Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2023-03-28-CPC-min 1 Minutes for the Community Preservation Committee 3/28/2023 Remote Zoom Meeting Meeting ID: 978 1303 5566 Committee Members Present: Marilyn Fenollosa (Chair), Kevin Beuttell, David Horton, Jeanne Krieger (Vice Chair), Lisa O’Brien, Bob Pressman, Mark Sandeen, Melinda Walker Committee Members Absent: Bob Creech Other Attendees: Carolyn Kosnoff (Assistant Town Manager-Finance), Sandy Beebee (Capital Expenditures Committee Liaison), Charles Lamb (Capital Expenditures Committee Chair), Cristina Burwell (Executive Director, Munroe Center for the Arts), Rick DeAngelis, Recreation Committee Chair, Christian Boutwell, Recreation Committee Vice Chair, Melissa Battite, Director of Recreation and Community Programs), Bridger McGaw (Town Meeting Member) Ms. Fenollosa called the meeting to order at 4:02 PM. 1. Discuss proposed amendment to Warrant Article 10(b), Munroe Center for the Arts (“Lamb Amendment”) Charles Lamb, Capital Expenditures Committee chair, presented the text of his proposed amendment: should the Stone Building project, Article 10(a), for $400,000 not be approved by Town Meeting, then he will move to amend Article 10(b), the Munroe Center for the Arts project, to reduce the debt proposed to be issued for the project from $2,000,000 to $1,600,000 and increase the $1,000,000 Unbudgeted Reserve amount to $1,400,000. Carolyn Kosnoff, Assistant Town Manager for Finance, joined the Committee to discuss the effect the reduced debt issue proposed by the Lamb Amendment would have on the Community Preservation Fund. Mr. Sandeen reported on the unanimous support of the Select Board for the Lamb Amendment. After a motion was duly made and seconded, the Committee voted by roll call (7-0 with one abstention) to approve the Lamb Amendment. 2. Report on proposed amendment to Warrant Article 10(b), Munroe Center for the Arts (“Himmel Amendment”) Ms. Fenollosa described the proposed amendment by Jon Himmel, Chair of the Permanent Building Committee, requiring that the Munroe Center for the Arts project adhere to the Town’s Integrated Building Design and Construction (IBDC) Policy within the funds available. Before the meeting, Mr. Sandeen reported to the Town Meeting Members Association listserv that at the previous night’s Select Board meeting the Town Manager had confirmed that the project would 2 in fact adhere to IDBC policy, and that the Select Board’s report would reflect that statement. In light of this, Mr. Himmel reported by email that he would not move his amendment. 3. Discuss proposed amendments to Warrant Article 10(i), Lincoln Park Field Improvements and Lighting (“Kern Amendment” and “Krieger Amendment”) Ms. Fenollosa described the two proposed amendments: that the project funds would “be made in accordance with the recommendations of the “Article 10(i) Working Group Letter of Support dated March 24, 2023” [a copy of which had been provided to the CPC] (the “Kern Amendment”), and that only natural grass turf would be installed in the Lincoln Field improvements (the “Krieger Amendment”). Ms. O’Brien reported that the Recreation Committee would be discussing these amendments the following evening, before the Town Meeting vote, and noted that the proposed Working Group policy would go beyond the Lincoln Field project and affect many more of the fields and playgrounds in town. Mr. DeAngelis described the need for turf vs. natural grass, citing the difficulties of maintaining natural grass, the complicated procedure to replace the existing artificial turf with natural grass, and the newer, safer materials proposed to be used. Ms. Krieger acknowledged these issues but expressed her concern with the health issues surrounding artificial turf. Ms. Battite described the advantages of artificial turf, noting greater playability, ease of maintenance, cost, and accessibility. Mr. Sandeen reported on the Select Board’s position on the two amendments: for the Krieger Amendment, 2 in favor, 2 opposed and 1 “wait”; for the Kern Amendment, 4 in support and 1 “no position”. Ms. O’Brien noted the position of the Lexington Board of Health, reading the text of a letter of support for artificial turf that had been issued that morning. Mr. Boutwell discussed the loss of playing time that would occur if natural grass were to be used, exacerbated by the high school construction project that would remove those playing fields during construction. Ms. Fenollosa then described the options for the Committee: to vote in favor of one or both of the amendments, to vote to oppose them, or to take no position since the use of artificial turf was specifically prohibited by the Community Preservation Act and thus these amendments were beyond the purview of the CPC. After a motion was duly made and seconded, the Committee voted by roll call (7-0) to take no position on either of the Kern or Krieger amendments. 3 4. Discuss corrections to Annual Report to Town Meeting Ms. Fenollosa describe two corrections to the CPC Annual Report that were made subsequent to the Committee’s approval on February 9: first, since the Town Counsel had recently changed his opinion on the ownership of the East Village clock, from the town to the church, the description of Article 10(f), East Village Clock at Follen Church Restoration, was revised to reflect the change; and second, to correct the parenthetical statement in the Status Report on FY23 Projects concerning the Center Recreation Complex Bathroom and Maintenance Building (Article 10(e) and STM 2022-3 Article 5) from “reduced from $915,000” to “increased by $400,000”). After a motion was duly made and seconded, the Committee voted by roll call (7-0) to ratify the Annual Report to own Meeting as corrected. 5. Committee Business: Ms. Fenollosa reminded the Committee that Town Meeting would be taking up the CPC articles the following evening (March 29) and invited all non-Town Meeting Members to attend. She also announced that the next CPC meeting would be after Town Meeting is over, most likely late April or May. Adjourn: After a motion was duly made and seconded, the Committee conducted a roll call vote (7-0) to adjourn the meeting at 5:45 PM. Meeting Materials:  Motion for 2023 Annual Town Meeting Article 10, Appropriate the Community Preservation Committee Operating Budget and CPA Projects revised 3/23/23  Motions and Proposed Amendments to CPA Articles  Email opinion from Town Counsel dated 3/28/23 at 12:08 PM with respect to proposed amendments  Article 10i Working Group Letter of Support dated March 24, 2023 from Melissa Battite, Director of Recreation and Community Programs to James Malloy, Town Manager  Red-lined pages from Annual Town Report 2023, with corrections noted Respectfully Submitted, Marilyn Fenollosa, Chair Community Preservation Committee APPROVED: 9/21/23