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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1994-03-17 Finance Committee Minutes —v —a Finance Committee Meeting March 17, 1994 27 9 K The meeting convened at 7:00 p.m. in the conference room at 16 Lowell Street, Reading, MA 01867. Present were Chairman Richard Coco; Vice Chairman Fred Van Magness; FinCom Members Jim Keigley, Nate White, Carol Grimm, Steve Blewitt and Gerry MacDonald. Also Present were Town Manager Peter Hechenbleikner; Following the Executive Session Superintendent of Schools Dr. Robert Munnelly; Reading Municipal Light Board Chairman Phil Pacino; Reading Municipal Light Department General Manager Len Rucker; School Committee Chairperson Robin D'Antona; School Committee Member Tom Stohlman and from the Chronicle Maria Silvaggi. On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to begin executive session at 7:00 p.m. to discuss matters pertaining to litigations, with the intent of returning to open session at approximately 7:30 p.m.. In response to a roll call vote the committee members voted as follows: (W Chairman Richard Coco, yes; Vice Chairman Fred Van Magness, yes; Jim Keigley, yes, Nate White, yes, Carol Grimm, yes, Steve Blewitt, yes and Gerry MacDonald, yes. The committee came out of executive session at 7:20 p.m. On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to approve the transfer of $9,200 from the reserve fund to account #01-041-5306, Labor Council. The motion was approved with a vote of 7-0-0. On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to approve the transfer of $1 ,000 from the reserve fund to account #01-041-5780 for law and other expenses. The motion was approved with a vote of 7-0-0. The Town Manager requested an approval from the committee to dispose of surplus property, which are 9 - 5 foot tables, at less than fair market value to non-profit organizations within the town. Finance Committee Meeting March 17, 1994 Page #2 On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to approve a request from the Town Manager to dispose of surplus property by offering them to the Town of Readings' non profit organizations. The motion was approved with a vote of 7-0-0. There was a lengthy discussion pertaining to Article 16, which is the Proposed Sale of the Reading Light Department Property on 25 Haven Street, with the proceeds from the sale to go to pay off the debt of the new RMLD Building on Ash Street. Fred Van Magness questioned the authorizations of the sale, "do we have the right to reject the sealed bid?" As a Town Meeting Member, Fred Van Magness doesn't want to say it is okay to sell this building without knowing what the minimum selling price will be. Len Rucker explained the process of the sale to the committee; they will obtain an appraisal which will be confidential, then the Haven Street Task Force will determine if there are any restrictions to be placed on the subsequent use of the property, the RMLD will request proposals by advertising in 4 local papers as well as the Central Register, RMLD will review the proposals, with the authority to reject any insufficient proposals. The Haven Street Sale Task Force will recommend favorable proposals and the RMLD and Board of Selectmen will decide on the finalists. Nate White stated that in the past, the Town of Reading sold a piece of property, which sold for a low price and 3 years later the town bought a portion of the property back at three times of what they sold it for. The main concern of the committee was whether the minimum sale price would be set high enough. Phil Pacino stated that, "we will try to get the highest bid, we have a responsilbility to the town and the rate payers." "The deed for the Reading Municipal Light Department Building needs to be signed by the Board of Selectmen and the RMLD Board to satisfy legal council, otherwise we would not be involved," stated the Town Manager. Finance Committee Meeting March 17, 1994 Page #3 On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Carol Grimm the committee voted to accept the subject matter of Article 16 with provisions that the motion be re-written to include `a minimum amount as the floor upon which any sale can be consumated and that no town funds be expended for carrying out the sales." The committee also requested that the final written Article 16 be reviewed by FinCom before going to Town Meeting. The motion was approved with a vote of 6-1-0. The Town Manager told FinCom that some school Capital Projects are not on the plan. Also the Parker Middle School Renovations/Replacement project needs to be advanced in time and be ready for students by FY97. The process is estimated to take 34 months, from the design work to occupancy. The long range financial plan is unknown at this time. Article 10 pertains to the replacement of sections of the Reading Memorial High School roof. The Town Manager stated that there is $6,350 left over from a school capital project, which will be spent for architectural designs for roof replacements in April. Dr. Munnelly would like it to be renovated during the summer months. Gerry MacDonald questioned whether it would be cost savings to do it all at once. The Town Managers' concern was the effect it would have on the financing plan. On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to accept the intent of Article 10 in the amount of $307,650 for replacing sections of the Reading Memorial High School roof. The motion was approved with a vote of 7-0-0. Upon the review of Article 11 , which is the replacement of 2 boilers either at Coolige Middle School or Reading Memorial High School, FinCom suggested to the School Committee to investigate having one central power plant to heat the Birch Meadow School, Coolige Middle School and Reading Memmorial High School. Finance Committee Meeting ' March 17, 1994 Page #4 Fred Van Magness stated that this issue was discussed last year when we were discussing a gas conversion. He reminded the committee that there is about 1 million dollars worth of boilers in the Birch Meadow School District and it may be a good time to look into the possibility of having one central plant. The Town Manager stated that we do not have the capability in-house to do this type of study. Fred Van Magness responded that there is a major heating manufacturer in this area and maybe they could do a study and advise the Town. On motion by Nate White seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to accept the intent of Article 11 by borrowing $172,000 for the replacement of 2 school boilers. An amendment was made to the main motion by Carol Grimm seconded by Gerry MacDonald to accept Article 11 in the amount of $172,000 and have the School Committee investigate the possibility of having 1 central heating plant to service the 3 schools in the Birch Meadow complex. The main motion did not pass with a vote of 3-4-0. The amendment to the main motion did not pass with a vote of 2-5-0. Robin D'Antona stated that "these issues need to be addressed soon, we have to travel to Connecticut to get boiler parts when they break down and it is part of the school department's plan to replace these old boilers. What about the impact on the educational process within the schools if a boiler breaks? Now your asking us to hold off on this project at the third hour." FinCom Chairman Dick Coco reminded Robin D'Antona that this issue was discussed last year and we had asked the School Committee to investigate this issue at that time. Steve Blewitt questioned, "Is there an approximate figure for the Parker Middle School Renovations/Replacement Project?" Robin D'Antona explained that there is no way to determine that at this time, we are discussing a new building instead of renovations to the existing building Finance Committee Meeting March 17, 1994 Page #5 and assured FinCom that the School Building Committee always presents the bare minimum. Fred Van Magness requested to have a meeting with the School Building Committee to examine the financials of the project and become involved with the process. On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to meet with the School Building Committee to discuss where they stand with the overall Parker Middle School Project. The motion was approved with a vote of 6-1-0. On motion by Nate White seconded by Carol Grimm the committee voted to accept the intent of Article 14, Education Reform Act, Early Retirement Incentive for Teachers. The motion was approved with a vote of 7-0-0. Capital Project within the schools that need to be done are ceiling tile replacements, updating the alarm system at Killam School and putting new filler caps on underground oil tanks. At 9:50 p.m. the committee adjorned for a 10 minute recess and reconvened at 10:00 p.m.. The Town Manager explained each Capital Project item for FY95. Fred Van Magness still expressed his concern for the need of additional defibrillators to ensure public safety. "If the fundraisor is successful, in raising money to purchase additional defibrillators, great, but if they do not have 2 defibrillators by Fall Town Meeting, I will make an amendment," stated Fred Van Magness. On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to approve line items K-2 - K-27, Capital Projects, excluding line items K-8 - K-13 and K-24, in the amount of $636,000. The motion was approved with a vote of 7-0-0. Finance Committee Meeting March 17, 1994 Page #6 Steve Blewitt questioned why inflation was not included in projected costs for the 10 year Capital Improvement Program. He feels that there is a need to add all inflation components instead of showing a zero inflation increase. The next scheduled meeting is Friday, March 18, 1994 at 7:00 p.m. in the conference room, to vote the School Budget. On motion by Fred Van Magness seconded by Gerry MacDonald the committee voted to adjorn the meeting at 10:55 p.m. The motion was approved with a vote of 7-0-0. Respectfully submitted, R Lisa Zanni Secretary