HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-01-11-CPC-min
Community Preservation Committee Meeting
Monday, January 11, 2010
Room G-15, Town Offices
3:00 pm
Present:
Betsey Weiss, Chair; Joel Adler, Norman Cohen, Marilyn Fenollosa, Jeanne
Krieger, Wendy Manz, Leo McSweeney, Nathalie Rice, Admin. Asst; Sandy Shaw and
Dick Wolk. Mr. David Kanter of the Capital Expenditures Committee (CEC) was also in
attendance.
Ms. Weiss called the meeting to order at 3:05 pm.
The purpose of the meeting was to review certain CPC policies and to have final
discussions on proposed projects before the Public Hearing.
1.Land Appraisal Policy –
Ms. Weiss sought the Committee’s final approval
of the Land Appraisal Policy approved on November 23, 2009. There was
limited discussion of the Policy, and only minor changes were made to the
final draft.
2.Land Acquisition Committee –
Ms. Weiss brought up the Land Acquisition
Committee Proposal for final discussion with the Committee before going to
the Board of Selectmen. She said she had introduced the proposal at the
Selectmen’s goal setting meeting in July, where there was very limited time
for comments by the Selectmen. The Committee had a lengthy discussion of
the issue, with certain members voicing their opinion that such a committee
was greatly needed, and others stating their belief that the committee was
unnecessary. Mr. Wolk expressed his view that such a proposal was divisive
to the CPC. There was also an extensive discussion of the difference between
land purchase and land use. Some members of the Committee felt the
purchase of the land should be conducted by only a few individuals, while
others felt that the nature of such closed negotiations often ruled out options
for multiple uses such as housing or recreation. The Committee re-voted the
proposal, (6-3), with Mr. Wolk, Mr. Cohen and Ms. Krieger voting in
opposition.
3.Updates on the Bikeway Project, Battle Green Master Plan, Cary Hall
Venue Study -
Ms. Rice updated the Committee on the Bikeway Project,
which has been approved by Town Counsel. Mr. Livsey, Town Engineer,
submitted a detailed description of the work to Town Counsel, and it became
clear that the project was needed to prevent further harm to the Bikeway, and
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was not simply a maintenance project. Ms. Rice also updated the Committee
on the Battle Green Master Plan, stating that the final project request of
$25,000 had been received, and that the project application was now
considered complete. Mr. Kanter suggested that it would still be useful to see
a more complete cost breakdown for the project. Ms. Rice also gave an
update on the Cary Hall Venue Study, stating that the project cost is now
$60,000. It had been listed at $30,000 due to confusion over the addition of a
lift for the Bird Room, and the subsequent withdrawal of the lift. There was
no progress to report on the Goldinger or Cotton Farm land acquisition
projects.
4.Assignment of Committee Members for Various Upcoming Meetings
and Town Meeting–
Ms. Weiss asked for volunteers for the New Town
th
Meeting Members meeting on March 13, and the TMM Bus Tour on March
th
14. Mr. Adler agreed to help with the first commitment, and Ms. Manz, Mr.
Adler, Mr. Cohen and Ms. Fenollosa volunteered for the second. Ms. Weiss
also informed the Committee that the Information Session may be either
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March 10 or March 17. Members of the Committee were asked to keep
both dates open. Members also volunteered to speak at Town Meeting and
were assigned to various projects of their interest. There are presently twenty
projects under consideration by the CPC. Ms. Weiss will speak to the
Administrative budget item, and to the debt service for the Busa land
acquisition.
5.Discussion of Projects with Non-Unanimous Support–
Ms. Weiss stated
that she wanted members to have an opportunity to discuss those projects
which were not unanimously supported by the Committee. The first project
was the Town Offices Building project for 1.9 million. Members agreed that
rehabilitations to bring the building up to ADA standards and the correction
of code violations were necessary, but felt that the re-arrangement of office
space did not seem critical. Ms. Fenollosa made the point that in the present
economy the project appeared to be an extravagance the Town could not
afford. Mr. Cohen pointed out that the economy was favorable for bonding
and for obtaining lower construction costs. Ms. Weiss added that there were
upcoming projects in FY12 and FY13 which were of higher priority than the
Town Office building. She named the Police Station and Fire Station as
projects which would require significant rehabilitation at significant cost. Mr.
Kanter noted that it would be useful to ask Mr. Goddard, Director of
Facilities, to begin prioritizing projects that come before the CPC.
The LexHAB project also received some discussion, with members voicing
concerns about how few units were being preserved per dollar requested. Ms.
Fenollosa pointed out that for $380,000, CPA funds were being proposed for
use at Greeley Village to benefit 100 families, while the LexHAB’s project of
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$695,000 would only benefit two families. There was considerable discussion
of LexHAB’s plan to purchase units at Katahdin Woods, and how and when
this might happen. Mr. Kanter pointed out that the CPC was entitled to a
strategic plan from LexHAB to help the Committee better assess LexHAB’s
proposals in the future. There was also discussion of the Leary property and
its affordable housing component, relative to upcoming pressure for CPA
funds.
Lastly, the Battle Green Project was discussed. Ms. Fenollosa gave a
summary of the history of the project and the pertinent qualifications of the
proposed consultant, which gave members a greater understanding of the
proposal.
The minutes were approved from 11/19/09, 11/23/09 and 11/30/09.
The meeting was adjourned at 5:02 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Nathalie Rice
Administrative Assistant
Community Preservation Committee
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