Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-09-14-CPC-min Community Preservation Committee Monday, September 14, 2009 Legion Room 4:00 pm Present: Betsey Weiss, Chair; Marilyn Fenollosa, Vice Chair; Joel Adler, Norman Cohen, Jeanne Krieger, Wendy Manz, Nathalie Rice, Admin. Asst.; Sandy Shaw, and Dick Wolk. Mr. David Kanter of the Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) and Mr. John Bartenstein of the Appropriation Committee (AC) were also in attendance. Absent: Leo McSweeney Ms. Weiss called the meeting to order at 4:05 pm. The purpose of the meeting was to reconvene after the summer break, to arrange a meeting with the Town’s financial committees, and to update the CPC on the status of ongoing and proposed projects. 1.SB 90, An Act to Sustain Community Preservation – The Committee voted unanimously (7-0, Mr. Wolk was not yet present) to support SB 90 which would insure a 75% State match, and enable CPCs to recommend and municipalities to approve funding for the rehabilitation of existing recreational facilities. It was decided that Ms. Weiss, Ms. Manz, Ms. Fenollosa and Mr. Cohen would attend the hearing. Ms. Rice had written a letter in support of the bill on behalf of the Committee, which members reviewed. Any comments/changes will be submitted by email and the letter will be sent out at the end of the week. 2.Long-Term Capital Projects – Ms. Weiss explained that the CPC would be meeting with the CEC, the AC, and the Selectmen in efforts to open a dialogue about long-term capital projects and CPC policies. The Committee thnd decided upon October 8 and October 22 at 7:30 pm as possible dates for the three Committees to convene. Ms. Weiss will contact the AC, CEC and the Board of Selectmen, and will invite Mr. Valente and Mr. Addelson. The Committee reviewed a spreadsheet that Ms. Rice had prepared which outlined ongoing capital projects. There were seven projects which the CPC had previously recommended and Town Meeting had approved for which continued funding was requested through FY 2013. The total for these projects was through FY 2013 was $11,352,047. Discussion then turned to the possibility of a repeal of the CPA in Lexington. Ms. Krieger stated her opinion that repeal of the Act is not likely, despite the 1 dwindling State match. She stressed that a 30% return on the CPA dollar still represents a significant amount of funding for CPA projects. 3.Signs on CPA Funded Projects – Ms. Weiss brought up the topic of signs on CPA-funded projects. This had been discussed by the Committee in June, with no resolution. Ms. Weiss had received an email from Mr. Steve Kropper over the summer suggesting a sign be placed on the Busa property. While a sign at that location is not yet appropriate since the Town does not yet own the Busa parcel, the issue of signs at project sites remained important to the Committee. Ms. Fenollosa said she felt it would be fitting for conservation signs to have a line at the bottom identifying the CPA as the source of funding for an acquisition where appropriate. There was a general discussion of this topic and Ms. Manz moved that the CPC erect signs on projects in progress, and that the CPC request that conservation signs include the CPA as a source of funding where appropriate. The motion was approved 8-0. Ms. Rice will price out the cost of signs for ongoing projects. Mr. Kanter made the suggestion that the cost of such signs could be embedded in the cost of projects at the front end, and not become the financial responsibility of the CPC. 4.Updates on Ongoing Projects – There were a number of updates of ongoing projects. First, however, the CPC reviewed a spreadsheet compiled by Ms. Rice, which showed the entire list of projects by year and their status. Ms. Weiss and Ms. Fenollosa had questions about three projects (2007 Vault Climate Control, the 2007 Open Space and Recreation Plan, and the 2008 West Lexington Greenway Corridor) which Ms. Rice will check. Ms. Fenollosa said the 2008 Comprehensive Cultural Resources Survey had not been completed, contrary to the information on the spreadsheet. a.)Leary Acquisition – Ms. Krieger and Mr. Cohen gave a brief update on the purchase of the Leary land. The property is now owned by the Town, and the ANR (Approval not Required) plan has been recorded. Discussion turned to the Leary home and how to move forward on the structural assessment of the structure. Ms. Fenollosa said the assessment must be done by a historic structures engineer, and suggested that Ms. Rice contact Mr. Rhodes, the Building Commissioner, to see if he would be the appropriate person to prepare an RFP for this work. b.)Land Acquisition Committee – Ms. Weiss updated the Committee on attending the Selectmen’s goal-setting meeting in July. The CPC had written a request for the formation of a Land Acquisition Committee (LAC) prior to future acquisitions of land for town purposes. Ms. Manz followed up on the update, stating that she felt it was important to look at all the possible purposes for a parcel of land early in the acquisition 2 process. She added that it did not seem logical that a LAC only be a subcommittee of the Conservation Commission. The question was raised how such a Committee would be formed, and Ms. Krieger said it would be through appointment by the Selectmen. There was a brief discussion about how to proceed, but Ms. Krieger said the matter was now up to the Selectmen, who would look to writing a mission statement for such a committee. c.)Busa Acquisition – Discussion then turned to the status of the Busa property. Ms. Krieger and Mr. Cohen updated the Committee, stating that the closing had not yet been held, and that the inspection for hazardous materials under M.G.L. c.21E had highlighted the need for some remediation on the site. This will be the responsibility of the Busa family, and it was this matter that was still under negotiation. There are also on- going negotiations regarding the acquisition of the abutting parcel owned by the Goldingers. Ms. Shaw asked about the status of a steering committee for the Busa property, to which Ms. Krieger said there had been no appointment. Ms. Weiss said the Housing Partnership had requested that the Selectmen appoint a housing representative to the committee. Ms. Shaw asked about the protocol regarding appointments to the committee, and questioned if the Recreation Department needed to make a formal request. Ms. Krieger said the Department did not, but welcomed her suggestions. d.) Stone Building (East Lexington Library) – Ms. Fenollosa updated the Committee on the progress of the Stone Building project. She said the Historic Structures report was nearly complete, and that the consultant, Menders, Torrey & Spencer, Inc., was finalizing its recommendations for securing the building for the winter. These recommendations involved short term work that was estimated at $12,650. A more complete approach to securing the building would exceed the remaining $127,500 in the budget by some $30,000. The Stone Building Committee was in the process of assessing which of these options would be most cost effective, particularly if the building sat unused for an extended period during the planning process. On the issue of using the Stone Building as a Heritage Center, Ms. Fenollosa reported that progress has been slower. She said the Committee in charge of this aspect of the project has written a mission statement and had toured other similar buildings in local towns. She said they will need a Feasibility Study to assess how and by whom the building will be used. She also said a business plan would be needed. She reported that there is interest on the part of the Town Clerk to use the building for document storage. The CPC discussed the issue of access to the second floor and the code requirements relating to the use of this floor for large groups. The 3 construction of the ell on the back of the building and the installation of an elevator were also discussed, with Ms. Fenollosa pointing out that the elevator is in the preferred design plan. There will be a meeting of the Permanent Building Committee on th September 29 at 7pm in the Public Services Building at 201 Bedford Street to discuss the Stone Building project. 5.Douglas House Award – Ms. Rice had written a letter to the Minuteman Press and to the Colonial Times, describing the Community Preservation Coalition Award to Lexington for the Douglas House project. Ms. Weiss had added a paragraph to the article stating the deadline for CPC projects for FY 2011 and the appropriate contact information. Committee members were asked to make any comments or changes to the letter by the end of the week. The article will be submitted with a photo taken at the State House. 6.Approval of Minutes – The Committee approved minutes as amended from the following meetings in 2008; 12/1, 12/11, and 12/15, and the following meetings in 2009; 1/22, 2/26, 3/5, 3/19, 3/25, 3/26, 3/30, 4/27 and 5/6. The meeting was adjourned at 5:15 pm. Respectfully submitted, Nathalie Rice Administrative Assistant Community Preservation Committee 4