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Date: 5/19/2021
LONGMEADOW – Residents sat in chairs spaced out in a socially-distanced grid inside the new Department of Public Works Garage for the 2021 Longmeadow Annual Town Meeting on May 16. Voters passed the majority of the 42 articles up for consideration, deciding on budget issues, infrastructure projects and bylaw changes. A few articles, however, failed after spirited debate.
Budget
The town’s FY22 operational budget of $74,178,576 was approved in Article 10. The original amount contained an extra $90,932 requested by the school department. To keep the budget to the goal of 1.75 percent of the tax levy limit, however, the Select Board voted to cut that sum from the final draft.
Finance Committee Chair Andrew Lam explained that staying under the levy limit is a strategy to ensure the town does not reach the legal tax ceiling of $25 in taxes per $1,000 of property value. He affirmed that every department had to stick to the limit and that the school district had not been singled out.
Resident Peter Landon asked how much funding the town received from federal and state coronavirus relief. Town Accountant Paul Pasterczyk explained that Longmeadow received $1.4 million from the 2020 package known as the CARES Act and $4.7 million from the stimulus known as the American Rescue Plan, passed earlier this year. Longmeadow Public Schools Superintendent M. Martin O’Shea said that the schools had received $600,000 in relief funding.
O’Shea explained to Landon that the funding had already been calculated in the budget. Pasterczyk added that the town is prohibited from using that relief funding to supplement the budget or lower the tax rate. It must go to ongoing pandemic costs or infrastructure, depending on the funding source.
A former town moderator spoke against the $1,000 stipend for the town moderator position. He said that the increase from $100 was brought as an amendment at the 2020 Annual Town Meeting and had not gone before a town committee or board for approval. “It’s the process, ladies and gentlemen, that gave me pause,” he said to his fellow residents.
Resident Larry Star pushed back on the objection, saying that Town Meeting is the legislative body of their municipal government and therefore the appropriate place to decide such matters. “The question is why was [the moderator’s pay] $100 for so many years,” he asked rhetorically.
Capital Projects
Most of the projects in the $2,154,639 capital outlay budget in Article 12 were supported, but residents debated the need for two items. The $175,000 cost of relocating the core technology infrastructure was questioned.
Facilities Director Nick Georgantas explained that the heart of the town’s communication and business technology is located in a basement that was not designed to hold equipment that is sensitive to temperature and dust. The money funds the move to a more appropriate space.
Resident John Friedson asked why it would cost $75,000 to replace the glass showcases at the high school and another resident questioned why they needed replacing at all. Georgantas said that the glass cannot be replaced without “reworking” the cases entirely and the amount requested reflected estimates that had been submitted. Town Manager Lyn Simmons added that the cases around the building were a “known safety issue.”
Resident Ezra King asked if a warranty was available to cover the cost, but the manufacturer has not been willing to do so.
In the end, the entire article was passed.
Route 5 Road Project
Strong debate on Article 19 found residents divided over approving the second of four $100,000 payments toward a preliminary study of Longmeadow Street/Route 5. The Complete Streets project described by Town Engineer Tim Keane would widen the road, improve six traffic signals and create bike lanes. While $400,000 would be invested by the town for the study, the project, which could range from $6 million to $16 million, would be paid for with state and federal money. The road work would be part of a multi-phase project to address traffic congestion in the area.
Friedson argued that millions of dollars would be spent “to fix something that ain’t broke,” a remark that sparked a rumble of disagreement from some in the crowd. He also cited “years of disruption” as a reason against the project.
Resident Tom Shea spoke in favor of it, however, noting that the $100,000 will not raise taxes. He said that Enfield and Springfield have improved their sections of Route 5 on either side of the town.
“You don’t want us taking $10 million out of taxes when it can come from Boston,” said Select Board member Richard Foster, adding that it was “a shame” that the town even had to debate it.
Friedson countered that state and federal money comes from taxpayers and isn’t free. He said the $400,000 should be used to fix potholes and install sidewalks.
Walter Gunn, a Longmeadow resident and chair of the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission’s Executive Committee, said that the project had been “kicked down the road” for a couple of years and that the last time the road had not been updated in nearly three decades. He explained that the project would be “identical” in scope to the work done on Converse Street in 2017.
Resident Thomas Lee, who said biking and walking were his main modes of transportation, said that the cracks and ridges are dangerous to cyclists, as is riding without a bike lane.
A second issue was raised in regard to the future work tearing up the trees that have recently been planted along the road. Keane said that the trees will be considered when designing the construction. There will also be a public hearing to allow residents to voice concerns.
In response to a question about a rotary at the Springfield line to address congestion. Gunn said that while it had been considered, it would require taking private property to execute and was discarded as a solution.
After the debate, the town voted to approve the article.
Short-Term Rentals
The topic of short-term rentals was discussed at length over two articles, which some residents argued conflicted with one another.
Article 32 placed a 6 percent tax on the short-term rental of property, such as those arranged through online companies like Airbnb and VRBO. Short-term rentals are defined by the state as “an occupied property that is not a hotel, motel, lodging house or bed and breakfast establishment, where at least one room or unit is rented out by an operator through the use of advance reservations.” The definition exempts “tenancies at will or month-to-month leases.”
The article passed despite some opposition and the contention that Airbnbs are generally not full-time businesses and shouldn’t be taxed as such.
The topic was again brought up in Article 35 which would have changed the zoning laws to prohibit “the renting of bedroom space by the week, or the furnishing of table board by the week.” The warrant stated that the proposed change was in response to multiple complaints to the Building Department from residents about “unknown individuals” renting from neighbors.
More than one resident stated that the town had just approved taxing short-term rentals and was not trying to outlaw them. A member of the Planning Board offered the reasoning that short-term rentals are usually for the entire house and the owners are not present. He did, however, admit that the Planning Board was split in its opinion of this article.
Resident Amy Wheeler said she was “deeply concerned” with the proposed change and said that laws such as these have a strong subtext of racial bias. She said that similar laws enacted elsewhere are used to eliminate people of color from staying in town.
Susan Goldman, who lives across the street from what she called “a boarding house,” disputed the reason behind the prohibition. “The issue is that we don’t know who they are,” she said and cited concerns about boarders drinking outside. Another resident said he worries because he has young children and was worried by the possibility of people renting to sex offenders. Yet another person called individuals who rent by the week “transients” with “trouble in their lives.”
On the other side of the issue, Cynthia Simmons said that she has a neighbor with boarders. “I met every one of them. The boarders were my neighbors as much as the homeowner,” she said.
Resident Larry Earhart said that a large number of homeowners who rent are elderly women who want the extra income and company of another person in the house. The renters, he said, are often Bay Path University students or business people who work in the area and go home on weekends.
One person said that he and his wife had recently rented a room for three nights while on vacation and they were made to feel welcomed by the homeowners. “I would hope visitors to our town would feel equally welcome,” he said.
The article failed to pass.
Commercial Vehicle Definition
Common ground was found on Article 37, which offered a definition of a commercial vehicle as those weighing 12,000 pounds or more that are registered for commercial use, or a van, truck, or SUV with decals or painted lettering. The definition would be used in conjunction with a zoning law requiring commercial vehicles to be housed in a garage.
A member of the Planning Board shared that the board had a mixed opinion on the language and said a AAA decal or Disney sticker could put you in violation. He also said some trucks are too big to fit in garages.
A resident stated that his personal truck weighs 16,000 pounds and that many people use heavy vehicles for non-commercial uses.
Resident Larry Goldberg said that neighbors used to complain about his truck and so he built a garage. “It’s a residential community,” he said, adding that people are concerned with “letter trucks.”
Fox told voters that there was already a working definition in Article IV of the Zoning bylaws. The definition there states that commercial vehicles are “vans and pick-up trucks used in connection with a business or trade or which have commercial lettering thereon.” Fox made a motion to use that definition, and the amended definition passed.