Town of Newbury
Finance Committee Meeting
Thursday, Oct. 25, 2007— 7:00 pm, Town Hall
Meeting Summary
Attendees: Eugene Case, Larry Guay, Pete Morse, and Frank Remley
Ex-Officio: Chuck Kostro, Finance Director
1. Sept. 19 meeting summary: Approved unanimously without further discussion
2. Sept Revenue and Expenditure YTD Report: Chuck explained that due to the
loss of Sandy Liebman, and the backlog of work, the revenue report through Sept
was not ready yet. Expenses are tracking reasonably well. What appears to be
over budget included:
a. Police expenses at 51% YTD, resulting largely from the unexpected cost
of a replacement cruiser (due to an accident on Rt. 1 in which a cruiser
was totaled), while still waiting for the insurance settlement.
b. DPW Vehicle maintenance expense at 52%, but due to seasonal costs.
This should level out over the year.
c. Harbormaster wages (45%) and expenses (35.5%) are seasonal as well.
d. Town Library expenses at 47% were assumed to be due to early
subscription and other advance materials costs, but Dave Newbert was to
meet with the board chair on other matters and would verify.
3. Fin COM Position on going forward with the Beacon Communities proposal
for the Village at Little River: After discussing the current status of the latest
Beacon Communities proposal for the Village at Little River, which has been
reduced to 150 housing units, the Finance Committee unanimously approved a
recommendation to the Board of Selectmen to pursue the following initiatives
proposed as next steps by Beacon:
a. BOS Pursuit of Water and Sewer services from Newburyport
b. BOS Initiative to have the Planning Board Hold Public 40R hearings.
It was, however, recommended that an important element of the proposal to be
explored is the proposed construction sequence. Newbury must be assured that
the higher yielding tax properties will stay ahead of those that will likely cause a
net outlay (i.e. the apartments)
4. Proposed Private Sale of a “non-buildable” PI Property to an abutter:
According to the Chairman of the BOS, a new property owner on Plum Island has
proposed to buy a parcel of adjacent, “non-buildable” town owned land. The
finance committee agreed that this must be taken up by the Finance Director and
Town Counsel to ensure that proper legal steps are taken to affect the sale of any
such property.
5. Police Details: There were no new updates regarding the request from Officer Lucey for
about $10,000 in town funds to cover arrears in staff compensation for special details due
to a deficit in collections.
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