Town of Newbury
Municipal Building Committee
MINUTES
DATE: March 11, 2015 Approved as written, 4/29/2015
Present: Eric Svahn, Chair; Tracy Blais; Mike Doyle; Sam Joslin (part-time); John Lucey, Jr.; Martha Taylor
Absent: Steve Fram; Richard Ronder
Pro #2: Nathan Walker, Fire Chief; Bob Bishop; Maria Dixon; Ed Donnelly; Patrick Whitney
Guests: Geoffrey Walker, Selectman; J.R. Colby, Selectman (part-time)
Eric Svahn, Chair, called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
- Protection Fire Company #2:
E. Svahn opened the meeting by welcoming the Protection Fire Company #2 Directors, who joined the Municipal Building Committee (MBC) for the evening to discuss the potential sale of a portion of the Protection #2 property on Morgan Avenue to the Town. He provided an overview of the efforts the Municipal Building Committee, and the various Town Committees that had preceded it, had undertaken to address serious building issues affecting the Police Station, Town Hall offices, and the Fire Station and to determine the most appropriate long-term location for these Town facilities. He noted that both the Public Safety Complex Committee (PSCC) and the MBC had concluded that ideally these facilities should remain on the current Town Hall/Police/Fire Station site.
E. Svahn then addressed the specific proposal that Protection #2 had made for the sale of its vacant lots at 7 and 7R Morgan Avenue to the Town. He noted that the MBC’s goal was to make a final recommendation to the Selectmen as soon as possible in order to have an article placed on the Warrant for the May 2015 Town Meeting requesting funding for design and engineering of a new facility. The Committee’s current recommendation was for the Town to build a new combined Town Hall/Police Station on the site of the existing building; any change to that recommendation would need to be made quickly.
T. Blais reinforced the need for quick decisions in order to meet the deadlines for Town Meeting – the MBC would like it to be clear to residents what the funding is being requested for. She noted that if Protection #2 and the Town reached agreement on terms of a sale, a P & S could be structured to be contingent on Town Meeting approval.
Patrick Whitney, Treasurer of Protection #2, summarized concerns voiced by the Protection #2 membership last year when it voted not to sell the Company’s property to the Town. Those concerns will still need to be addressed in order for the Company to vote in the affirmative on sale its Morgan Avenue parcels.
After some discussion, all members present agreed on a purchase price of $440,000 for all three parcels belonging to Protection #2 -- 3, 7, and 7R Morgan Avenue. A special meeting of the Protection #2 membership will be called as soon as possible for a vote on the proposed sale. If Protection #2 votes in the affirmative, the MBC will prepare a recommendation to the Board of Selectmen.
E. Svahn reviewed comments and concerns he has received from residents, including suggestions on solving Town Hall’s documents storage needs, a request from the Council on Aging to consider including facilities for the COA in the plans for the new complex, and a question regarding the need to build a new Town Hall in place of the existing one after so much work was done.
The Board of Selectmen and the Finance Committee will meet on March 31 to vote on the finance and budget items to be included on the Warrant for the May Town Meeting. The MBC will aim to have a recommendation prepared for presentation at that meeting.
On a motion made by S. Joslin and seconded by M. Doyle, the meeting was adjourned at 9:30 p.m.
NEXT MEETING:
Tuesday, March 24, 2015, 7:00 a.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Martha L. Taylor, Town Planner
MBC Secretary
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