TOWN MEETING, SESSION 5: On a night where it was thundering and lightning outside, Town Meeting weathered the storm by plodding through a dozen or so articles on Monday, June 17, including approving repair work for two elementary schools, the issuing of quarterly tax bills, the purchase of a vacant building on Lambert Ave. near the Senior Center/Youth Commission building, and a design study for the CAPP playground.
School Repairs
Members approved four school department articles early in the evening. The first allowed National Grid an easement on property at 137 Walnut Street, the location of the E.A. Jones Early Childhood Center, for the purpose of providing electrical and communications service to the former elementary school.
The second appropriated up to $830,000 for replacement of the roof system at the West Elementary School at 1322 Central Street. Superintendent of Schools Dr. Marguerite Rizzi said that the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA) had approved the Stoughton Public Schools to receive 56.6% state reimbursement for the roof, as well as for the $945,000 project at the Dawe Elementary School at 131 Pine Street, to replace all the window assemblies in the school. Both were passed unanimously.
The MSBA also recently approved the Statement of Interest for the Hansen Elementary School window project. Town Meeting members approved this project last year, but the schools needed to wait to get the thumbs up from the MSBA before going ahead with it.
In addition, Town Meeting also approved a large collective of deferred maintenance requests for all eight schools in the system.
Dr. Rizzi said that "each of these projects have been deferred because funding was not available.
Town Meeting member Joe Soares said, "We need to take care of our maintenance a lot sooner. I'm for repairing, but I'm against this article."
But, the article, which borrowed $492,000 and used $190,000 of "free cash," passed 87-18.
Technology Boost
The town also took a giant technological leap forward, passing a $285,000 upgrade for Network Hardware in all eight schools and in six town buildings.
Dr. Lawrence Gray, Director of IT for the Town of Stoughton, said, "We are out of warranty with our current equipment, and the manufacturers no longer support the system. We'll be going from a 1 gig system to a 10 gig system, with hardware that can potentially handle 40 gigs (gigabytes)."
The town borrowed $283,967 for the project, and utilized money from a few old articles for the remainder. It's a major capital improvement on the technological side.
Housekeeping
In some housekeeping, Town Meeting passed articles to rescind unissued borrowing authorizations; spend $25,000 to recover federal reimbursements of health related services provided to Chapter 766 students; and pay a $383 bill owed to Inspired Technology, a phone system vendor.
Community Preservation Articles
Town Meeting then dug into the Community Preservation Committee, which oversees funding from the Community Preservation Act. Their Budget was approved, which includes a 1.4 million dollar annual reserve.
Five Recommendations of the CPC were considered by Town Meeting.
TRAIN STATION
The first seemed to draw the most discussion. It was for the rehabilitation of the exterior of the Stoughton Railroad Station, which is currently owned by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA).
The Town has agreed to purchase the historic building, at a cost of $350,000. Half of that amount was tucked into the 2012 Transportation Bond Bill (by Reps. Kafka & Galvin, and Senator Joyce) that cleared the legislature and was signed by the Governor. (We have still not received anything.) The Redevelopment Authority had agreed to put up the remaining $175,000 cost of the station.
The Community Preservation Committee wanted to borrow $250,000 (to be repaid through CPA funds) to produce engineering, architectural, and construction services to restore the building, which is listed in the National Historic Register.
Selectman TJ Recupero fully supported the expenditure. "This is exactly what the CPA was set up for. This is an important building in this community. The plans, and the funds that are set up to preserve it, are exactly what it should be. We need to preserve this asset. It makes sense," Recupero said.
Michael Barrett of the Redevelopment Committee and the Community Preservation Committee agreed, adding, "This will be good for the town. We're using the funds the way they are supposed to be used."
CPC Chairman John Morton termed the Rail Station "the centerpiece of the downtown restoration." It passed, 93-12.
VITAL RECORDS
A CPC article to use $20,000 in CPA historic funds for the purpose of "conservation, restoration, and repair of the vital history in the Town Clerk's office," requested by Town Clerk Cheryl Mooney, passed unanimously.
GLEN ECHO
A sum of $38,700 to purchase a parcel adjacent to the property at Glen Echo already owned by the town, passed 100-1. Part of the property is located in the Town of Canton, and includes the historic Drum Rock, that many Stoughton natives remember.
Of the property, Morton said, "it is an essential piece to preserve the quality of the water at the lake, and to protect its historic connections, like Drum Rock." The land is to be used for "conservation and passive recreational activities (such as hiking and nature walks.)
CAPP PLAYGROUND
Town Meeting members unanimously approved spending $25,000 in CPA funds to pay for final design, construction and bid documents to replace and/or refurbish the CAPP Playground on Pierce Street.
Recreation Director John Denison said the new space would be well lit, modern, and more easily viewed by police cruising by.
The current playground had fallen into disrepair, and became a hangout for teens (sometimes up to no good). It is located next to a gem in town, Halloran Park, which sports a paved walking path, basketball courts, and picnic area.
Afterwards, Denison clarified to About Town that the vote was purely for the ability to put out RFP's (Requests for Proposals) for architectural and engineering designs and plans.
"After we get the engineering and architectural blueprints, we'll know exactly what to buy, the security and lighting needs, the equipment, and where it will be located," he said. "We'll go back to the CPC and give them details of the final design and specifications, and how much money it will cost. We'll approach them, hopefully, in November at their meeting, and then we'll ask for approval at the Annual Town Meeting in May of 2014."
HISTORIC SIGNS
ATM also approved $20,000 in CPA funds for permanent high quality signs on many historic public buildings in town. CPC member John Linehan, Chair of the Open Space Committee said, "putting signs on some of our great treasures will educate our youth and enhance our town." That one was also unanimous.
Purchase of 75 Lambert Ave.
In what could be the most important action of the evening, the Town Meeting voted to spend $235,000 for the purchase of approximately two acres and a boarded up building at 75 Lambert Avenue.
I recommended the purchase of this parcel in a previous About Town article, when a Stoughton businessman had proposed re-opening it as a garage.
The property is adjacent to the Council On Aging/Youth Commission building at 110 Rockland Street. It could provide badly-needed additional parking, and could allow the facility to be expanded. It's smart planning.
The article passed, 83-3.
Quarterly Tax Bill & Solar Energy
Stoughton real estate owners will be getting more mail in the future. The Board of Assessors, represented by Chairman Louis Jutras, had asked to start quarterly billing.
"Seventy-eight percent (78%) of municipalities have quarterly billing. It gives four definitive dates for billing, and better cash flow," according to Jutras.
Town Treasurer Donna Erickson said, "It would be an added burden and cost to my office, but it's more convenient for taxpayers."
The new billing system passed, 58-23.
Another Assessor's recommendation, for an Agreement in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) for a solar field on a building at 139 Shuman Avenue & Providence Road, was approved, 68-14.
Up Next
When Town Meeting reconvenes on Wednesday, June 19 at 7:15 p.m. at Stoughton High auditorium for Night 6, members will tackle Zoning and General By-Laws, a presentation from the Capital Outlay Planning Committee, and Capital Outlay Articles.
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