HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-05-21-SBC-min (Finance Subcommittee)School Building Finance Sub -Committee
Minutes, Meeting of Thursday, May 21, 2026
Virtual Meeting
12:00 PM
This was a public meeting of the Finance Subcommittee of the School Building Committee, held via
Zoom
Members: Jonathan Himmel (Permanent Building Committee) - Chair, Mike Cronin (Facilities Director),
Carolyn Kosnoff (Assistant Town Manager Finance), Joe Pato (Select Board), Kseniya Slaysky (Community
Representative), Dan Voss (Sustainable Lexington Committee)
Attendance
• Mike Cronin
• Carolyn Kosnoff
• Kseniya Slaysky
• Dan Voss joined at 12:40 p.m.
Missing:
• Jonathan Himmel (Chair)
• Joe Pato —connected to Zoom session to record but had a conflicting meeting.
Call to Order
Meeting called to order by Mike Cronin at 12:22 p.m. The meeting began late due to technical issues.
Summary of Discussion
Prior minutes: Approval of prior minutes was deferred until later in the meeting so that Joe Pato could be
available for the discussion.
Dashboard status and labeling: The dashboard is live and has incorporated several requested
modifications. Members discussed whether the word "Draft" should remain on the dashboard. The
consensus was that because the dashboard is live, "Draft" should be removed to avoid confusion about
whether the data is real or current. Members suggested replacing it with language indicating that
development is ongoing and inviting public feedback through the website contact mechanism.
Monthly reporting and level of detail: Members discussed the April monthly report and the appropriate
level of financial detail for the public dashboard versus subcommittee review. The dashboard was viewed
as appropriate for high-level public communication, emphasizing whether the project is on time, on
budget, and total spending to date. The subcommittee identified a need for more detailed monthly review
materials showing commitments, contract amendments, change orders, invoices, and month -over -month
changes.
Commitments, invoices, and public posting: Members discussed distinguishing between materials
appropriate for public posting and materials needed for subcommittee oversight. There was agreement
that detailed contracts and invoices should not be posted directly to the public website, although they
remain public records available through appropriate channels. Public materials should summarize
contract and commitment information at an appropriate level.
Subcommittee reporting to the SBC: Members discussed creating a standard short summary or
presentation for reporting subcommittee findings to the full School Building Committee. Such a report
could summarize what the subcommittee reviewed, identify notable changes, and potentially be linked
from the dashboard's resources section if appropriate.
Meeting cadence: The subcommittee discussed moving away from weekly meetings and generally agreed
that monthly meetings should be sufficient. Members discussed targeting the last Thursday of each
month, with review materials ideally provided at least one week in advance when possible.
Public communication: The dashboard will be promoted through upcoming public communication
opportunities, including the May 26 abutters' meeting, the June 24 community meeting, mailers for the
June 24 meeting, and a suggested inclusion in the town's weekly communication.
Budget and financial controls explainer: Carolyn Kosnoff and Kseniya Slaysky are working on a budget
and financial controls explainer presentation. They discussed breaking it into digestible sections,
reviewing it with the committee, revising based on feedback, and recording a clean version for posting on
the website. The target completion timeframe discussed was by the end of June or within the next month.
Action Items
Action Item
Owner
Notes / Timing
Confirm that requested dashboard
modifications from the prior
meeting have been incorporated.
Mike Cronin
Mike will follow up with Mike
Burton and Jacob.
Remove "Draft" from the live
dashboard and replace it with
language indicating that
development is ongoing.
Mike Cronin
Suggested language should
clarify that data is current while
presentation and detail may
continue to evolve.
Add an invitation for public
feedback through the website
contact mechanism.
Mike Cronin
To be coordinated with the
dashboard update.
Promote the live dashboard
through public communications.
Mike Cronin /
project
communications
team
Include May 26 abutters'
meeting, June 24 community
meeting, mailers, and town
weekly communication.
Discuss with Dore & Whither how
to make monthly reporting more
available to the subcommittee and
incorporate commitments.
Mike Cronin
Should include current
commitments and month -over -
month changes where feasible.
-2
Action Item
Owner
Notes / Timing
Review the April monthly report in
more detail.
KseniyaS|aysk«
Slaysky
Focus on whether current
reporting provides the
subcommittee oversight.
Develop a proposed standard
format for the subcommittee's
report to the full SBC.
Kseniya Slaysky
'
To be developed after
reviewing the reporting
rnateria|sreceivedfrornthe
OPM.
Continue developing the budget
and financial controls explainer
presentation.'
Carolyn KosnofTand
Kseniya S|ayskv
Target completion by the end
ofiune or within the next
month.
Consider monthly meeting cadence,
generally targeting the last
Thursday of each month.
Subcommittee
OPM timing and holiday
schedules should be
considered.
Next Meeting
Members agreed to meet on June 11 during the 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM time window.
Adjournment
Carolyn Kosnoff moved to adjourn. The motion carried unanimously, and the meeting adjourned at
approximately 12:58 PM.
Minutes submitted by Joseph Pato drawing on Zoom transcript
CoPilot Al prompt: generate minutes of this meeting identifying attendees and action items
Approved 6/24/2026
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