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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-05-17-AC-min 05/17/2018 AC Minutes Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee (AC) May 17, 2018 Place and Time: Parker Room, Town Office Building, 7:30 p.m. Members Present: John Bartenstein, Chair; Alan Levine, Vice-Chair & Secretary; Ellen Basch; Eric Michelson; Sanjay Padaki; Andrei Radulescu-Banu; Lily Manhua Yan; Jian Helen Yang; Carolyn Kosnoff, Assistant Town Manager, Finance (non-voting, ex-officio) Member(s)Absent: Richard Neumeier Other Attendees: Kate Colburn, Vice-Chair, School Committee (SC); Deepika Sawhney, SC The meeting was called to order at 7:35 p.m. 1. Announcements and Liaison Reports Mr. Bartenstein reported, as follows: • The next AC meeting is scheduled for June 7, 2018. • The impacts of the recent Open Meeting Law ruling related to the Boelter v. Board of Selectmen of Wayland lawsuit discussed by this Committee at its recent meetings have not yet been fully identified. • The Board of Selectmen (BoS) is requesting comments on the way property taxes are assessed against new construction in Lexington. This will be on this Committee's June 7 agenda. 2. Minutes A motion was made and seconded to approve the April 23, 2018 minutes. The motion passed. VOTE: 8-0 3. Preparation for the June 14, 2018 Summit; School Department Issues Ms. Colburn reviewed the following items, which will be discussed at the Summit: • School Master Planning Effort: The last school master planning effort was in 2014. Building a 30-section Hastings Elementary School, adding classroom space at Fiske, Bridge, and Bowman Elementary Schools, adding/renovating space at Clarke and Diamond Middle Schools, and building a new Lexington Children's Center were all projects that were an outgrowth of that effort. Enrollments continue to increase, as shown on handouts, triggering the need for a new plan to address the next five to ten years. A new Superintendent of Schools, who has extensive experience with capital projects, is scheduled to begin on July 1, 2018, so will be available at the beginning of this process. DiNisco Design Inc. has past experience working on Lexington School issues, and there is adequate funding in a current contract with them for work to begin on this project without requesting additional funds. In response to requests to include Lexington High School(LHS) needs, Ms. Colburn said that everything must be on the table, including the shifting of some grades into different levels. The School Master Planning Committee will set the agenda with contractor guidance. She added that the School Department plans to file a Statement of Interest with 1 05/17/2018 AC Minutes the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) in April 2019 to begin a process for requesting State financial assistance in rebuilding LHS. • Science Labs at LHS: The LHS lab science program is restricted to 24 students per class because of limited laboratory space. Using a handout, Ms. Colburn reported that enrollment increases have resulted in a critical shortfall that needs to be addressed by the fall of 2019. It is anticipated that a request for design funds will be brought to a fall 2018 Special Town Meeting and that a request for construction funding will be brought to the spring 2019 Annual Town Meeting (ATM). Based on information from TDA Consulting, it is currently estimated that the project would cost $1.0 to $1.1 million. • Swimming Pool Needs: The Lexington swim teams have been using the Minuteman Technical High School(Minuteman Tech) swimming pool, but the Minuteman Tech facility is being replaced with a building that does not include a pool. Many alternatives have been explored; the Hanscom Air Force Base pool may be available for the fall girls' season, but it is not clear whether the winter boys' practices can be accommodated as well. Sudbury High School is a possible alternative, but this entails a long drive from Lexington. The Department of Public Facilities is exploring the option of installing a bubble over the town pool, although it seems unlikely that this is a viable option. Renting space costs $26-27,000 per year. MSBA would not contribute funds for a pool, even if it agrees to help fund the rebuilding of LHS. Additionally, there is a space problem on the LHS site. Mr. Bartenstein reported that a non-voting liaison is needed to attend the School Master Planning meetings, which will meet on Friday mornings from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. starting in the fall. There may be some reading to do over the summer. It was agreed that Mr. Levine would be the primary liaison with Mr. Michelson serving as an alternate. There was discussion about the importance of the Planning Board understanding the impacts of new housing on the Lexington schools. It was agreed that the Planning Board should receive enrollment reports. Ms. Sawhney reported that she is the SC liaison to the Planning Board and appreciated this input. 4. Town Manager Screening Committee Mr. Bartenstein reported that this Committee needs a non-voting liaison to the Town Manager Screening Committee, which will be meeting over the summer to find a replacement for Carl Valente, the current Town Manager who is retiring in August. It was agreed that Mr. Michelson would be the primary liaison with Mr. Bartenstein serving as an alternate. 5. Board of Selectmen Goal Setting Mr. Radulescu-Banu distributed a list of suggestions for this Committee to submit to the BoS as the BoS identifies its goals for FY2019. There was general support for submitting the recommendations. Ms. Kosnoff noted that the State may be taking a position on Other Post Employment Benefit funding policies, one of the items on Mr. Radulescu-Banu's list. It was agreed that Mr. Bartenstein would edit some of the wording on the list and submit it to the BoS. 6. Examination of Cost-Saving Proposals Ms. Yang noted that this Committee had previously talked of reviewing the operating budget in an effort to find cost-saving opportunities. It was agreed to include this on the June 7 agenda. 2 05/17/2018 AC Minutes Ms. Kosnoff noted that she is interested in getting a better understanding of this Committee's comments and concerns. 7. Planning for Year-End Budget Transfers Ms. Kosnoff reported that there may not be any year-end budget transfers for FY2018. The meeting adjourned at 9:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Sara Arnold, Recording Secretary Approved: June 7,2018 Exhibits • Agenda, posted by John Bartenstein, Chair • FY2018 Monthly Snapshot of Enrollment by School/Grade as of May 1, 2018; Based on Official Registrations • Monthly Enrollment for FY2016-FY2019; Updated 5/1/2018; Source: Local Enrollment Records, beginning of month • Science Projected Capacity Shortfall; FY2018 through FY2022;prepared by Maureen Kavanaugh; September 5, 2017 • School Master Planning Advisory Committee Charge • Selectmen Goal Setting Input, ARB (Andrei Radulescu-Banu) 3