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Date: 3/19/2015
LONGMEADOW – The Select Board at its March 16 meeting vote to approve the Annual Town Meeting warrant, which includes the proposed fiscal year 2016 (FY16) budget as well as several Community Preservation Act (CPA) articles and one citizen petition article.
Town Manager Stephen Crane told Reminder Publications Article 23 of the warrant was petitioned by Robert Petroff and calls for the utilization of the remaining $25,000 of last year’s Town Meeting $35,000 appropriation for a continued space feasibility study for the Council on Aging Center.
“We engaged the Pioneer Valley Planning Commission (PVPC) to do that feasibility and in addition to the feasibility study, they also did a survey of senior center users and the survey itself was distributed through the Voice, which is the [Council on Aging] newsletter,” he added.
Crane said the PVPC also completed an analysis of demographic data throughout the town.
“The study did two things,” he added. “It painted the picture of what the senior population looks like know and what it’s going to look like in the future in terms of numbers and then they also solicited feedback on how the current center operates and what people would like to see different.”
The remaining $25,000 would be used to “engage an architect and/or engineer to do further cost analysis of two sites for the purpose of identifying a recommended location to house a truly suitable space and suitable facility for the Longmeadow Adult Community Center,” the article states.
“When we got to the end of the study, the PVPC report had looked at the feasibility of four different sites and the task force, made up largely of Council on Aging members who had originally been behind the citizen’s petition, met throughout the fall to work on this report with the PVPC,” Crane said. “So, they recommended two sites.”
The existing location at Greenwood Park was recommended by the task force for an addition or renovation and the second highest location was Turner Park, near the back of the baseball diamonds, he added.
“Both sites have challenges and based on the proverbial back-of-the-envelope cost analysis that Pioneer Valley did in their report, it was very difficult to tell if one site was substantially more costly to develop than the other,” Crane said.
The $10,000 would be used to engage an architect to take a more in depth look at the cost analysis of both sites, he noted.
Articles 11 through 22 focus on CPA funded projects, including the restoration of the Meadowbrook Road stone gate, repairs to the Storrs Library basement and steps, as well as the Storrs House, and repairs to Center Elementary School’s exterior stairs and ramps for $97,400.
Article 3 calls for the town manager’s $60.4 million fiscal year 2016 (FY16) budget to be set.
The FY16 budget consists of approximately $32 million for schools, $4.7 million for public safety, $1.4 million for general government, $11.6 million for debt service and school/town employee costs, as well as retiree benefits.
The article also calls for $54.7 million of revenue generation from general taxation.
Article 2 calls for a vote to transfer $75,000 in available funds from the treasury and $125,000 from the Operational Stabilization Fund for the purpose of funding more than $100,000 in exceeded costs from snow and ice removal. The transfer would fully fund the costs for FY16.
Crane said changes made by the board include moving 20 percent of overtime funds for the Police and Fire departments in the reserve fund, and a 10 percent reduction in the General Fund for the salaries of the both fire and police chiefs and the Department of Public Works (DPW) director for next year.
Fire Chief Eric Madison, Police Chief Robert Siano and DPW Director Michael Wrabel are all anticipated to retire sometime next year, he added.
“It’s rare that you bring someone in on top step [salary level],” he noted.
If the candidates chosen for the position have about the same level of experience as their predecessors, the 10 percent is available to be added back to their respective line items, he explained.
A proposed $36,500 police vehicle was also removed from the town manager’s budget, with the funds being placed into the debt service and capital instead, Crane said.
The board also voted to increase funds for sidewalks by $65,000, he added.
“We’re pleased that the budget that will be presented at Town Meeting is similar to the one I submitted to the Select Board,” Crane said.