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Date: 12/30/2021
LONGMEADOW – Longmeadow Town Manager Lyn Simmons presented a list of projects to the Select Board on Dec. 20 that were planned to be paid for by the roughly $4.68 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding.
She and Director of Finance Jennifer Leydon compiled the list from submitted requests based on whether they were one-time costs that would have gone through had it not been for the pandemic. The two also considered how the projects might affect the tax rate if funded through the general fund, rather than ARPA. Not all projects were completely funded. Some that were not previously on the capital improvement plan were funded at 10 percent.
Select Board member Mark Gold called some of the projects “controversial.” He asked about the light towers. Simmons explained there wasn’t enough light to provide “safe access and egress” from public outdoor spaces, such as the 2021 Special Town Meeting at the Department of Public Works (DPW) garage.
Gold also wanted to know if new items funded by ARPA, such as cardiac monitors and voting equipment, would eventually fall to the town to fund. Simmons confirmed funding for the items would go back on the capital plan or come from the general fund of wastewater enterprise fund.
The final question Gold had regarding the funding was about the Center School windows, which had been earmarked for $600,000 of ARPA funding. He said the Building Committee decided the windows were not in need of replacement. Simmons defended the project, stating the windows were a long-term goal on the capital plan, but the “constant opening and closing to let in more airflow” throughout the pandemic has made the need more urgent. She explained facilities maintenance employees were going to the school to open and close the windows daily. The extra work incurs a cost to the town.
Select Board Chair Marc Strange questioned the $1 million allotted to a stormwater infrastructure earmark for future work identified by the Stormwater Resiliency Masterplan. He said he would prefer a more urgent stormwater project to be funded instead. “We got the million bucks now, we ought to spend it,” on current needs, rather than future projects, Strange said.
Gold pointed out the town has until 2024 to allocate the funds and 2026 to spend it.
“I am very cautious and will tread lightly to make sure we are getting all of these projects OK’d before we really start diving into them,” Simmons assured the board. A list of projects slated to be funded by ARPA is available at https://www.longmeadow.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/1984?fileID=21133.
Resident Comment
During resident comment, Marjorie Bruns spoke against the proposed Eversource/Tennessee Gas pipeline and metering station. She urged residents to visit the metering station on Shaker Road in East Longmeadow. Bruns said there is noise and the smell of gas from the facility. She also said a building at the rear of the property is “unsightly,” though she did acknowledge that one would have to walk around the property to see it.
Select Board Vice Chair Steven Marantz later mentioned that only 15 percent of homes in
Longmeadow would lose gas service if the pipeline at the Memorial Bridge between West Springfield and Springfield were to fail. Eversource has cited this potential failure as the reason for the proposed backup pipeline and metering station.
Resident Jim Moran expressed concern that there were no COVID-19 precautions in place at the Longmeadow Adult Community Center. He pointed out that Enfield Senior Center had had a COVID-19 outbreak and card playing was suspended. Moran said he was avoiding the center because of concerns around the virus spreading. He asked the Board of Health to review pandemic protocols at the new facility.
Select Board member Thomas Lachiusa said the Council on Aging, which runs the Adult Community Center, had discussed mandating masks at the last meeting but decided to wait for a recommendation from the Board of Health before doing so.
Marantz urged the Board of Health to bring back the mask mandate for all town buildings, including the Adult Community Center. He went further, saying the Adult Community Center should require proof of vaccination.
Renting Buildings
Simmons addressed the option of reopening town buildings for rent by the public and community organizations. Rentals had been paused through most of the pandemic, but the Facilities Maintenance Department has been discussing renewing the rentals. Simmons said the process is being modeled on other towns and the way it is currently done at the schools. Town departments and organizations would not pay a rental fee, but tiered fees would be charged to non-profits, public organizations, etc.
Two “program assistant” positions would be needed to help with afterhours events at the Adult Community Center. These would be partially funded by a grant from the Longmeadow Adult Community Center Fund (LACCF). Simmons explained the rental fees would be “seed money” to support these positions in the future. The town would need to pay $2,000 to $3,000, but Simmons also pointed out that the departments have been asked to cut .7 percent of their budgets – $1,215 – for the next fiscal year. That does not include these positions.
Simmons confirmed the athletic facilities at the center would also have a fee for use attached, but that there would be an “open gym time,” to allow individuals who are not part of a group to use the spaces.
“The town is not in a position,” to allow free use of the buildings, Simmons said.
Liquor License and COVID-19
Longmeadow Adult Community Center Fund Chair Mary Beth Bergeron had submitted a “last-minute” liquor license application for a concert by the Musicians of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra (MOSSO). She explained that a concert the previous week had been oversold, so a second concert was arranged. As it was in the evening, Bergeron said, the center would serve alcoholic beverages.
Marantz said large functions where people would have their masks off to drink were potential “super-spreader” events. He put forward an amendment to the liquor license that guests and staff must be vaccinated. “Let’s have the booze, let’s have the fun, but let’s take all precautions,” Marantz said.
Select Board Clerk Josh Levine said he was generally in favor but was hesitant since the event was occurring the next evening. However, when he learned the crowd would number 127, he changed his mind and supported the amendment.
Lachiusa disagreed. He said it falls to the Adult Community Center unless the Board of Health issues a mandate.
Bergeron told the board it would be difficult to verify the staff’s vaccination statuses since most were volunteers. She stated the first concert was socially distanced and everyone wore a mask, which signage on the door “recommends.”
She opined, “The preponderance of people attending any event at the Adult Center are people who are very wise.” Bergeron said they will make the decision to mask when needed.
The amendment was voted down 3-2 and the liquor license was approved with only Marantz voting no.
Audit
The annual audit of the town’s financial status was recently completed by Melanson, a public accounting and audit firm. Tanya Campbell, a partner at Melanson, explained the firm’s purpose was to “express an opinion on the town’s financial statement” and “provide reasonable assurance that the financial statements are free of material misstatement.” The Select Board is the body responsible for audit oversight and risk assessment.
The audit found no issues with paying employees or vendors, nor with its “procurement procedures and documentation.” Campbell said any issues found last year have been addressed.
There is $5.82 million in the town’s stabilization fund, which acts as a municipal savings account, that has not been earmarked for spending. Additionally, $4.06 million in the general fund is also unassigned. Campbell said both of those accounts are “healthy.” She added, “the town is doing a good job in terms of setting money aside into the OPEB fund,” which is money set aside for other post-employment benefits.
Campbell noted that Longmeadow had received a Certificate of Achievement in Financial Reporting in each of the previous four years, which was, she said, “quite an accomplishment.”
HCRB Update
Gold updated the board on the recent appointment of a new chair to the Hampden County Retirement Board. A letter signed by leadership from Longmeadow, Hampden, Monson, Southwick and Agawam urged the board to appoint a chair who was not on the board during the period recently audited by the Public Employee Retirement Administration Commission (PERAC), a state agency that found issues of possible mismanagement with the board. Instead, the board members appointed sitting board member Karl Schmaelzle to a six-year term as chair.
“[Schmaelzle] is, in my opinion, part of the problem, not a part of the solution,” Gold told his colleagues. He added that the executive director Julianne Barrett has retired, and the assistant executive director replaced her.
“Same people running the same agency, with the same disregard for state agencies,” Gold commented.
Community Updates and Announcements
Simmons updated the board on the town’s COVID-19 numbers. There were 54 cases as of Dec. 20, with 57 percent of them breakthrough cases. “We’re going in the right direction, but I think it’s slow and we’re all concerned about the holidays,” Simmons said.
The Eastern Hampden Shared Health Services has hired Health Inspector Anthony Albano, formerly the environmental inspector for the Springfield Public Health Department.
Longmeadow will receive a grant for $30,000 for a design study to remove “derelict reservoir infrastructure” from Cooley Brook. Simmons praised Assistant Town Manager/Director of Planning & Community Development Corrin Meise-Munns for her work in pursuing the grant.
Strange announced one extra bag of trash would be allowed per week until Jan. 8. Curbside Christmas tree pickup is available between Jan. 3 and Jan. 14. Decorations must be removed before pickup.
On Jan. 16, Longmeadow will be testing its emergency notification system. Residents who have signed up for the alerts will receive two messages that day.