Town of Newbury
Municipal Building Committee
MINUTES
DATE: April 22, 2015 Approved as amended, 4/29/2015
Present: Eric Svahn, Chair; Tracy Blais; Mike Doyle; Steve Fram; Sam Joslin; John Lucey, Jr.; Richard Ronder; Martha Taylor; Nathan Walker
Guests: Damon Jespersen, Selectman; Jim Moran, Newbury resident
Eric Svahn, Chair, called the meeting to order at 7:02 a.m.
- Recap of Progress to Date:
For the benefit of Jim Moran, an interested resident who was present at the meeting, E. Svahn summarized the work of the Municipal Building Committee (MBC) to date, along with the work of the prior Public Safety Site Selection Committee and Public Safety Complex Committee, culminating in the MBC’s recommendation to the Selectmen and Finance Committee on March 31, 2015, to construct a 20,000 s.f. combined Police and Fire Station on land currently owned by Fire Protection Company #2, adjacent to Town Hall, along with some renovations to Town Hall. He pointed out the construction and maintenance cost savings associated with combining the Police and Fire Stations – about $500,000 – and the importance of keeping all three functions in close proximity to each other, as noted in the Planning
Board’s recommendation regarding the project.
The proposed renovations to Town Hall include addressing accessibility and restroom issues and renovating the lower level to accommodate 7 employees and provide support space. This will allow the Town to eliminate the trailers being used to house employees now. The 10-year plan for Town Hall would be to build an addition on the east side.
E. Svahn noted that the facilities issues will not disappear if the Town doesn’t vote for the project and postponing the project will be more expensive in the long run. Postponement could also result in forced closure of one of the buildings, similar to what happened with the Highway Barn.
- Project Budget and Tax Impact:
E. Svahn reported that he is working with cost estimators to confirm the budget for the project. The estimated impact of the project on the tax rate is $0.52/$1,000. However, over the course of the next ten years, this increase will be offset somewhat by decreases in the Town’s overall debt load as current debt is retired.
The Committee discussed the cost of doing something vs. the cost of doing nothing, which includes significant ongoing repair and maintenance costs for the existing buildings and rental costs for the trailers, as well as less obvious costs, such as the cost of training police officers to replace those who choose to leave Newbury for better work environments.
The Committee also discussed design fees and the need for specialty consultants in addition to basic consultants. T. Blais noted that, in her experience, the design fee typically runs between 9% and 12% of the construction cost. S. Fram suggested exploring modular construction as an option that might result in potential cost savings.
The Committee discusses ways to provide residents with factual information regarding the proposed project and its associated costs. T. Blais will look into the possibility of scheduling a public workshop at the Byfield Community Arts Center before the election.
Fire Chief Walker reported that the Board of Fire Engineers has voted to endorse the public safety complex project. Protection #2 will draft a letter regarding the project and their vote to sell the company’s property to the Town.
E. Svahn reviewed his response to a resident inquiring about projected space needs in relation to the number of Town Hall employees, police officers, and firefighters
On a motion made by S. Joslin and seconded by M. Doyle, the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 a.m.
NEXT MEETING:
TBD – Week of April 27, 2015
Respectfully submitted,
Martha L. Taylor, Town Planner
MBC Secretary
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