Town of Newbury
Municipal Building Committee
MINUTES
DATE: December 3, 2015 Approved as written, 12/10/2015
Present: Eric Svahn, Chair; Donald Jarvis; John Lucey, Jr.; Richard Ronder; Martha Taylor; Damon Jespersen, BOS Liaison
Absent: Tracy Blais; Mike Doyle; Steve Fram; Sam Joslin; Nathan Walker
Guests: John Ashton; J.R. Colby; Peter Erickson; John Ferrara; Alicia Greco; Marshall Jespersen; Jim Moran; Fred Thurlow; Tony Vinciguerra
Eric Svahn, Chair, called the meeting to order at 7:00 a.m.
Due to an insufficient number of Committee members present to approve the minutes, review of the November 17, 2015 meeting minutes was postponed to the next meeting.
Police: The Police Station Program and F F & E (Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment) requirements developed by CSS Architects and refined and added to by John Lucey are still valid, except for the needed addition of three 80 s.f. sergeant offices.
Town Hall: E. Svahn has put the Town Hall program into an Excel spreadsheet; some personnel and spaces have been added. He has given the program to James Sarette, as Facilities Manager, for verification. Several changes and additions have already been identified: 1) Records storage – amount and type (shelving, cabinets, flat files) still needs to be determined; 2) A broadcast and communications studio for Cable TV – D. Jarvis will follow up with the Media Committee on needs for this space; 3) A DPW office; 4) The capacity of the assembly space; and 5) Office for a future Town Engineer. The program will be distributed via email when complete.
Questions were raised about the program and whether it represents a “minimal” or “optimal” situation. E. Svahn replied that the program is on the minimal end but looks out 50 years to ensure that future needs are accommodated.
- Project Budget and Schedule:
Once the program is updated and confirmed and CSS has completed the revised assessment, the program and plans will be given to a third party estimator to develop a project budget. The target will be to have the project budget to the Town Administrator and the Finance Committee in early January to give them sufficient time to prepare the FY 2017 budget for vote at the April 2016 Annual Town Meeting. Public outreach on the project will take place from mid-January through April. The selection process for an Owner’s Project Manager (OPM) will be conducted from the end of January to March, with the goal of having an OPM in place in April. The first step will be to write an RFP.
Peter Erickson recommended that selection of an OPM be given top priority and that the process be started immediately, since the process of writing the RFP, advertising, reviewing responses, and making the final selection can be a lengthy one. It will also take time for the OPM to get up to speed prior to Town Meeting. Discussion ensued regarding expertise needed (in particular experience with public safety facilities), when the OPM should be brought on board, and what the OPM’s charge will be.
D. Jespersen reminded the group that the charge to the MBC from the Selectmen was to compare a new combined Town Hall/Police Station (with the ability to add a new Fire Station in the future) to the Public Safety Complex project that was previously proposed. F. Thurlow noted that the more people he talks with, the more opposition he is hearing to the High Road/Morgan Avenue site because it isn’t centrally located. He is also hearing that most people feel a new Police Station is needed, but aren’t concerned about Town Hall. E. Svahn said that the MBC was acting on the charge that had been given to it by the Selectmen and recommended that any concerns about the project scope be taken to the Selectmen.
J. Ashton asked if his idea of raising Town Hall, rebuilding the ground level, and adding a second story will be considered as part of the process. E. Svahn replied that it would be looked at by the third party estimator and requested that Mr. Ashton do the legwork to get numbers to support his proposal.
T. Vinciguerra asked what would happen if the new proposal were not approved. E. Svahn replied that the Building Inspector can allow the trailers as temporary offices for a year from when they were installed, with a possible time extension if the project is approved. If it is not approved, a more costly solution will have to be found. D. Jespersen added that the trailers have six more months as of Tuesday, December 8. E. Svahn said that about $80,000 has already been spent on clean up, new drywall, and painting in the Police Station in 2015.
E. Svahn concluded by saying that Town Hall and the Police and Fire Stations all need to be built in a way that will provide value to all people.
On a motion made by D. Jarvis and seconded by R. Ronder, the meeting was adjourned at 8:11 a.m.
NEXT MEETING:
Thursday, December 10, 2015, 7:00 a.m., Town Hall
Respectfully submitted,
Martha L. Taylor, Town Planner
MBC Secretary
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