Advisory Committee Present: Randy Dinjian
March 1, 2011 Bob Czekanski
Connie Benjamin
Terry Abdalian
Mike Zelenkov
Naveen Rohatgi
Linda Day, Town Secretary
The Advisory Committee met at the Town Hall at 7:30 p.m.
Present: Stanley Wysocki, Curt Plante and David Lindsay, members of the Board of Selectmen and Don Lowe, Town Administrator
DPW BUDGET REVIEW
Present: Harold Brown, DPW Director and Shelly O’Toole, Administrative Assistant
Mr. Brown presented a budget that showed an increase in the amount of $134,753 for the level funded budget and a $10,012 decrease in the 3% reduction budget.
The original request of $37,320 in the Grounds Maintenance line item represented an increase of $22,120 for requests from Park & Recreation Commission for improvements for the Pond Park and Memorial Field. The Advisory Committee reduced this line item to $15,200 and will contact the Parks & Recreation Commission to offer them the opportunity to discuss this budget request with the Advisory Committee.
There was a lengthy discussion regarding the funds being requested for the HVAC controls and programming for both the Public Safety Building and the Library.
Public Safety Building: The contract associated with the Public Safety building totaled $29,421.
Mr. Brown stated that the contract for the HVAC at the Public Safety Building has not been signed as yet.
It is Mr. Brown’s intention to do some of the maintenance work for the HVAC system at the Public Safety Building once he has had the opportunity to learn the system.
Mr. Lowe appreciated Mr. Brown’s willingness to be responsible for some of the maintenance work of the HVAC system that would normally be paid for as a part of the contract. His concern is that if Mr. Brown were not available it could turn out to be more expensive to fix any problems. The Advisory Committee agreed that the Town should sign the contract at this time to allow Mr. Brown more time to better understand the HVAC system before cutting back on any contract costs. Mr. Plante requested that the contracts be reviewed closely. The Advisory Committee agreed to leave the $11,525 in the budget for the HVAC Controls and Programming and reduce the Mechanic HVAC expenses from $4,200 to $3,000 for the Public Safety Building.
Library: There is a contract signed for the HVAC system at the Library. The contract associated with the Library totaled $44,570. Mr. Brown stated that the system at the library is more complicated than the HVAC system at the Public Safety Building. Mr. Brown stated that funds have not been budgeted for the lighting program.
Mr. Brown has requested $20,000 for the painting of Section 22 at Emerson School. There is a provision regarding capital improvements in the lease agreement between the Town of Bolton and the Nashoba Regional School District. There is debate about whether or not the painting is considered a capital improvement or maintenance expense, and whether it should be taken out of the operating budget and submitted as an article for discussion at town meeting. On a motion made by Czekanski and seconded by Abdalian, the Advisory Committee voted to remove the funds for the painting from the operating budget. (Dinjian – yes, Czekanski – yes, Abdalian – yes, Benjamin – yes, Zelenkov – yes, Rohatgi – yes)
The Construction and Maintenance line item budget included $23,680 for the labor to remove snow on the sidewalks along Main Street as requested by the Public Ways Safety Committee. The purchase of equipment for the clearing of the sidewalk would cost an additional $25,000. The Advisory Committee did not feel that they could support this request at this time. The Public Ways Safety Committee also provided a wish list that totaled $47,000 and included the maintenance of crosswalks and the fog and center line painting.
Ms. O’Toole will provide Mr. Lowe with a spreadsheet showing the daily expenses for each day that the transfer station is open and then various alternatives for open hours will be looked at to see if there can be a savings.
As a result of the budget discussion, the following revisions were made:
Town Buildings (190)
Baseline level funded budget: Maintenance $104,791 to $103,591
Repairs $47,500 to $7,300
Trash Hauler $3,745 to $950
Grounds Maintenance $37,320 to $15,200
3% department reduction budget: Maintenance $104,791 to $103,591
Repairs $47,500 to $7,300
Traffic Lights (293)
Baseline level funded budget: Electric $2,000 to $1,500
Repairs $1,700 to $1,200
3% department reduction budget: Electric $2,000 to $1,500
Repairs $1,700 to $1,200
Highway (421)
Baseline level funded budget: Electric $7,500 to $5,500
Gasoline $7,000 to 10,000
3% department reduction budget: Electric $7,500 to $5,500
Gasoline $7,000 to $10,000
Construction and Maintenance (422)
Baseline level funded budget: Snow Removal $23,680 to $0.00
Local Improvements $217,470 to $201,700
3% department reduction budget: Local Improvements $152,500 to $159,200
Street Lighting (424)
Baseline level funded budget: Repairs $1,500 to $500
Transfer Station (433)
Baseline level funded budget: Trash Disposal $72,700 to $60,000
Trash Hauling $13,500 to $10,000
Recycling Hauling $25,000 to $18,000
3% department reduction budget: Trash Disposal $62,700 to $60,000
Trash Hauling $13,500 to $10,000
Recycling Hauling $20,000 to $18,000
Water (450)
It was unclear what this budget line item was for. Ms. O’Toole will contact Town Accountant Julie Costello to determine what this line item is for.
Mr. Dinjian confirmed that the original budget requests from the departments will be shown in the Annual Town Meeting warrant in the “requested column” and the budget approved by the Advisory Committee will be shown in the “approved column”.
Meeting adjourned at 10:30 p.m.
Minutes respectfully submitted by Linda L. Day
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