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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-10-16 Finance Committee Minutes Town of Reading X Meeting Minutes Board - Committee - Commission - Council: PV— Finance Committee wa Nov -7 AM 8: 17 Date: 2019-10-16 Time: 7:00 PM Building: Reading Public Library Location: Community Room Address: 64 Middlesex Avenue Session: Open Session Purpose: Financial Forum Version: Final Attendees: Members - Present: Chair Eric Burkhart, Vice Chair Paula Perry, Dan Dewar, Andrew Mclauchlan, Ed Ross, Sean Jacobs, Shawn Brandt, Karen Herrick, Mark Moll Members - Not Present: None Others Present: Select Board Members: Vanessa Alvarado, Mark Dockser, Andy Friedmann; School Committee Members: Chuck Robinson, Tam Wise, Linda Snow Dockser, John Parks, Jeanne Borawski; Town Manager Bob LeLacheur, Town Accountant Sharon Angstrom, Matt Kraunelis, Jean Cellos, Amy Lannon, Joe Huggins, Kevin Cabuzzi, John Doherty, Deputy Chief David Clark, Christine Kelley, Gail Dowd, Chief Greg Burns, lane Kinsella, Chris Cole, Jen Stys; Pat Tompkins, David Zeek, AI Sylvia Minutes Respectfully Submitted By: Jacquelyn LaVerde Topics of Discussion: Chair Eric Burkhart called the meeting to order at 7:00pm. School Committee Chair, Chuck Robinson, also called the School Committee to order. Permanent Building Committee Update Pat Tomkins, Chair of the Permanent Building Committee, presented an update on the building assessment project. The Committee toured all eight school buildings with the Facilities department to assess their physical condition and make recommendations. Overall the school buildings are in good operating condition and well maintained. Facilities has a well-thought-out plan for routine maintenance and inspections of buildings. The Permanent Building Committee is now working on the assessment of municipal buildings. The Finance Committee thanked the Permanent Building Committee for their work and expertise. Ms. Perry asked if the assessment included looking at utility consumption and if anything seemed unusual. Mr. Tomkins stated that Wood End School stood out because it is a newer building and its energy usage was higher than older buildings. Joe Huggins, Facilities Director, stated that utility bills are reviewed every year to verify savings are being met as part of the preventative maintenance program agreement stemming from the performance contracting in 2009. Spike in utility consumption can be tracked in the Dude Solutions software. Mark Dockser asked how frequently assessments would be conducted following the completion of this assessment. Mr. Tomkins explained that currently it takes about one Page i 1 month to review each building. Once this initial assessment is complete, the Permanent Building Committee may continue with an assessment of one building each quarter. Capital Projects Update The Select Board was called to order at 7:22pm. John Doherty, Superintendent of Schools, provided a brief update on current Capital Projects. Replacement of Turf 2 is progressing. The School Committee will receive an update on the Elementary Plan and Enrollment Study at their meeting scheduled for tomorrow evening. Part of the Enrollment Study considered the short-term space needs at the Birch Meadow Elementary School for next year. Tomorrow's presentation to the School Committee will present an amount of money for Town Meeting to help solve the space needs. Two or three classrooms are needed due to a slight increase in early grades next year. The study is being done because all schools are at capacity at the elementary level. Joe Huggins, Facilities Director, provided a full update of the Turf 2 project, which is expected to be completed by mid-November. The Finance Committee asked whether the project was on budget, and whether the timing affected the cost. Mr. Huggins stated that the bids received came in below the budget allocation and there has been $50,000 in change orders, which is great. DPW is scrutinizing the bills. Because construction companies are finishing up larger summer projects, the timing was good for a smaller project such as this. Mr. Friedmann asked whether there were PFAS chemicals in the turf. Mr. Huggins stated that they are aware of the concern and there is no PFAS material in the carpet at all. Mr. LeLacheur provided a brief update on the building security project. Currently it is still in the planning process. There will be two distinct projects for which two RFPs will be solicited: the first is to fix the Dispatch Center at the Police Station; the other is for building security. Dispatch cannot stop operations during construction. The project will involve remodeling the Police Department including reconfiguring space on the second Floor, and taking a portion of space outside which currently consists of HVAC and parking. Dispatchers and their current equipment will move from their current space to a space across the hall while the existing space is renovated and updated with new equipment. The Security portion of the project is still in the stage of getting estimates for all that is possible. It will look at all of the possibilities and then budget and prioritize them. The contractor would be able to guide the Town on whether the best plan would be to address one aspect on all buildings, or all features on one building at a time. Schools will be the top priority, then the Library, then Town Hall. Current Budget Review and FY 2021 Projections Mr. LeLacheur provided an overview of the current budget. Revenue increased 3.3%. New growth in FY20 has been disappointing. The budget adjustment accounts for a $57,000 shortfall. New growth is projected to increase in the next few years. State aid is still unknown at this point. The worst estimate has Reading receiving less than 1% per year for the next few years. However, the assumption is 2%. RMLD payment dividend agreed to be frozen for next year as well. Free Cash spending is proposed to increase from $1 million to $1.25 million. Performance contracting has yielded positive results and energy budgets were able to be decreased for next year. Benefit costs increased 6% due to pensions increasing 24%. Debt and Capital is following the 5% policy. For Schools, SPED and transportation costs are increasing. However, circuit breaker and tuition offsets are increasing faster than these costs. Vocational enrollment has decreased. Reading makes up 1% of the Wakefield Vocational High School's student population and pays for its portion on a per pupil basis. Ms. Alvarado asked why there is a decrease in the budget for Veterans Services. Mr. LeLacheur stated that it is because veterans and their spouses are passing away. Page 1 2 Budget Guidance for FY 2021 The Finance Committee discussed the proposed use of $1.25 million in free cash and agreed it was appropriate. Mr. Brandt asked if the increase in retirement contributions would affect the baseline going forward. Mr. LeLacheur stated that it would be a big increase at the beginning, but future increases would be smaller. Because of the decrease in health insurance costs, the budget should be able to absorb the increase in the second year. On a motion by Ms. Perry, seconded by Mr. Moll, the Finance Committee voted to use $1,250,000 of Free Cash to balance the operating budget by a vote of 9-0-0. The Finance Committee held a brief recess at B:SSpm. Select Board Vote on Warrant Articles 3 &4 During the Finance Committee's recess, the Select Board discussed Articles 3 and 4 of the November Town Meeting Warrant. They expressed surprise about the need for additional classroom space. On a motion by Mr. Dockser, seconded by Mr. Friedmann, the Select Board voted 3- 0 to support Article 3. This Includes the $750,000 figure for Elementary School space. On a motion by Mr. Dockser, seconded by Mr. Friedmann, the Select Board voted 3- 0 to support Article 4. This includes the $750,000 figure for Elementary School space. On a motion by Mr. Friedmann, seconded by Mr. Dockser, the Select Board voted 3- 0 to adjourn at 8:15pm. School Committee adjourned at 8:15pm. Finance Committee reconvened at 8:17pm. Vote on Warrant Articles Article 3: Amend FY 2020-30 Capital Improvement Program Mr. LeLacheur stated that the HVAC work for the Coolidge Middle School was moved up to FY20 from FY21 so work can be completed over the summer. There is also $750,000 included for Elementary School space. However, that figure might change as the architect has not yet provided a definite figure. The School Committee will be discussing, and likely voting, on the item at their meeting scheduled for October 17'h. Following discussion, the Finance Committee decided to support the article with the exception of the $750,000 line item pending the decision of the School Committee. The Finance Committee will vote on that line item separately at an upcoming meeting. On a motion by Ms. Perry, seconded by Mr. Mclauchlan, the Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 3 as written, with the exception of the $750,000 Elementary School space line item by a vote of 9-0-0. The Finance Committee will take action on the aforementioned line item at a later time. Eric Burkhart will present Article 3 at Town Meeting. Article 4: Amend Operating Budget for FY 2020 Mr. LeLacheur stated that the only change is the removal of $20,000 for the Eaton-Lakeview project traffic study from Account Line H92. The original plan was to pay for the study from the Permits Revolving Fund and receive reimbursement by the developer. But the developer sent a check today to cover that expense. On a motion by Ms. Perry, seconded by Mr. Moll, the Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 4 as written with the exception of the $750,000 Elementary School space line item of Account Line C99 Capital Expenses by a vote of 9-0-0. The Finance Committee will take action on the aforementioned line item at a later time. Paula Perry will present Article 4 at Town Meeting. Article 5: Pay bills outstanding from prior fiscal years Page 1 3 Mr. LeLacheur noted that there is one small bill outstanding from Verizon from a previous year. The Select Board Voted 4-0-0 to approve this article at their meeting on October 151h. On a motion by Mr. Brandt, seconded by Mr. Mclauchlan, the Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 5 by a vote of 9-0-0. Mark Moll will present Article 5 at Town Meeting. Article 8: Rescind Outstanding Debt Authorizations On a motion by Mr. Brandt, seconded by Ms. Herrick, the Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 8 by a vote of 9-0-0. Shawn Brandt will report on Article 8 at Town Meeting. Article 9: Increase COLA Base for Retirees At their meeting on October 9'h, the Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 9. Sean Jacobs will report on Article 9 at Town Meeting. Article 10: Extend Monitoring Agent Contract beyond 3 Years On a motion by Mr. Moll, seconded by Ms. Perry, the Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 10 by a vote of 9-0-0. Karen Herrick will report on Article 10 at Town Meeting. Article 11: Rubbish Disposal Contract On a motion by Mr. Mclauchlan, seconded by Mr. Ross, the Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 11 by a vote of 9-0-0. Andrew Mclauchlan will report on Article 11 at Town Meeting. Article 12: Senior Tax Relief Mr. LeLacheur noted that the only change fixes the rate at 150% as higher rates in the past rendered some taxpayers ineligible to receive the benefit the following year. On a motion by Ms. Perry, seconded by Mr. Moll, the Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 12 by a vote of 9-0-0. Ed Ross will report on Article 10 at Town Meeting. Article 17: Detection of Natural Gas Leaks Mr. Moll asked if there was a way to have the gas company pay for the audit. Mr. LeLacheur noted that it would be favorable to have an independent assessment. Mr. Dewar asked what other towns have conducted similar studies and whether they had been effective in getting change. David leek, Chair of the Climate Advisory Committee, stated that other municipalities including Weston, Salem, Wellesley, Boston, Cambridge, and Brookline had conducted studies. The studies provided communities with data to address with the gas companies. Different communities are using the data in different ways. Weston completed their survey and discovered a lot more gas leaks than National Grid and realized 300 trees were endangered by the leaks. Salem did a statistical analysis and bought their own combustible gas meter to find favorable locations to plant trees. If passed, when Reading completes Phase I of detecting the leaks, stakeholders including DPW, Fire, and Climate Advisory, can decide next steps. On a motion by Mr. Brandt, seconded by Ms. Perry, The Finance Committee voted to recommend Article 17 by a vote of 8-1-0 with Mr. Dewar opposed. Karen Herrick will report on Article 17 at Town Meeting. FINCOM Schedule Update Mr. LeLacheur noted that the first Select Board budget meeting scheduled for December 3, 2019 will no longer be a budget meeting. The School Committee meeting scheduled for December 19, 2019 will include the personnel and quarterly finances, pre-budget, and special education presentations. Colleen and Wendy from RMLD will attend the scheduled Finance Committee meeting on November 6, 2019 to provide an overview of their organization and operating procedures. Mr. Burkhart asked Finance Committee members to submit any questions they may have for RMLD by October 25th in advance of the November 6'h meeting so that RMLD representatives can come prepared with answers. Page 1 4 Pending the vote on warrant articles by the School Committee at their scheduled October 17th meeting, the Finance Committee may schedule a meeting to vote on warrant articles 3 and 4 in conjunction with the School Committee meeting scheduled for October 28th. Minutes On a motion by Mr. Brandt, seconded by Mr. Ross, the Finance Committee approved the minutes from the October 9, 2019 meeting by a vote of 9-0-0. Meeting adjourned at 9:19pm. Page 1 5