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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1995-03-03-BFC-min.pdf TOWN OF LEXINGTON AD HOC BUILDING FINANCE COMMITTEE Minutes of Meeting March 3 1995 in Room 111 , Town Office Building, as approved March 10 , 1995 The meeting was called to order by Chairman Peter Kelley at 8 10 a m with the following others present Committee members David Eagle, Gilbert Garber, Donald Jenkins and Mark Moore, as well as Capital Expenditures Committee Liaison Ron Grammont Also attending were staff members Town Engineer Frank Fields , Superintendent of Building iii Maintenance Fred Sweet and Director of School Building Operation John Moynihan Continuation of Town Building Review was presented by Fred Sweet In summary, he noted that a "paper plan" for full ADA compliance had been produced for all town buildings but that it does not have to be implemented immediately , dependent upon use of the building Report from Chairman on expectation for the committee Chairman Kelley told of his meeting , beginning an hour ago, with Selectmen' s Chairman Dailey and the Capital Expenditures Committee They discussed the committee charge and progress toward "practical solutions" Among related issues under consideration were the possibility the town might share in a proposed regional salt storage shed and how possible $120 , 000 might best be spent Basically this committee is expected to look at the facilities study, advise on action, and report to the March 27 session of Town Meeting Therefore the committee should meet for the next three Fridays , the 10th, 17th and 24th By conclusion of March 24th meeting the report should be approved and ready for presentation to Town Meeting Field Trip Tentatively Scheduled for Saturday March 18 ! Further discussion of general town needs centered on how to proceed For example, when a one to two year plan of immediate priorities was mentioned, a committee member was concerned that the range was not long enough However, at this time a statement is necessary to fulfill political expectations Agreed first priority is to identify "critical needs" , to be followed by more long-range problems For example, Cary Hall ' s many problems due to obsolescence of the roof , especially Water damage is due to water running down inside the outside walls Current cost of slates was cited (about $1 , 700 to $1 , 800uare er square)q ) as quite prohibitive of total fix of ice-dam problems In addition committee agreed that most immediate needs should be pointed out with ballpark estimates of cost , not worrying about exactly how much or where the funding is to come from Grammont suggested focusing on the oldest and neediest buildings , possibly splitting the committee giving various members look-see responsibility for different groups of buildings Sweet asked if resetting the front steps of Cary to prevent the most damaging water would be in the first priority Summarizing on Cary Memorial Building, Sweet reported that about $22 ,000 annually is allotted to replacing broken slates and repairs to chimney and flashing Expenditure for full repair of the ice dam problem has { Ad Hoc Building Finance Committee 3/3/95 2 not been requested or estimated Eagle pointed out that ventilation is also needed "Let ' s get the whole story, the full estimate of the real fixing " he recommended Presently the only data is from the Archetype report In further discussion of immediate versus long-range fixing, Grammont asked if making an unequivocal statement or judgment call is not akin to preparing for a 100-year storm Replacement of Cary Memorial roof was quoted as costing $94 000 in the report , but that today would cost at least $120 ,000 while Town Office Building roof replacement would cost 27 , 000 and the police station about $13 , 000 but that need is not as serious and repairs will do at this time The bandstand is in need of more ventilation above and below The DPW barn now seems to be "on its own" with plans for rebuild/renovation Most needed now is a more accurate estimate of Cary Hall ' s needs Sweet was thanked for his input on town buildings Schools Report by Moynihan The Archetype report put a figure of $64 million for the schools in the next 10 years Moynihan has broken down this list into needs , wants and "wish list" About $32 million of work are driven by program changes Another $31 to $32 million would be needed to bring the buildings up to today' s ( 1993 ) standards , but it was asked whether that is really wanted or needed Moynihan told that about $15 million really needs to be done, especially parking/paving mechanical and electrical work Furthermore , the Archetype report really covers only seven of the nine schools The high school and Clarke were singled out for further program versus plant study Quite possibly $90 , 000 more could be spent on studying the high school and $40 , 000 more studying Clarke The Administration Building is included in the list of town rather than school buildings The schools are now completing the 5-year plan of 1990 that included leftovers not done in the 1986 renovation project The schools have also prepared an ADA compliance plan No prioritizing was done in the Archetype study The $31 million list has been given to the School Committee Among the most pressing needs to be addressed in the schools capital budget request are $371, 500 for safety measures including Harrington windows , doors and boiler work $1 1 million for system-wide electrical work in all buildings and $653 , 000 for the networking technology plan Computers will have a dedicated circuit as required Since 1987 all roofs have been replaced except for Harrington, and that should be put in next year (When questioned later about real need for replacement, Moynihan gave history noting that the roof is approaching its life and will need replacement in two years ) Of the $15 million most urgently required needs , $2 5 million have already been done, including $2 million for Hastings renovations and for boilers at the high school , $75 ,000 to rebuild the Crumb Field bleachers and $25 , 000 for accoustical work at the high school $12 5 million is yet to be done Moynihan was asked to provide a report on this in writing Ad Hoc Building Finance Committee 3/3/95 3 Classroom space will be lacking in the middle schools soon With existing programs the school system will lack 14 to 16 classrooms in two years Grammont emphasized that people want to hear from this committee about impending problems "The town fathers are looking for direction, " he advised "Be definitive " After agreeing to meet each Friday from 8 to 9 30 a m for the rest of the month, the meeting adjourned at 9 14 a m until March 10 Respectfully submitted,/ Erna S Greene, Secretary { 1