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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-01-17-AC-min 01/17/2019 AC Minutes Minutes Town of Lexington Appropriation Committee (AC) January 17, 2019 Place and Time: Hudson Room, Cary Memorial Building, 7:30 p.m. Members Present: Glenn Parker, Chair; Sanjay Padaki, Vice-Chair; Alan Levine, Secretary; John Bartenstein; Ellen Basch; Eric Michelson; Richard Neumeier; Carolyn Kosnoff, Assistant Town Manager, Finance (non-voting, ex officio) Member(s)Absent: Nick Nichols; Lily Manhua Yan Other Attendees: None The meeting was called to order at 7:34 p.m. Announcements Mr. Parker and Mr. Bartenstein made the following comments: Another Town committee (in addition to this committee) is interested in a Town-supported website that would provide public access to documents produced by Town committees. Such a website would allow committee members to share documents in advance of a public meeting, even if the documents contained opinions from committee members. The committee's understanding is that providing simultaneous online access to the public would make such sharing conform with recent legal guidance on Open Meeting Law requirements. Ms. Kosnoff noted that there should be information about the availability of such a facility by the end of next week. The Board of Selectmen (BoS) had on its agenda for Monday, January 14 citizen articles and Community Preservation Committee (CPC) recommendations. Mr. Neumeier reported that the January 4, 2019 edition of the Lawyers' Weekly included an advertisement placed by the City of Lowell for a city solicitor. The salary was listed at $57,958.16 to $67,988.84. Mr. Levine reported on two recent School Master Planning Advisory Committee (SMPAC) meetings. During a discussion related to replacing Lexington High School (LHS), Mr. Levine reported having shared information on financial considerations that should be kept in mind during the planning process including exempt debt projections previously presented by Ms. Kosnoff at Summit II, noting that the financial ramifications of a new high school are considerable. It was also noted that no decision has yet been made in regard to total vs. partial replacement. A Statement of Interest is being prepared for submission to the Massachusetts School Building Authority(MSBA) in order to obtain MSBA participation in renovation or replacement of LHS. LHS overcrowding may be recognized by the MSBA as a priority issue, which could hasten MSBA consideration. A recommendation from the SMPC may be ready by fall 2019. It was noted that Arlington is seeking to replace its high school with an estimated cost of about $300 million. Mr. Bartenstein reported that the Residential Exemption Policy Study Committee (Ad Hoc) made an interesting presentation to the BoS on January 7, and will issue a report soon, but the consensus of the Selectmen was that this matter would not be ready for the 2019 Annual Town Meeting (ATM). As liaison to the Crematory Study Committee (Ad hoc), Mr. Padaki reported that he now understands that the operation of the cemetery is not revenue neutral; cemetery operations are 1 01/17/2019 AC Minutes annually funded in part by about$75,000 from the tax levy. The cost of the new building that is being brought to the 2019 ATM for approval is expected to be covered by lot sales and fee increases that went into effect on July 1, 2017. Ms. Kosnoff noted that the cemetery operation was not intended to function as an enterprise fund. Review of Proposed Warrant Articles for the 2019 Annual Town Meeting (ATM) Ms. Basch reported on efforts to develop an Inter-Municipal Agreement(IMA) with Minuteman Technical High School (Minuteman Tech). This IMA would grant the Town joint access to certain expanded athletic facilities on the grounds of Minuteman Tech in exchange for funding part of the construction costs. There is still a considerable amount of work to be done. Her comments included: • IMAs can only be for 25 years. • Minuteman Tech originally asked Lexington to contribute $8.5 million, but if some elements (i.e., the tennis courts, stadium seating and restrooms) were removed from the project, Lexington's portion might be reduced to $4.9 million. This would have to be approved by the Minuteman Tech School Committee. Noting that all Community Preservation Act (CPA) approved projects for FY2020 are to be funded entirely with cash—Ms. Basch and Ms. Kosnoff reported on the CPC positions, as follows: • The CPC did not support $2.3 million for the Center Streetscape project. • It has asked for a reduction in the amount requested for the Battle Green Phase III project. • It supported an allocation of$1.0 million for the Minuteman Tech IMA,but if that is not ready for the 2019 ATM, there was interest in supporting the Diamond Middle School project. • There is one small land purchase that has not yet been disclosed. Negotiations for a potential purchase of a larger piece of land have not been completed, and therefore will not be ready for the 2019 ATM. Ms. Kosnoff reported the following: • The Department of Revenue (DOR)regulates the CPA process. There is a citizen's warrant article to reduce Lexington's surcharge for CPA funding from 3% to 1%, which the DOR would not allow if the resulting annual surcharge revenue would be lower than the total debt service for previously approved projects. Additionally, if this warrant article were to pass, it would then need to be approved by referendum during a general election. • The request for construction funding for a new Police Headquarters building (contingent on approval of a debt exclusion) may be brought to a fall 2019 special town meeting, or to the 2020 ATM. The project cannot move forward until the new Fire Department Headquarters are completed and the Fire Department staff vacate the swing space on Bedford Street. • Approximately $60 million in bonds will be issued during the second week of February, which will affect the debt service used in the financial model. Assuming projects move forward as now envisioned, the goal of holding annual increases in within-levy capital funding to a maximum of 5%will be difficult to meet without a larger than planned withdrawal from the Capital Stabilization Fund. • It is anticipated that the lower level of the Cary Memorial Building may be used as swing space while the Visitors' Center is rebuilt. Minutes A motion was made and seconded to approve the draft December 13, 2018 minutes, as amended. The motion passed. VOTE: 7-0. 2 01/17/2019 AC Minutes Assignments and scheduling for the ATM report Using an on-line spreadsheet during the meeting to record assignments, it was determined which committee members would write and review the different sections of this Committee's report to the 2019 ATM. Committee Business It was agreed that Jim Malloy, Town Manager, would be invited to this Committee's February 7, 2019 meeting. It was noted that this Committee is scheduled to meet on January 30, and a Budget Summit is scheduled for January 31. The meeting adjourned at 9:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Sara Arnold Approved: January 30, 2019 Exhibits • Agenda,posted by Mr. Parker, Chair • ATM 2019 AC Report Planner(as of 1-17) 3