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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-04-13-CPC-min Minutes of the Community Preservation Committee Thursday, April 13, 2017 Parker Room Town Office Building 1625 Massachusetts Avenue 3:00 PM Committee Members Present: Marilyn Fenollosa (Chair); Dick Wolk (Vice-Chair), Norman Cohen, Charles Hornig, David Horton, Bob Pressman, Sandra Shaw, Melinda Walker. Absent: Jeanne Krieger Administrative Assistant: Elizabeth Mancini Other Attendees: Wendy Manz, Capital Expenditures Committee liaison to the CPC; Carol Kowalski, Assistant Town Manager for Land Use and Development; Phil Hamilton, Conservation Commission; Tom Griffiths, Munroe Center for the Arts. Ms. Fenollosa called the meeting to order at 3:05 PM. 1) Wright Farm Supplemental Funds- Ms. Kowalski requested an increase in CPA funds for the Wright Farm Supplemental Funds. Further testing concluded that the contaminated soil excavated from the site was considered hazardous waste. Due to this classification, federal regulations require that the hazardous material be transported to Canada for disposal instead of a landfill in New Hampshire, as originally planned. The unforeseen international transport and additional costs associated with the site professional caused the total project to increase from $37,900 to $87,701. The CPC questioned the timing of the recent test that determined the soil to be hazardous waste. Ms. Kowalski explained that the soil was tested approximately four to six weeks ago but due to continued discussions with the site professional and the transport company, a resolution was not reached until several days prior to the meeting. Ms. Fenollosa also questioned if contaminated soil could potentially be located anywhere else on the property, resulting in additional remediation costs. Ms. Kowalski said that initial testing had been completed on other areas of the property to determine the extent of the contamination but the hazardous material was isolated to the area near the barn that was already excavated. 1 Mr. Wolk noted that the Conservation Commission was unaware of the issues surrounding the contaminated soil and voiced concern over this lack of communication. He also questioned if the site professional could be held liable for any oversight regarding the hazardous soil. Ms. Kowalski noted that this situation was unprecedented for the site professional and had no reason to doubt their professionalism. She also acknowledged that better care should have been taken to secure the tarp that covered the soil which blew off during the winter months. After a motion duly made and seconded, the CPC voted (8-0) to approve $87,701 for the Wright Farm Supplemental Fund project. 2) Munroe School Window Restoration- Since the time of the original FY18 request, the Munroe Center for the Arts was notified that the scope of the proposed window restoration necessitated partial accessibility upgrades to the building, specifically building access requirements. Mr. Griffiths appeared before the CPC to request an increase in the total project cost which would allow for the window restoration to proceed while also addressing building access from the rear entrance and renovations to an existing bathroom to make it handicap-accessible. The CPC questioned if the accessibility issues were a more urgent concern than the window restoration. Mr. Griffiths explained that there were also concerns with window safety. The proposed plan to address partial accessibility would allow for the window restoration to move forward, as planned. Full building accessibility would need to be determined through a building study. He noted that the Munroe Center for the Arts may submit a future request to the CPC for such funding. Since the architect was still working on the design and costs for the accessibility estimated an increase of approximately $50,000, noting that the architect seemed confident with that figure. After a motion duly made and seconded, the CPC voted (8- 0) to recommend an amount up to $675,000, a $55,000 increase for the window restoration and partial accessibility upgrades. 3) Update #2 to Report to Town Meeting- Due to changes to the Town Pool Renovation, Wright Farm Supplemental Funds and the Munroe Window Restoration, an additional motion duly made and seconded, the CPC voted (8-0) to approve the release of the update prior to the start of the next Town Meeting session. The meeting was adjourned at 4:26 PM. 2 The following documents were submitted at the meeting: 1) Revised Wright Farm Supplemental Request to Article 9 ATM 2015 Respectfully submitted, Elizabeth Mancini Administrative Assistant Community Preservation Committee 3