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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-04-27-CPC-min Community Preservation Committee Monday, April 27, 2009 G-15 4:00 pm Present: Betsey Weiss, Chair; Marilyn Fenollosa, Vice Chair; Joel Adler, Norman Cohen, Jeanne Krieger, Wendy Manz, Leo McSweeney, Nathalie Rice, Admin. Asst.; and Sandra Shaw. Dick Kanter of the CEC, Carl Valente, Rob Addelson, Maryann McCall-Taylor, Charley Wyman, Peter Kelley, Karen Simmons and Karen Mullins were also present. Absent: Dick Wolk The meeting was called to order at 4:04 pm. The purpose of the meeting was to update the CPC on the progress of the negotiations for the Busa property and to discuss possible funding options. 1.Update on possible acquisition of the Busa Property – Mr. Valente explained that there had been progress in the negotiations for the acquisition of the Busa property on Lowell Street. He recognized the other two members of the negotiating team, (who were present at the meeting); Selectmen, Peter Kelley, and former Conservation Commission member, Charlie Wyman. Mr. Valente explained that the Busas are interested in selling, and he described the land that was under negotiation. The property is primarily farmland, slightly less than eight acres, and comprises three lots. There would be three primary purposes for the land; recreation, affordable housing, and open space. The recreation needs that could possibly be met with the purchase of the land included a soccer field, a little league field, a tot lot, community gardens, and their combined parking. The housing portion of the land may include two lots with frontage on Lowell Street. The open space portion of the land might include trail connections to other conservation or recreation parcels, and buffers to the Arlington Reservoir and/or Munroe Brook. Mr. Valente also explained that there is a second parcel of interest, which lies adjacent to the Busa land now under negotiation with the Town. He said this parcel is under an agreement for sale to an abutter, and that the Town has approached the abutter to inform him/her of the Town’s interest. The acquisition of this parcel would give greater flexibility in meeting the Town’s needs for the property. Mr. Valente also explained that one of the stipulations of the sale is that the site is clean. There is presently a large amount of farm equipment and refuse on the site, and the Town has made it clear that it will only purchase a “clean” site. He added 1 that the Town will also conduct a 21E site assessment to protect the Town’s interests. Mr. Adler noted that he had been told that the Busas had had an auto body shop on the property, and stressed the need for proper site assessment. Mr. McSweeney questioned Mr. Valente about the need for community gardens. Ms. Mullins answered this question, stating that there was a great demand for community gardens, and that she was having to turn residents away, or refer them to neighboring towns. Mr. McSweeney also querried Mr. Valente about the affordable housing. Mr. Valente responded that the two lots reserved for community housing had been tentatively set at 15,500 square feet each. Lexhab has shown interest in developing the lots, but has said it would not be interested in renovating the Busa house. Ms. Shaw brought up the issue of the appraisal on the property, and asked if a survey of the land had been completed. A survey had not been done of the property, Mr. Valente responded, explaining that a concept plan had been completed, which showed 14 possible house lots. This plan had been reviewed by the Town’s planning department. Karen Mullins added here that a previous appraisal had determined that 15 lots were possible. Ms. Shaw was still concerned about the disparity in various previous appraisals and wanted assurance that the Town would not overpay for the land. Mr. Cohen stated here that the reason the Busas were considering the sale at this point, was not due to a higher offer, but that the family members were finally able to come to some agreement – something which had stalled negotiations in past years. CPC members wanted assurance that the Committee would not be asked to appropriate monies for or approve a sale price at a higher cost than the appraised value. There was concern on the Committee and from Mr. Kanter that the appraisal had not been released. Mr. Valente responded that the appraisal had not been made public, since the Town might wish to negotiate a price that was lower than the appraisal. Mr. McSweeney asked Mr. Valente if the neighborhood had any reaction to the Town’s proposal for the land, to which Mr. Valente responded that they had not yet been involved. He said the Selectmen would be holding a pubic hearing on the th 30 to which the neighborhood had been invited. He stated that the timeline for the acquisition was to bring the purchase to Special Town Meeting, most likely on ththth May 6, and he asked the CPC to hold out the 5, (and possibly the 7), as dates for information sessions and to conduct final votes. The CPC took a straw vote on the proposed project to purchase the Busa land for the possible purposes of recreation, community housing and open space. The straw vote was 8-0 in favor. 2.Paying for the Busa property – cash, bonding, or a combination of both - Mr. Addelson discussed this issue with the Committee, and handed out a chart which 2 calculated debt service of 2.0M and 4.0M at 5 and 7 year terms. He explained that as of July 1, 2009 the CPC will have approximately 6.7M and as best as can be estimated, will have revenues of 3.9M annually. (The latter was calculated at the 29% state reimbursement rate.) The Committee was generally comfortable with bonding for a short time frame, (5-7 years). Ms. Fenollosa brought up the issue of additional large land acquisitions for which the CPC should be ready, and the group agreed there were few, except perhaps the 14 acre Wright Farm. 3.Article 7 – Administrative overrun – The Committee had previously reviewed Article 7, which dealt with the administrative overrun due primarily to benefit costs and legal fees. The overrun amounted to a total of $25,000 which broke down accordingly; $8,000 in administrative costs, $16,500 in legal fees, and $500 in miscellaneous costs. The Committee voted 8-0 to approve this Article. 4.Thank you letter to state legislators – Ms. Weiss asked for approval of a letter she had written to the State legislators thanking them for their support of Senate Bill #90, “An Act to Sustain Community Preservation”. Committee members agreed unanimously to approve the letter. The meeting was adjourned at approximately 5:12 pm. Respectfully submitted, Nathalie Rice Administrative Assistant Community Preservation Committee 3