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April 19, 2016, Finance Committee Meeting. Minutes
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Source page 1
Town of Canton Finance Committee Minutes Voted on: 5/9/16
Meeting Minutes Vote: 9-0-1
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
Members Present:
Rob Barker, Sepp Bergschneider, Jim Casamento, Gerald Dorfman, Dianne Gustafson, Stephanie Leach,
Tim McKenna, Barbara Saint Andre and Jim Sims.
Members Absent:
Nichols Gallagher.
Guests Present:
Paul DeRensis, Town Counsel
Victor DelVecchio, Member, Board of Selectmen
Jim Murgia, Finance Director
Ellen Jones, Finance Committee Secretary
Opening: A meeting of the Canton Finance Committee was called to order by Chair Saint Andre at
7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 19, 2016 in the Salah Meeting Room of Town Hall.
A. Approval of Agenda
Chair Saint Andre reviewed the items on the agenda which included additional information regarding
Article 42 and a follow up on Article 19 being bundled with Article 45.
B. Announcements
Chair Saint Andre announced that the ATFC (Association of Town Finance Committees) was offering
three free educational opportunities during the month of May in various locations across the state. Any
Finance Committee members should email the Finance Committee Secretary if they are interested in
attending these free events.
C. New Business
Article 42 —Acquisition of Property at 96 Revere Street —Chair Saint Andre thanked Mr. DelVecchio
and Mr. DeRensis for attending the meeting to bring additional information and clarification regarding
Article 42 to the Finance Committee. A substitute motion was presented for Article 42.
Mr. DelVecchio distributed a handout(see meeting handouts) to the members which included three
pictures of the NSTAR/Eversource building on the property from various sight lines.
Mr. DelVecchio presented information regarding the 5,000 sq. ft. property at 96 Revere Street as follows:
• The building on the property was designed for use during a time when Plymouth Rubber was an
active business.
• The substation will not be needed by either the developer or the Town for the current
development at the Paul Revere Heritage site.
• The BOS approached NSTAR through the developer.
• The current structure is adjacent to the location of the Town's property at the site where the barn
and mill are located.
• This property could be useful for two possibilities: 1) additional event parking for the cultural
center for larger vehicles and buses and 2) a potential site for a School Administration Building.
Mr. DelVecchio has reached out to a member of the School Committee to discuss the possibility
of a 12,000 sq. ft. 2-story building or a 3-story building on this site. Parking for this building could
be on Revere Street or in the 60 spaces that will be dedicated to the Mill. Mr. Delvecchio also
stated that this plan was "not a concrete proposal".
• Mr. DelVecchio, along with the various committees associated with the Paul Revere Heritage
Site, is committed to finding space for School Administration offices. Last year it had been
discussed that the School Department would share mill space with the Historical Commission, but
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it has now been determined that 6,000 sq. ft. of space at the Mill was inadequate for the School
Department who needed 12,000 sq. ft.
The BOS and the committees are still waiting to hear from the School Committee if they indeed
want and need space at the site.
Once the developer has acquired the property and cleaned it up, if after a year the School
Department does not need space at the site, then the Town would like it as additional parking
space.
M r. DelVecchio offered the following comments regarding Article 42:
• The original intent of the article was to have Town Meeting approve the Town being gifted the
property without any appropriation.
Town Counsel has stated that the property is currently not part of the DIF district.
If the parcel were to be included under the DIF, it could be treated and used under the DIF
similar to how the other property would be treated under the DIF as part of the debt service paid
for by the revenues of the project.
M r. DelVecchio is not seeking to raise additional money at Town meeting for this parcel nor
expecfiing to borrow money to purchase this parcel.
The assessed value of the parcel is $297,000. The land is worth $137,000 and the building is
worth $150,000.
• Mr. DelVecchio stated the BOS is hoping to acquire this property at a greatly reduced price and
has the discretion and authority of waiving water and sewer permitting fees.
According to Mr. DelVecchio, by virtue of last year's Town Meeting the BOS has the right to sell
the landlocked piece of parcel that is adjacent to the developer's land. Cautiously not calling it
an "exchange" of property, Mr. DelVecchio is hopeful that these two parcels could be traded
between the Town and the developer.
0 Mr. DelVecchio asked the Finance Committee to "trust" the BOS and to give the BOS the
flexibility to negotiate this acquisition and to let them "work out the dollars" for the parcel.
Town Counsel DeRensis offered the following comments regarding the substitute motion for Article 42:
• The utility does not have to sell this property.
• If a property acquisition is to take place, the acquisition must "stand the test of time" and be done
correctly.
The substitute motion came after the Finance Committee had already taken their final votes on
the motions for the warrant articles.
o Mr. DeRensis is not in agreement with Mr. DelVecchio with regard to the idea of waiving fees
(the water and sewer permit fees) and hopes that the Town does not get involved in waiving
fees. If money is owed to the Town, and then it is waived and the developer then uses this
money so that the gift can be made, the utility would need to be cautious in this insfiance.
The Town should have all the authority to do this transaction correctly.
The substitute motion accomplishes four things: 1) The article would give the Town the authority
to acquire the property. The Town would have the power of eminent domain in order to make
sure or force Eversource to communicate with the developer. 2) The motion would combine this
parcel into the Paul Revere Heritage site which is part of the DIF District. 3) Authorizes
$250,000 to be used for this purpose. There would be nothing that would require the BOS to
borrow the money. 4) If the $250,000 is needed and borrowed, it would be repaid in the same
manner as the $8.5 million authorized last year to be borrowed out of new growth.
M r. DelVecchio was informed by the developer that the estimated cost of what would have to be
paid to Eversource is $250,000 (including demolishing the building and cleaning up the site).
Chair Saint Andre asked if the word "purchase" could be added to the first line of the motion so that it
would read "(a) the Board of Selectmen be authorized to acquire by gift, purchase, or eminent domain
pursuant to . . ." Town Counsel accepted this change. This would allow the Town to purchase the parcel
from the developer if the Town opted to do this.
Chair Saint Andre expressed her appreciation to Mr. DelVecchio and Mr. DeRensis for attending the
meeting to explain how the motion is designed to work.
M r. DelVecchio gave a brief overview of the progress at the Paul Revere Heritage site:
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• There have been no changes from the Development Agreement.
• There is no longer a roundabout on the road connecting Revere Street and Neponset Street
because of a new road configuration. This will allow more landscaping and faster movement of
traffic.
• The Developer will start building once he has received the permit.
• The Developer anticipates the first buildings occupied by next summer.
• The Developer is accelerating the creation of the bridge to Neponset Street.
• The Developer is making improvements to the mill and the barn, on their "own dime".
• The barn has been moved closer to the mill. Because of this move, the barn now has three levels
instead of two (A basement has been added to the building).
• The brick and mortar of the mill is being repointed.
• The diversion channel is before the Conservation Commission and Army Corp of Engineers.
• The developer is pursuing the NSTAR acquisition at the request of the BOS.
I n response to Mr. Sims' comment that the Town is not authorized to borrow any money under the DIF
until new growth kicks in and his question as to how the Town would purchase the parcel for $250,000 if
there is no new growth yet, Mr. DeRensis' response was that new growth has already kicked in by virtue
of the entire site being cleaned up and demolition working being done therefore adding more value to the
site on a daily basis. Mr. DelVecchio explained that there is a "delay factor" built into the DIF agreement
whereby the developer would have to "eat the cost" in the short term until those revenues come in.
If NSTAR does not want to sell the property, Mr. DelVecchio suggested that the Town file something with
the DPU (Department of Public Utilities) similar to the Town's recently filing with the DPU regarding the
Town's solar credits. The BOS has been in discussions with NSTAR for the past 6-8 months.
Mr. DelVecchio left the meeting at approximately 7:37 p.m.
Article 19 —Vote to Approve Free Full Day Kindergarten
Mr. DeRensis suggested that Article 19 be bundled with the School Department budget under Article 45.
He explained that the law is clear that Town Meeting can only appropriate a single budget number for the
School Department budget to prevent individuals from making motions at Town Meeting to request
additional funds to be spent on certain programs within the School Department.
Mr. DeRensis read a section from M.G.L. c. 71, Section 34 as follows:
"The city or town appropriating body may make nonbinding monetary
recommendations to increase or decrease certain items allocating such
appropriations."
While the law states that the $495,000 needs to be added to a single budget number, you can include a
nonbinding recommendation that it be used for a particular allocation.
Article 45 could be brought up for consideration and voted with a certain appropriation and then consider
Article 19 which would increase the budget line item with a nonbinding recommendation that it be used for
a free full day kindergarten program.
Mr. DeRensis stated that citizen Article 20 (Braconi article)) has already been ruled out of order. Town
Counsel had been asked to make the legality ruling on the citizen Article 20 but was not asked to make
the ruling on the School Committee Article 19.
He further stated that even if $495,000 is voted with the recommendation to establish a free full day
kindergarten program, because the recommendation is so nonbinding, the School Committee could use
these funds for another purpose.
Mr. DeRensis urged to 1) set the appropriation under Article 45, 2) address Article 19 and 3) increase by
$495,000 the School Department line appropriation in Article 45 for a new total amount.
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Ms. Gustafson spoke on the merit of having two separate warrant articles on this issue so that a
discussion could take place at Town Meeting under Article 19 that this is a recurring expense that the
School Department is taking on recurring revenue this year but may not be matched by recurring revenue
next year. The goal of the Finance Committee is to have it clear at Town Meeting that the proponents
first thought the Ch. 70 aid would be a certain amount but have since found out that this amount is a
lesser than expected amount.
The Town Moderator would have to agree to bundle Article 19 and Article 45 together.
Vote —Article 42 - Acauisition of Property at 96 Revere Street
A motion made by Mr. Bergschneider to reconsider the subject matter of Article 42 was seconded
by Mr. Barker. Vote: 8-0-1. Mr. Sims abstained from the vote.
A motion made by Mr. Barker that the substitute motion for Article 42 be adopted as amended by
adding the word "purchase" so that the motion will read "the Board of Selectmen be authorized to
acquire by gift, purchase or eminent domain ...." was seconded by Mr. McKenna.
Mr. Sims spoke in opposition to adding the word "purchase"
Chair Saint Andre stated that when the Town has the opportunity to purchase a piece of land for a
reasonable price for a specific purpose, it makes sense for the Town to purchase it. However, she
prefers the parcel not be used for a parking lot.
Vote: 8-1-0. Mr. Sims voted in opposition to this motion.
Vote -Article 19 —Vote to Approve Free Full Dav Kindergarten
A motion made by Mr. Barker to reconsider the subject matter of Article 19 was seconded by Mr.
Bergschneider. Vote: 7-1-1. Mr. Dorfman voted in opposition while Mr. Sims abstained.
Mr. DeRensis stated two issues with the motion being under an article: 1) because the wording for the full
day kindergarten is under a motion, it has the perception of looking illegal and 2) the Town needs to be
honest with the voters so the words "non-binding" need to be added to the motion so the voters
understand that this is only a recommendation. The statutory requirement is that there can be only one
budget appropriation number for the School Department and that it is non-binding.
M r. DeRensis recommended the following motion:
"MOVED: That the School operating budget as voted in line of the motion for
Article 45 of this warrant be increased by the sum of Four Hundred Ninety Five
Thousand Dollars($495,000) to a new total of$ ;and to meet this
appropriation, $495,000 be transferred from Free Cash (Undesignated Fund
Balance) in the Treasury of the Town to be expended by the Canton School
Committee as part of its Fiscal Year 2077 operating budget, with the non-bonding
recommendation of Town Meeting that that money be used for the provision of a
tuition free full day kindergarten."
A motion made by Mr. Barker that the substitute motion for Article 19 as read by Town Counsel be
approved was seconded by Ms. Gustafson.
Ms. Leach spoke in favor of the non-binding language but did not agree with bundling Article 19 with
Article 45 because a motion appears in the warrant that has been sent out to all the voters and that it
might be confusing to have another last minute change for the voters. Last year there was a citizen
article for free full day kindergarten with a request for $750,000 that was a separate article in the warrant
and that this article was discussed separately at length.
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Chair Saint Andre stated that there has been a tradition in the Town of Canton of bundling articles at the
time of Town Meeting and that it would need to be made clear at Town Meeting why the two articles
should be bundled.
Mr. Casamento did not have an issue with adding the language of "non-binding recommendation" but by
supplementing a line in the budget we are giving the Moderator no choice but to bundle because we are
referencing Article 45 in the motion for Article 19.
Mr. Casamento spoke in favor that Article 19 be a stand-alone article and that the article be brought up
d uring the normal lottery process so that it would allow the conversation on both sides of this issue to be
debated. The problem with knowing when an Article is going to be brought up at Town Meeting can stack
the meeting with proponents or opponents of a topic.
To clarify the argument to having Article 19 and Article 45 bundled, Mr. DeRensis read again another
section from M.G.L. c. 71, Section 34 as follows:
". . . the city or town appropriating body shall vote on the total amount of the
appropriations requested and shall not allocate appropriations among accounts or place
any restriction on such appropriations. . "
Vote: 6-3-0. Mr. Dorfman, Ms. Leach and Mr. Sims voted in opposition to this motion
Mr. Casamento inquired of Mr. DeRensis as to how Article 19 as written with the language about the free
full day kindergarten even made it into the warrant if it was soon thereafter deemed illegal. Mr. DeRensis'
response was that it was 1) a School Committee article and 2) he did flag it as an issue and was asked if
there was a legal motion that could be used for the article and concluded there was a legal motion that
could be made under this article and that is the motion that he has brought forth today at the meeting.
"The article is legal in that it constitutes an amendment to Article 45."
M r. Dorfman inquired if a precedent is being established because the way this is being written and
handled. Mr. DeRensis responded that he is not happy the way it is being handled and that ideally the
way it should have been handled, which option was discussed was that 1) no action would be taken
under Article 19 and 2) when Article 45 is brought up with a motion for a certain dollar amount, then
someone, such as the Finance Committee, moves to amend Article 45 to add the $495,000 to get to the
new total School Budget amount.
D. Other Business/Open Issues
Liaison Reports —There were no liaison reports given at the meeting.
E. Approval of Minutes
A motion made by Mr. Barker to approve the minutes as written for March 22, 2016 was seconded
by Mr. McKenna. Vote: 8-0-1. Chair Saint Andre abstained because she was not present at the
meeting on March 22, 2016.
F. Next Meeting Date: The next meeting will take place on Monday, May 9th at 6:00 p.m. in the
Cafeteria of the Canton High School prior to the start of Annual Town Meeting at 7:00 p.m.
Adjournment: A motion made by Mr. Bergschneider to adjourn the meeting at 8:27 p.m. was
seconded by Mr. Dorfman. Vote: 9-0-0.
Minutes reviewed by: Stephanie Leach
Re ctfully submitted,
1
J
Bar Saint Andre
Chair, Canton Finance Committee
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Town of Canton
C=u~~~~c~ ~" ~r~~~ttee Meeting —Tuesday, ~p~-il 19, 2016
List of Meeting Handouts
Please note: These meeting handouts may also be found ~n the Town's websi~~ ~r~~l~~ the Posted
Minutes sec~i~r~ (Laser Fich~~o
Agenda (1 page).
Email from Jim Murgia to the Finance Committee regarding 96 Revere Street, dated 4/15/16, 2016
(1 page).
Assessors Property Card for 96 Revere Street Parcel, Fiscal Year 2016, provided by Mr. Jim Murgia
(1 page).
Plot Plan for 96 Revere Street Parcel, provided by Mr. Jim Murgia (1 page).
Operating Results as of March 31, 2016, provided by Mr. Jim Murgia, dated 4/19/16 (9 pages).
Fiscal 2017 Cherry Sheet Comparison, provided by Mr. Jim Murgia, dated 4/19/16 (1 page).
Article 42 — Eversource Electric Substation — 96 Revere Street —provided by Mr. Victor DelVecchio
(3 pages).
Article 42 -Substitute Motion —provided by Mr. Paul DeRensis, dated 4/19/16 (1 page).
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