 Town Report, that had been circulated as a draft. There was a motion and a second to approve the report. The motion was approved by a roll call vote. VOTE: 8-0 Committee Report to the November Special Town Meeting The Committee discussed each of the articles in a draft of the warrant for the November special town meeting. Specified Stabilization Funds Ms. Kosnoff stated that she is still working on this article. There will be funds to be put into the Transportation Demand Management Stabilization Fund, the Water System Capital Stabilization Fund, the Capital Stabilization Fund, and possibly other funds. Some, but not all, of these transfers may be made without town meeting action. Funds for the transfer to the Capital Stabilization Fund, as well as certain other purposes, have become available because the new growth in the tax levy is expected to come in at about $6,000,000 whereas the estimate for the budget was $2,750,000. Some of the amount of new growth in excess of the budget estimate falls under the new policy for setting aside revenue increases from commercial properties that are approved via a PSDUP or that are in the Hartwell Avenue/Bedford zone, and will make up at least part of the transfer into the Capital Stabilization Fund. The operating budget for the Lexington Public Schools for FY2022 included $500,000 that was appropriated out of the Special Education Stabilization Fund. That $500,000 was not spent and 09/21/2022 AC Minutes 2 therefore flowed to Free Cash at the end of that fiscal year. Staff are considering whether to make a request under this article to add $500,000 to the Special Education Stabilization Fund and thereby restore the balance of that fund to the pre-2022 value. Amend FY2023 Budgets There will be a number of changes to budgets under this article. Most of them will be small or routine. One new requested appropriation, i.e., that for upgrading or replacing the public safety radio system, will be substantial, i.e., $800,000 including a small amount for contingencies per the current recommendation of staff. The problems with the radio system have included incidents where Police or Fire Department communications capabilities were inadequate for the immediate situation. The problems are thought to stem from the move of the Police Headquarters and Dispatch Center to 173 Bedford St. The old Headquarters and Dispatch Center in Lexington Center were connected to the radio system via underground copper wires, while at the Bedford St. location the connection is via fiber optic cables. The old telecommunications equipment that was moved apparently does not function well via the fiber optic cable connections. An analysis indicates that the whole radio communication system needs to be upgraded. This would include replacement of copper wires with new underground fiber optic cabling, and new equipment for each of 9 radio towers as well as the Police and Fire Headquarters. This upgrade of the radio system is urgent. Staff therefore requested that the Select Board allow the use of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds that are presently on hand and do not need to be appropriated. It was reported that the Select Board would prefer that the funds come from the General Fund. Given the urgency, the present proposal is to request a transfer of the entire balance of the Reserve Fund, $750,000, and to supplement that amount with $50,000 in ARPA funds. The second part of the proposal is to request an appropriation at the November special town meeting to replenish the Reserve Fund. Mr. Padaki and Mr. Michelson asked whether the budget for the new Police Headquarters could cover the expected expenses. In particular, it was stated that the budget for the new station includes an amount of $650,000 for new equipment. Ms. Kosnoff responded that none of the work or equipment to be funded by the upcoming $800,000 request is covered in the budget for the new station, and, furthermore, that the bulk of the work and equipment would not be at the site of the new station. It was also noted that none of the $800,000 request would be covered by the debt exclusion that was approved for the new police station. Mr. Bartenstein remarked that, per the charter of the Appropriation Committee, the ARPA funds should be subject to Committee oversight, and that it would be wise to discuss the uses of ARPA funds with the Select Board. Ms. Kosnoff noted that the Town claimed the entire $9,900,000 ARPA allocation as lost revenue, since any community that is allocated less than $10,000,000 is allowed to do this, and therefore the ARPA funds can be used for any municipal purpose with few exceptions, e.g., the funds may not be put into a pension or stabilization fund, may not be used to pay down existing debt service, and may not be used to reduce the tax rate. Mr. Ahuja inquired as to how the Town disposes of old equipment. Ms. Kosnoff responded that, if the equipment has any remaining value, it may be sold or traded in when new equipment is purchased. 09/21/2022 AC Minutes 3 The other actions expected under this article include adjustments of the MWRA expenses lines in the Water and Wastewater Enterprise Fund budgets, and possibly of energy budgets particularly for electricity and natural gas. No changes are anticipated to the CPA operating budget. 250th Anniversary of the Battle of Lexington This article will include a request of funds. However, the amount is presently unknown. More information may be available from the Semiquincentennial Commission – Ms. Barry is the Select Board liaison and Commission chair. Authorized Capital Projects This article will include a request for a supplemental appropriation of about $400,000 from the Community Preservation Fund for the Center Recreational Fields bathrooms renovation per recently received bids. Other Post-Employment Benefits (OPEB) This article is included in the draft warrant in order to allow for the possibility of appropriating additional funds into the Post-Employment Insurance Liability Fund based on the expected increase in value of new growth revenue. The Town recently received a valuation analysis of its OPEB liability and there were changes due to a reduction in the assumed discount rate as well as other factors. The need to appropriate funds for the public safety radio system or to replenish the Reserve Fund may lead to the postponement of any request under this article. LexHAB Reorganization LexHAB would like to be reorganized as an independent non-profit 501c(3) entity, but that would require a home rule action in the State legislature. No appropriation would be requested under this article. Housing Trust This article would request the formation of a housing trust to facilitate the creation of affordable housing. No appropriation is expected to be requested under this article. Opioid Settlement The Town has received funds from the State per a settlement with a pharmaceutical company and expects to receive additional funds. The funds need to be spent on treatment programs and other relevant items. The State encourages the use of these funds to support regional programs. The funds must be appropriated as part of the operating budget in order to be spent. Unlike most operating funds, the funds will be held in a continuing balance account and the balance will carry over from one year to the next. Fossil Fuels This article was deemed to be largely non-financial and was therefore not discussed further. Solar Panels and Canopies This article could be a vehicle to request funds to install solar panels and canopies that would be associated with the new police station. It was noted that preparations for this article will likely not be ready for action at this special town meeting. Pool Hot Water Heater 09/21/2022 AC Minutes 4 The Town Pool domestic hot water heater needs to be replaced. The question is whether to use an electrically powered heater or a fossil-fuel fired heater. A presentation on this was recently given at a Select Board meeting. It appears that an electric heater solution may be practical at a cost of about $35,000, much less than earlier estimates. Center Sidewalk Extensions It is expected that there will be a request for the appropriation of $700,000 under this article for the replacement of brick sidewalks on side streets off of Massachusetts Avenue in Lexington Center. Replacement of the subject sidewalks is not covered under the previous appropriation for the Center Streetscape Project. Mr. Michelson noted that the new sidewalks are much better quality than the current (old) sidewalks and that they would improve accessibility and safety. Ms. Kosnoff noted that the idea is to add the proposed work to the current Center streetscape contract. Committee Assignments Mr. Michelson will work on the two affordable housing related articles. Mr. Osborne volunteered to work on the sidewalk article and to work with Mr. Michelson on the housing articles. Mr. Bartenstein volunteered to work on the FY2023 budget adjustments article. Mr. Levine will cover the OPEB article if it goes forward and will work with Mr. Bartenstein on the FY2023 budget adjustments article. There was discussion of making a report shell in WDesk. Mr. Parker has asked Ms. Kosnoff to make a WDesk account for Mr. Osborne. Minutes of Prior Meetings There was a motion and a second to approve the minutes of the AC meeting of September 8, 2022. The motion was approved by a roll call vote. VOTE: 8-0. Future Meetings To allow for extended discussion on the public safety radio system Reserve Fund transfer request, the Committee will meet at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, September 27. Ms. Kosnoff will invite the Police Chief, Fire Chief, Director of Public Facilities, IT Director, and a Select Board representative to attend. This meeting will take the place of meeting on September 29 from 6:30 to 7 p.m. Adjourn The meeting was adjourned by roll call vote at 9:13 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Alan Levine Approved: September 27, 2022 Exhibits ● Agenda, posted by Mr. Parker ● Draft warrant from Select Board packet of September 12.