Town of Sharon
Community Preservation Committee
Meeting Minutes of 10/25/07
Amended and Approved on 11/29/07
Committee Attendees
|
George Bailey - Chair |
Allen Garf – absent |
|
Corey Snow, Treasurer |
Arnold Kublin |
|
Arnold Cohen - Clerk |
Susan Rich |
|
Peg Arguimbau |
|
Meeting Initiation
The meeting was called to order at 7:05 PM by Chair, Corey Snow who reviewed the evening’s agenda.
Meeting Minutes
The meeting minutes for 9/18/07 were reviewed. Mr. Cohen moved to approve the minutes of 9/18/07 as written. Mr. Bailey seconded the motion and the Committee voted 5-0-1 in favor. Ms. Rich abstained due to her absence from the 9/18/07 meeting.
Chairman’s Report
Mr. Snow stated that he contacted Heights Elementary School to make them aware of the September 24th, Massachusetts Superior Court Ruling pertaining to CPA recreational funds as applied to recreational facilities in Newton. This decision narrowed the allowed uses of CPA funds for recreational purposes relative to the way in which the law had generally been interpreted by many cities and towns in the State. Mr. Snow let them know that the implications for the Heights Community Playground project are uncertain at this time but that he would keep them apprised.
Treasurer’s Report
Mr. Bailey stated that he was looking for the exact allocation from the Department of Revenue as pertains to CPC funds. He said it was supposed to be about $333,180 and notification was October15th.
Mr. Snow interjected that there is less revenue because there are fewer real estate transactions. The number of communities that have joined has increased and they are pulling more out of the pool.
An October 1st invoice for $2,384.78 for services rendered by Jennifer Goldson was presented to the Committee for approval. Mr. Bailey moved to approve the invoice for $2,384.78 for 23.5 hours of services which included Task 7B and Task 8 for the Stakeholder Groups as well as an hour meeting with Ben Puritz. Ms. Arguimbau seconded the motion and the committee voted 6-0-0 in favor of approving payment for this invoice.
Mr. Bailey discussed receiving invoices from the Open Space Committee. Mr. Bailey moved to authorize payment of voucher 518 for $3,923.34 following the receipt of a request from the Open Space Committee or the Conservation Commission. Mr. Kublin seconded the motion and the Committee voted 6-0-0 in favor.
Mr. Bailey said he received a request for payment for the Boy Scouts work at Drake Cemetery. He will email pictures to the Committee showing the completed work. $2,150 was raised by the Boy Scouts for some of the work. Mr. Bailey moved to authorize payment of up to $500 pending receipt showing services performed for the Drake Cemetery Project. Ms. Arguimbau seconded the motion. The Committee voted 6-0-0 in favor.
Mr. Bailey discussed the $225,000 prepay for Horizons for Youth, the $320,000 prepay on MBNA and said this will result in a net end of year of $3,900. This assumes that administrative funds are not spent and will bring us a close to zero as we want to be. Mr. Bailey included the closed amount of the Historical Preservation, the Pleasant Street School, roofs on Hixson Farms Road and the lower cost of the water fountain.
Heights Elementary School Playground Project #013
Karen Wald, (1 Osprey Road), President of the Heights Elementary PTO, informed the Committee that they had raised close to $31,000 so far toward the Playground Fund.
Mr. Snow reiterated his comments regarding the September 24th, Massachusetts Superior Court Ruling pertaining to CPA recreational funds as applied to recreational facilities in Newton. He let them know that the implications for the Heights Community Playground project are uncertain.
Ms. Wald asked if they reach their goal of raising $40,000 how does she let the CPC know in order for the funds to be matched. Mr. Snow stated we need something in writing that states the objectives were met. Ms. Wald also commented that an RFP process will be performed to find a vendor for the equipment. Mr. Kublin suggested that the School Department should provide a contract with a vendor as proof. Mr. Snow will determine how to fund the project. This remains an open issue.
Town Clerk Project #17
Mr. Bailey stated he examined the facility where things are stored by the Town Clerk. He stated the Town makes money on both birth and marriage certificates but it may not be appropriate to have these on a public access sight. He also met with the Town Accountant and Assessor and determined that records go back to the 1900’s.
Mr. Kublin questioned if this was outside the scope of the CPC. Mr. Bailey asked if we should broaden the application and make it feasible to include other departments. Mr. Kublin said that perhaps the Secretary of State’s Office could provide a method used for preservation of public records. Ms. Rich said there are two issues – 1) preservation method and 2. digitize
Town Meeting Articles
Mr. Snow stated there are 4 CPC Warrant Articles that he worked on for Town Meeting.
#19 - Funding mechanism for Community Preservation Account land acquisition – Billings Street.
#20 - Funding mechanism for Community Preservation Account acquisition of Affordable Housing – 9 Glenview Road.
#21 - Transfer for Administrative and planning purposes.
#22 - Funding mechanism for Community Preservation account land acquisition - Horizons for Youth Property.
Mr. Bailey moved to request a withdrawal of Article 21 and Mr. Snow said he would notify the Finance Committee of the indefinite postponement for Article 21
Community Preservation Planning Process
Jennifer Goldson provided the Committee with an update on the Community Preservation Planning Process. She began by reviewing what has been done to date which included identifying community preservation needs, projects possibilities and goals for Sharon’s CPA program over the next 3-5 years. This evening’s activities include trying to determine priority goals that should be captured in the Draft CP Plan. She provide the Committee with a list of citizen comments that were coded as non-priorities and should not be included in the drat plan. She also provided a list of ”other comments” that should be maintained but do not fit into a specific identified category and a list of “Proposed Alternative Goals” for the CPC to review and categorize to determine what should go on into the draft plan.
Mr. Kublin stated that he heard that matching funds by the State are being significantly reduced. How can we afford any projects? Ms. Goldson stated this is even more reason to create a plan as this helps to narrow the focus because funds are limited and you need to determine where there is the most impact. She recommends looking at the plan and its direction for the following years and prioritize. She will accomplish this by dot voting. She wants feedback on the draft from the Committee’s she has spoken to.
Mr. Bailey stated the goal is to bring the Town’s people up to speed on the resources of the Town. He suggested including cost categories for the different projects.
Ms. Rich said this information only represents a small amount of input. She feels it is important to look at ways to build community. Ms. Goldson replied that all we had to work with was the 85 people. An alternative could be to stop and do not do a draft until more comments are received but she thinks there is enough information to continue.
Ms. Goldson then polled the Committee on their thoughts as pertains to the Community Preservation Goals and asked them to prioritize each. The goals included:
A. Focus on fiscal impacts,
B. Protect Open Space,
C. Equalize Spending,
D. Embrace Flexibility,
E. Focus on Recreation,
F. Create Housing and
G. Preserve Historic Resources.
From this information, Ms. Goldson will create a draft plan and forward to the Committee prior to the next meeting
Next Meeting Date
November 29th, 2007.
Meeting Adjournment
Ms. Rich moved to adjourn the meeting at 9:25 PM and Mr. Cohen seconded the motion. The Committee voted 6-0-0 in favor.