# finance-committee — 11 documents, concatenated for reading and search # # This is a CONVENIENCE BUNDLE, not a source. Every document below is # published separately and byte-identically; cite the individual file, # whose path is given in each header, rather than this bundle. # Index of all boards: https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/minutes/INDEX.txt # The town's own scanned original is linked per document. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-06-22-minutes-412.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-06-22 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-06-22-minutes-412.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_06222023-412 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Lunenburg Finance Committee MINUTES June 22, 2023 page of 13 Town of Lunenburg Evan Watters, Chair 17 Main St., P.O. Box 135 Chris Menard, Vice Chair Lunenburg, MA 01462 Thomas Balish, Clerk 978.582.4139 Jay Simeone Thomas Gray **Vacancy** **Vacancy** Lunenburg Finance Committee MINUTES June 22, 2023 Location: In-person at Lunenburg Town Hall and broadcast on Zoom Present: Chairperson Evan Watters, Jay Simeone, Tom Gray, Tom Balish Guests: Heather Lemieux, Town Manager 1.Call to Order Mr. Watters called the meeting to order at 7:05p.m. and read a statement concerning the Open Meeting Law, and how all public meetings are legally being held remotely. This meeting was recorded and is viewable on YouTube at https://youtu.be/N85HSL6BnAk 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements - none 4. Public Comment - none 5. Town Manager / Finance Director Report Ms. Lemieux said that since the June 13 they have had some invitations for bids that came in. Guardrail repair services were awarded to Premier Fence LLC in the amount of $80,886 and that will be paid out of the Mass DOT Winter Recovery Assistance program funds. Invitation for bids for Page Street Culvert and the town received a bid from Powell Construction in the amount of $86,913 to be paid out of the fiscal 23 Capital Plan appropriation. The five year reassessing valuation came in and the town received one proposal from Vision and that can in much higher than we estimated at $112,000 so the Select Board voted to appropriate additional funds out of ARPA to cover that difference. Three bids were received on LED Street light conversation and those are still being evaluated to determine the low bidder. Ms. Lemieux also said there were Roadway Maintenance Fog Ceiling bid that was due this week and the Assistant Town Manager is evaluating that as well as working on the IFB for the generator project at the Adult Activity Center and the two dump trucks which are being put out to BID since the town hasn’t had any luck with the State bid contract. ===PAGE 2=== Lunenburg Finance Committee MINUTES June 22, 2023 page of 23 Update on the tax assessment - Municipal Finance Services has fulfilled their contract and the total was $82,400 and that was all paid out of ARPS funding that the select board allocated. The total abatements issued from the assessor side is $1,351,147 and that does not include the tax collector issuing interest. 925 Mass Ave project is substantially complete and the EPA has finalized their work. There is material that needs to be removed once the DEP number is issued and the underground storage and the canopy has been removed. ms. Lemieux said she applied for a grant through Mass Development for the Real Estate Technical Assistance program that would allow Mass Development to provide technical support for a feasibility study, conceptual plans for what we could use that property for, Market Analysis and to develop an RFP to solicit proposals for reuse of that property and the notice of that award is in the October/November time Fram but she believes the town has a really competitive application. 6. New Business Investment options for better returns - Mr. Watters spoke with Ms. Brochu via email briefly and she was going to send over a report of all the funds they currently have and that this may be a conversation to be had with the treasurer. Mr. Watters said he would invite the treasurer to a future meeting. Mr. Gray said he didn’t now if there were regulations on how much risk we can take but would like to know their limitations. Mr. Gray also said interest rates mater and looking at cash flow and what cash flow looks like for next year needs to be known. Mr. Balish said to build on Mr. Gray’s point that in a federal money market fund today the yields are well above 4% so with minimal risk and in the short term that would be his first stop for a safe investment but was unsure of the rules and hopes the town is looking into those types of things. 7. Old Busines Tax Assessment/Abatement Discussion - Mr. Simeone said the Board of Assessors has been reviewing abatements and voting on them and that notices have been going out. Primary School air conditioning project Mr. Watters heard from the School Department and the window for the summer to have this job done has already closed so whatever the discussion is this evening won’t change things for this summer. Mr. Gray asked if it would be coming up at the Special Town Meeting and Mr. Watters said he expected it to and they’d find out once the warrant comes out. Mr. Watters said that although it wasn’t the outcome he would have preferred, he thanked the committee for coming to their own conclusions and standing by them. 8. Minutes Mr. Gray motioned, and Mr. Balish seconded to approve minutes of April 6, 2023. On vote motion carried unanimously. Mr. Gray motioned and Mr. Balish seconded to approve minutes of April 20, 2023. On vote motion carried with 3 vote aye and 1 abstain. ===PAGE 3=== Lunenburg Finance Committee MINUTES June 22, 2023 page of 33 9. Committee Reports Master Plan Steering Committee - Mr. Watters said they had their kick off meeting last Thursday and the consultants have come up with a good starting point. He said they are waiting for the consultants to get back to us and that they will be presenting and meeting again this fall. 10. Topics for Future Meetings Town Funds and Investment Opportunities 11. Public Comment Mr. Watters thanked Mr. Balish for his service and what he has contributed to the committee as this was his last meeting and he has been a great asset. Mr. Watters also mentioned that on June 26th the Finance Committee Appointing Committee would be meeting to interview Mr. Menard for reappointment as well as another member of the community who has put in a volunteer form but that there would still be two open spots and encouraged residents to put their name in. 12. Upcoming meetings July 13th, July 27th, Aug 24th, Sep 14th, Sep 28th 13. Adjourn Tom Balish motioned and Tom Gray seconded to adjourn at 7:43pm. On vote motion carried unanimously. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-07-27-agenda-407.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-07-27 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-07-27-agenda-407.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_07272023-407 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Town of Lunenburg Finance Committee: Evan Watters, Chair Christopher Menard, Vice-Chair **Vacany**, Clerk Jay Simeone Thomas Gray Jean Russell **Vacancy** Lunenburg Finance Committee Thursday, July 27th, 2023 7 PM Bilotta Meeting Room, Lunenburg Town Hall Agenda 17 Main Street, P.O. Box 135 Lunenburg, MA 01462-0135 978.582.4139 FAX 978.582.4148 In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel and on Facebook Live on the Public Access Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Lunenburg-Public-Access- Cable-157427270975305). The following information is provided for members of the public that would like to participate in the meeting remotely: To Participate Remotely: From a computer, please use the link below to join the public meeting webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84135736161?pwd=QkVpVlNLU216VHdhRjBhTnhVVnNYUT09. From a telephone, dial the toll free number (888) 475- 4499, enter Webinar ID: 841 3573 6161. If you have not registered with Zoom you will be asked for your name and an e-mail address. Note: No participant ID is needed, just press # when asked. Telephone users may dial *9 to request to speak after joining the meeting. Computer and app users may use the “raise hand” feature to request to speak. The agenda lists all the topics which may be discussed at the meeting and are those reasonably anticipated by the Chair. Votes may be taken as a result of these discussions. Not all items listed may in fact be discussed and other items not listed may also be brought up for discussion to the extent permitted by Open Meeting Law. 1. Call to Order 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements 4. Public Comment 5. Town Manager / Finance Director Report 6. New Business a. Committee Reorganization b. Liaison Reorganization c. Past meeting minutes plan i. 5/25, 6/8, & 6/22 7. Old Business a. Tax Assessment/Abatement Update 8. Minutes 9. Committee Reports 10. Topics for Future Meetings 11. Public Comment 12. Upcoming meetings: a. Aug 24th, Sep 14th, Sep 28th 13. Adjourn ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-07-27-minutes-407.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-07-27 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-07-27-minutes-407.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_07272023-407 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Lunenburg Finance Committee Meeting Minutes July 27, 2023 Members Present: School Committee Member Brian Lehtinen, Town Manager Heather Lemieux, Vice Chair Chris Menard, Board Member Jean Russell, Board Member Jay Simeone, Chair Evan Watters. 1. Call to order The meeting opened at 7:00 PM. 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements The Finance Committee has a new member, Jean Russell. Evan Watters reiterates that there are still open positions available to join the committee. 4. Public comment No public comment. 5. Town manager/Finance report Heather Lemieux discusses current bid openings. The need for guardrail repair services bid of 80,886 dollars was awarded to Premier Fence. Funding from the Mass DOT Winter Recovery Assistance Program was used for this project. A bid from Powell Construction in the amount of 86,913 dollars was received for the Page Street culvert. A proposal from Vision regarding the 5-year reassessing evaluation was received with an estimated cost of 112,000 dollars. The Roadway Maintenance Fog Ceiling bid is due this coming week. The bids for snowplow, sewer operations, and maintenance bids are currently out and due by August 7. The road materials for DPW are being put out to bid soon. The EPA for administrative paperwork and removal of materials and tanks are currently being worked on for the 925 Mass Ave project. An application for a grant through Mass Development for Real Estate Technical Assistance Program has been submitted and a response is expected by the fall. The Senior Center Patio Project is still on schedule with an anticipated completion date in September. The ADA Ramp drawing has been completed by the architect. This will be sent out to the APD for review. Fiber is being installed at the Town Hall by Comcast. There is an order for new phone systems for the Town Hall, Ritter building, Library, Lunenburg Adult Activity Center, and DPW. This transition will take place over the coming months. The CivicPlus website's anticipated live date is in September and training will be completed prior to the launch. 6. New business a. Committee reorganization ===PAGE 2=== The committee is currently operating without a clerk and there have been no applicants for administrative positions. Evan Watters wants to wait until the next meeting when additional members will be available to discuss reorganization. b. Liaison reorganization Committee members act as a liaison between the Finance Committee and other committees. Jean Russell agrees to take on the Facilities Committee. The group agrees to discuss this at the next meeting so Evan Watters can bring a list of liaisons and additional members will be present. c. Past meeting minutes plan 5/25, 6/8, 6/22 There is no clerk for this committee, so the minutes have not been recorded for the above-referenced dates. Karen Menard from the Parks Commission agrees to help and complete the meeting minutes. 7. Old business a. Tax assessment/abatement update The town manager was not currently on the Zoom meeting so there are no updates. The last update Evan Watters is aware of regarding the tax bills is that they were going to be sent out. Chris Menard believes that checks were being mailed out. 8. Committee Reports Chris Menard states that the Parks Commission submitted a 500,000 dollar grant for Marshall Park. Brian Lehtinen from the School Committee has no update as they have not had a meeting since the prior meeting. Evan Watters states that none of the committees he oversees has met since the initial kick-off meeting. 9. Topics for Future Meetings For future meetings, there will be a look back at the committee policies. 10. Public comment No public comment. Committee Comment relating to the Town Hall project, AC project, and TC Passios roof repair. Chris Menard questions if there are any fiscal policies related to capital money. Evan Watters believes this is already in place because capital planning goes to town meetings and reports what has changed and if it still falls in scope. Chris Menard believes there should be a written policy for the future and thinks that the Select Board and School Committee should meet. Jay Simeone believes the scope of work falls under Chapter 30B. Heather Lemieux states the town hall project is a different scenario than the AC project. The scoop to how it was described the work to be done had changed. What was presented at the town meeting was overall different. The roof, chimneys, and basement ===PAGE 3=== windows have not changed but phased in for priority. Chris Menard questions whether rephasing means everything covered in the project will still be addressed. Heather Lemieux confirms that is accurate and there is no actual policy but was more of a recommendation based on past projects. Chris Menard will reach out to the Select Board and additional groups for input. 11. Upcoming Meeting: a. August 24, September 14, September 28 12. Adjourn Motion by Chris Menard to adjourn, seconded by Jay Simeone. The meeting adjourned at 7:47 PM. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-09-14-agenda-330.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-09-14 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-09-14-agenda-330.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_09142023-330 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Town of Lunenburg Finance Committee: Evan Watters, Chair Christopher Menard, Vice-Chair **Vacany**, Clerk Jay Simeone Thomas Gray Jean Russell **Vacancy** **AMENDED** Lunenburg Finance Committee Thursday, September 14th, 2023 7 PM Bilotta Meeting Room, Lunenburg Town Hall Agenda 17 Main Street, P.O. Box 135 Lunenburg, MA 01462-0135 978.582.4139 FAX 978.582.4148 In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel and on Facebook Live on the Public Access Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Lunenburg-Public-Access- Cable-157427270975305). The following information is provided for members of the public that would like to participate in the meeting remotely: To Participate Remotely: From a computer, please use the link below to join the public meeting webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82768218897. From a telephone, dial the toll free number (888) 475-4499, enter Webinar ID: 827 6821 8897. If you have not registered with Zoom you will be asked for your name and an e-mail address. Note: No participant ID is needed, just press # when asked. Telephone users may dial *9 to request to speak after joining the meeting. Computer and app users may use the “raise hand” feature to request to speak. The agenda lists all the topics which may be discussed at the meeting and are those reasonably anticipated by the Chair. Votes may be taken as a result of these discussions. Not all items listed may in fact be discussed and other items not listed may also be brought up for discussion to the extent permitted by Open Meeting Law. 1. Call to Order 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements 4. Public Comment 5. Town Manager / Finance Director Report 6. New Business a. Special Town Funds b. Committee Reorganization c. Liaison Reorganization 7. Old Business a. Primary School Air Conditioning 8. Minutes a. 6/8/2023 b. 6/22/2023 9. Committee Reports 10. Topics for Future Meetings 11. Public Comment 12. Upcoming meetings: a. Sep 28th, Oct 12th, & Oct 26th 13. Adjourn ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-09-14-minutes-330.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-09-14 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-09-14-minutes-330.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_09142023-330 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Lunenburg Finance Committee Meeting Minutes September 14th, 2023 Members Present: Board Member Tom Gray , Town Manager Heather Lemieux , Board Member Jean Russell , Board Member Jay Simeone , Chairman Evan Watters . 1. Call to Order The meeting opened at 7:02 PM . 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements from Committee No c ommittee announcements . 4. Public Comment No public comment . 5. Town Manager / Finance Director Report A quote was received by Supportive B usiness A lternatives regarding the contact with EL Harvey trash removal. This is the last year of the agreement for the pay- as-you-throw bag system. The committee has inquired if the town will be looking into a town-wide system for trash as opposed to the pay-as-you-go throw bags. Heather Lemieux confirms that there are currently no other avenues being explored. If residents have issues with the bags, they are told to contact the vendor and they will replace faulty bags. The Page S treet culvert project is complete and was completed in a timely manner and under the projected budget. The LED street light project began last week . There were issues regarding wiring. The original completion date was the end of September, but this has been pushed back due to new issue s . If funding is needed it will come from the C ommunity G reen C ommunities G rant . The ADA patio project will be completed by the end of the month and the ribbon-cutting ceremony will be on October 11 th at noon. The TC Passios roof has had consistent leaking. An article was submitted t o the special town meeting and the facilities director is soliciting quotes to complete a partial repair. The n ew town website will be launching on October 10 th . This will include an upgrade t o the accounting system M unis . Additional funding was approved for 925 Mass Ave . This includes testing soil samples , monitoring well installation , and groundwater sampling removal . The first phase which remove d the canopy and underground storage tanks, has been completed and was covered by EPA dollars. ===PAGE 2=== The third preliminary tax and recertification for real estate deadline is approaching. The new v endor , V ision , will be working on this but it wo n't be completed by the January 1 st deadline . The D epartment of Revenue has approved a late submission. Articles submitted for special town meeting include :  Police chief article to transfer funds from opioid settlement stabilization fund to be used for mental health co-response program .  Capital P lan t o transfer amount from fiscal 23 Ca pital P lan for air conditioner project .  The Sewer Commission has submitted multiple articles . This includes the Sewer R eserve C apacity S tabilization F und and S ewer Infiltration Stabilization F und to transfer the remaining funds.  Article to transfer S pecial P urpose S tabilization F und for an a mbulance and 2 DPW trucks.  Article to amend code 1 10 .  Currently no citizen's petitions have been submitted. 6. New Business a. Special Town Funds The interim finance director and treasurer are planning to mee t in November to go over accounts. The main objectives of the meeting are to : Find the n umber of accounts currently active with funds in them and the amount in each fund , identify if there are any funds already appropriated and waiting to be drawn on, and if are there any opportunities to consolidate funds in higher yield accounts . b. Committee Reorganization The Fi nance C ommittee needs an additional 2 members to be considered full. c. Liaison organization Below are the liaison assignments per member : E van Watters : Board of Health, Conservation Commission, Library, Police , Fire, School, Master Plan Steering Committee , Parks and Recreation . Tom Gray : Municipal Building Design Committee, Green Communities. Chris M enard: Capital Planning Committee . Jean Russell : Economic Development Committee . Jay Sim eone : Cemetery Commission, DPW, Sewer, Council on Aging . Organizations that have no town budget or a small-town budget that don't need a liaison ar e the Agricultural Commission, Architectural Preservation Design Committee (APDC), and the Commissioner of Trust Funds . 7. Old Business ===PAGE 3=== a. Primary School Air Conditioning The c ommittee m ember s agreed to discuss this topic after the special meeting . 8. Minute s a. Minutes from June 8, 2023 and June 22, 2023 The meeting minutes will be added to the next agenda as not all of the committee members have reviewed the minutes. 9. Committee Reports Municipal buildings will meet on the following Monday where a discussion about committee reports will take place. After that meeting, the committee will discuss, and this will be on the agenda for the next meeting. 10. Topics for Future Meetings The calendar for this year ’s budget season will be available next month and this topic will be on an upcoming agenda. There will be a discussion about the meeting with the financial director and the town treasurer. 11. Public Comment / Public Comment from the Committee No public comment . 12. Upcoming meetings Sep 28 th , Oct 12 th , Oct 26 th of 2023. 13. Adjourn Motion to adjourn by Jay Simeone , seconded by Tom Gray. All in fa vor. The meeting adjourned at 7:50 PM . ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-11-13-agenda-3727.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-11-13 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-11-13-agenda-3727.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_11132023-3727 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Town of Lunenburg Evan Watters, Chair Christopher Menard, Vice-Chair **Vacany**, Clerk Jay Simeone Thomas Gray Jean Russell Dave Passios Lunenburg Finance Committee Monday, November13th, 2023 7:00 PM Remote Zoom Meeting Agenda 17 Main Street, P.O. Box 135 Lunenburg, MA 01462-0135 978.582.4139 FAX 978.582.4148 In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel and on Facebook Live on the Public Access Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Lunenburg-Public-Access- Cable-157427270975305). The following information is provided for members of the public that would like to participate in the meeting remotely: To Participate Remotely: From a computer, please use the link below to join the public meeting webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9091740347. From a telephone, dial the toll free number (888) 475-4499, enter Webinar ID: 909 174 0347. If you have not registered with Zoom you will be asked for your name and an e-mail address. Note: No participant ID is needed, just press # when asked. Telephone users may dial *9 to request to speak after joining the meeting. Computer and app users may use the “raise hand” feature to request to speak. This agenda lists all the topics which may be discussed at the meeting and are those reasonably anticipated by the Chair. Votes may be taken as a result of these discussions. Not all items listed may in fact be discussed and other items not listed may also be brought up for discussion to the extent permitted by Open Meeting Law. 1. Call to Order 2. Announcements 3. Public Comment 4. Town Manager Report 5. Old Business a. Deferred STM Warrant Articles Updates b. Deferred STM Warrant Article Votes 6. New Business a. Preparation for STM 7. Public Comment 8. Adjourn ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-11-13-minutes-3727.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-11-13 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-11-13-minutes-3727.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_11132023-3727 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Lunenburg Finance Committee Meeting Minutes November 13, 2023 Members Present: Board Member Tom Gray, Board Member Dave Passios, Board Member Jean Russell, Board Member Jay Simeone, Chair Evan Watters. 1. Call to Order The meeting opened at 7:03 PM. 2. Announcements Evan Watters announces Dave Passios has joined the Finance Committee. The board now consists of 6 members. 3. Public Comment No public Comment. 4. Town Manager Report Heather Lemieux does not have any additional reports but wants to review some of the articles with the Committee. 5. Old Business a. Deferred STM Warrant Articles Updates Article 1 Article 1 addresses budget adjustments for FY 24. Heather Lemieux refers to a previously sent out chart that reflects the changes in revenue projection. - There is an additional $200,000 difference from the annual town meeting estimate. - The estimated state aid presented at the annual town meeting was $119,000 lower than projected since the annual town meeting. - The balance levy capacity of $9,772.70 will go towards the overall additional allowable appropriation. - A salary survey was done at the request of the select board chair. The board all agreed to add an additional $20,000. This is based on the area comparable to other towns. Motion to approve Article 1 by Tom Gray, seconded by Jay Simeone. Roll call vote. Unanimous vote. Article 2 A total of $1,413.52 was meant to be carried over at the end of the fiscal year, but ultimately it wasn’t. These wages were supposed to be paid out FY 23. This money came from excess revenue. Motion to approve Article 2 by Tom Gray, seconded by Dave Passios. Roll call vote. All in favor. Unanimous vote. Article 3 ===PAGE 2=== This article addresses collective bargaining that was finalized by the sick board and the bargaining unit. Comp analysis was completed by every bargaining unit to make sure employees were being paid fairly and by agreement it was found based on the 8 communities that were surveyed that the positions within the bargaining unit were severely underpaid compared to comparable positions and comparable towns between 8 and 20 percent. The bargaining agreement has a requirement to fund the first year. The board inquired about what employees this would cover. Heather Lemieux states it would cover Assistant Town Clerk, Town Accountant, Assistant Treasurer, Assistance Collector, DPW Executive Assistant, public Safety Coordinator, Conservation Administrator, Administrative Assistance. This would be an unknown cost but would be within budget. Motion to recommend approval for Article 3 by Tom Grey, seconded by Jean Russell. Roll call vote. Unanimous vote. b. Deferred STM Warrant Article Votes There are no additional deferments to address. 6. New Business There was a short discussion about preparing for the November 13th Special Town Meeting starting at 7:00 PM at the High School. Members are to check in and obtain their voting clickers. 7. Public Comment No public comment. 8. Adjourn Motion to adjourn by Jay Simeone, seconded by Tom Gray. Roll call vote. Meeting adjourned at 7:33 PM. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-11-30-agenda-6096.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-11-30 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-11-30-agenda-6096.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_11302023-6096 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Town of Lunenburg Evan Watters, Chair Christopher Menard, Vice-Chair **Vacany**, Clerk Jay Simeone Thomas Gray Jean Russell Dave Passios Lunenburg Finance Committee Thursday, November30th, 2023 7:00 PM Bilotta Meeting Room, Lunenburg Town Hall Agenda 17 Main Street, P.O. Box 135 Lunenburg, MA 01462-0135 978.582.4139 FAX 978.582.4148 In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel and on Facebook Live on the Public Access Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Lunenburg-Public-Access- Cable-157427270975305). The following information is provided for members of the public that would like to participate in the meeting remotely: To Participate Remotely: From a computer, please use the link below to join the public meeting webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84383220738. From a telephone, dial the toll free number (888) 475-4499, enter Webinar ID: 843 8322 0738. If you have not registered with Zoom you will be asked for your name and an e-mail address. Note: No participant ID is needed, just press # when asked. Telephone users may dial *9 to request to speak after joining the meeting. Computer and app users may use the “raise hand” feature to request to speak. This agenda lists all the topics which may be discussed at the meeting and are those reasonably anticipated by the Chair. Votes may be taken as a result of these discussions. Not all items listed may in fact be discussed and other items not listed may also be brought up for discussion to the extent permitted by Open Meeting Law. 1. Call to Order 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements a. Plan Lunenburg Survey: i. forms.gle/sk7xLi1YTE6sDNSMA 4. Public Comment 5. Town Manager Report 6. Old Business a. STM wrap-up 7. New Business a. Capital Plan Committee update – Chris M. b. Treasurer Year End Cash Report for DOR c. Municipal Investing 8. Minutes a. 11/13/23 9. Committee Reports 10. Topics for Future Meetings 11. Upcoming Meetings a. Dec 7th (off-cycle) b. Dec 14th (no quorum) c. Dec 28th d. Jan 11th e. Jan 19th-20th (MMA Annual Meeting) 12. Public Comment 13. Adjourn ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-11-30-minutes-6096.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-11-30 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-11-30-minutes-6096.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_11302023-6096 ======================================================================================== Lunenburg Finance Committee Meeting Minutes November 30, 2023 Members Present: Member Tom Gray, Vice Chair Chris Menard, Board Member Dave Passios, Board Member Jay Simeone, Chair Evan Watters. 1. Call to Order The meeting opened at 7:05 PM. 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements a. Plan Lunenburg Survey The Master Plan Steering Committee survey is available, and residents are encouraged to participate. 4. Public Comment There was no public or committee comment. 5. Town Manager Report There are currently 2 projects out to bid. Lunenburg activity center generator project bids are due December 13. Public Safety Building carpet project bids are due December 20. There is an update regarding the third quarter preliminary building and pro forma tax recap. Heather Lemieux confirms that Karen Brochu has completed the pro forma tax recap. This step must be completed since the town won’t be setting a tax rate until after the certification process. It is essentially the same as the tax rate recap except there is no valuation information just tax levy information. Heather Lemieux has worked with multiple departments and the DOR to create a tax bill insert. This insert will give information about why they are receiving a third quarter preliminary bill and confirms that this quarter bill will be the same amount as their first and second quarter preliminary bills. Once evaluations are completed for the certification process and tax rates are set residents will only get one actual tax bill this year for the 4th quarter. Dave Passios questions if there is anything that can be done for people who are having trouble paying the third quarter and then the fourth quarter by the deadline. Heather Lemieux states that the deadline cannot be extended. The third quarter estimated bills will go out at the end of December and they are due February 1st. Any abatement applications deadlines will be extended to May 1st. Evan Watters asks when the budget calendar will be provided. Heather Lemieux confirms that one is available on the drive. 6. Old Business a. STM wrap-up Dave Passios shares that he felt the votes went as expected. Evan Watters states he was surprised by the personal attacks but also stated everything seems to be open and transparent. 7. New Business a. Capital Plan Committee update – Chris Menard Chris Menard states that all department presentations for the fiscal year 2025 have been completed. Additionally, each department’s 10-year capital requests were provided. The upcoming meetings will be focused on the FY 25 requests and ranking priorities. The 10-year capital requests will be looked at in the first part of the next calendar year. Below are the 2 changes to the FY 25 request: There was a change regarding the request for Marshall Pond treatment. The updated request will be significantly less money as the work being done will only be on a small section of the pond. It will still include raking and chemical treatment. The parks department has escalated the basketball and tennis court repair at Wallace Park to a higher priority request. This is the most utilized facility in town and is showing wear. Below is a list provided by Chris Menard with a brief description of requests by departments: Police Department: radios, police vehicles, training simulator IT: upgrades at the library and other town buildings Schools: entire window repair and an estimated 17.6 million dollars’ worth of capital projects identified. DPW: multiple stormwater items/repairs Facilities and Parks: discussion about senior center parking lot, fixing building, keying of all buildings with cards and master keys. Chris Menard confirms that all presentations and spreadsheets were added to the SharePoint drive and to come to next meetings prepared to discuss concerns regarding priority levels. Chris Menard inquires what the current free cash estimate is. Heather Lemieux shares that the free cash certified value is currently 1.87 million. Dave Passios comments about the school department presentation and concerns with Turkey Hill. The issues with Turkey Hill need to be dealt with when they occur. There are a few things there that are simple fixes. Dave Passios questions why they aren’t being dealt with now until the building gets so bad a major project is needed. He also believes that the all-inclusive study of Turkey Hill Elementary will be money well spent. Chris Menard states that the Turkey Hill items listed in the capital plan are half the total value with an assumption there will be matching funding associated. Dave Passios has a comment regarding next year’s capital projects for police. There are items such as bullet proof vests and cars that are a known item to occur on specific years. Those types of items need to be pulled out of the capital fund and somehow be incorporated into the operating budgets. Dave Passios intends to go visit other cities and towns and see if they have a fleet managements department or someone that manages the entire fleet in town. b. Treasurer Year End Cash Report for DOR Evan Watters is requesting the treasurer to attend the next meeting to discuss her report. The committee members have not had a chance to review the year-end report so this will be reviewed at the next meeting. c. Municipal Investing There is a slide on the treasurer’s year end cash report that shows where money can be put into and how it can be spread out. This will be reviewed when Myleen attends the upcoming meeting. Evan Watters questions why interest rates on the majority of accounts have very low interest rates. 8. Minutes a. 11/13/23 The minutes were tabled to next week so members can review. 9. Committee Reports Chris Menard posted to the drive multiple departments worth of projects anticipated for the next 10 years. Dave Passios agrees to discuss further with green communities regarding grants. 10. Topics for Future Meetings Meeting with the Treasurer. 11. Upcoming Meetings a. Dec 7th (off-cycle) Evan Watters will send out an email to check availability to see if a quorum will be met to hold this meeting. b. Dec 14th (no quorum)- Canceled. c. Dec 28th d. Jan 11th e. Jan 19th-20th (MMA Annual Meeting) Dave Passios will be attending and encourages other members to attend. 12. Public Comment There was no public or committee comment. 13. Adjourn Motion to adjourn the meeting by Tom Gray, seconded by Chris Menard. All in favor. The meeting ended at 8:32 PM. ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-12-07-agenda-6112.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-12-07 KIND : agenda OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-12-07-agenda-6112.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_12072023-6112 ======================================================================================== ===PAGE 1=== Town of Lunenburg Evan Watters, Chair Christopher Menard, Vice-Chair **Vacany**, Clerk Jay Simeone Thomas Gray Jean Russell Dave Passios Lunenburg Finance Committee Thursday, December 7th, 2023 7:00 PM Bilotta Meeting Room, Lunenburg Town Hall Agenda 17 Main Street, P.O. Box 135 Lunenburg, MA 01462-0135 978.582.4139 FAX 978.582.4148 In accordance with the requirements of the Open Meeting Law, please be advised that this meeting is being recorded and broadcast over the Lunenburg Public Access channel and on Facebook Live on the Public Access Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/Lunenburg-Public-Access- Cable-157427270975305). The following information is provided for members of the public that would like to participate in the meeting remotely: To Participate Remotely: From a computer, please use the link below to join the public meeting webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/9091740347?omn=86535012065. From a telephone, dial the toll free number (888) 475-4499, enter Webinar ID: 909 174 0347. If you have not registered with Zoom you will be asked for your name and an e-mail address. Note: No participant ID is needed, just press # when asked. Telephone users may dial *9 to request to speak after joining the meeting. Computer and app users may use the “raise hand” feature to request to speak. This agenda lists all the topics which may be discussed at the meeting and are those reasonably anticipated by the Chair. Votes may be taken as a result of these discussions. Not all items listed may in fact be discussed and other items not listed may also be brought up for discussion to the extent permitted by Open Meeting Law. 1. Call to Order 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements a. Plan Lunenburg Survey: i. PlanLunenburg.org 4. Public Comment 5. Town Manager Report 6. Old Business a. Treasurer Year End Cash Report for DOR b. Municipal Investing c. Capital Plan Committee Input 7. New Business a. Budget Season Calendar 8. Minutes a. 11/13/23 9. Committee Reports 10. Topics for Future Meetings 11. Upcoming Meetings a. Jan 11th – Reorganization/Committee Liaisons b. Jan 18th – 5 yr Financial Forecast & Capital Plan Recommendations c. Jan 25th 12. Important Dates a. Jan 19th-20th (MMA Annual Meeting) b. Jan 9th-Mar 18th – Town Meeting Warrant c. Feb 15th – TM Preliminary Budget Presentation d. Apr 2nd – FinCom Report for Warrant e. May 4th – Annual Town Meeting f. May 18th – Annual Town Election 13. Public Comment 14. Adjourn ======================================================================================== DOCUMENT : 2023-12-07-minutes-6112.txt BOARD : finance-committee DATE : 2023-12-07 KIND : minutes OUR COPY : https://lunenburgbudgetproject.org/docs/minutes/text/finance-committee/2023-12-07-minutes-6112.txt TOWN PDF : https://www.lunenburgma.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_12072023-6112 ======================================================================================== Lunenburg Finance Committee Meeting Minutes December 7, 2023 Members Present: Vice Chair Chris Menard, Board Member Dave Passios, Board Member Jean Russell, Board Member Jay Simeone, Chair Evan Watters. 1. Call to Order The meeting opened at 7:10 PM. 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Announcements a. Plan Lunenburg Survey: PlanLunenburg.org Evan Watters encourages residents to take the survey to provide their input. 4. Public Comment Anna Lockwood - 91 Main Street- watched prior meetings and feels there are some disadvantages now that recreation and facilities fall under the same group. Facilities requests tend to become a higher priority. Anna Lockwood hopes the committee will see that the parks is different from facilities and there are different needs. The board agrees it may be difficult to ask for funding when looped under facilities. Heather Lemieux confirms that parks is in the division under facilities. Dave Passios thinks it may be worth separating when the departments submit their capital plan. Evan Watters suggests having 2 separate capital planning requests. A list for 20k to 500k projects and a list for over 500k projects. 5. Town Manager Report Heather Lemieux has nothing new to report. 6. Old Business a. Treasurer Year End Cash Report for DOR The treasurer, Myleen Mallari, provided 2 documents to the committee to review. This includes a report of all accounts that the town has and what was provided to the DOR. Dave Passios questions how often the accounts are reviewed and if money could be moved from one type of investment to another to get a better interest rate. Myleen Mallari confirms they review cash books every month. Myleen Mallari has spoken to a vice president representative of each institution if there are change in interest rates. Most accounts are fixed investments. Dave Passios asked a question regarding liquid bearing accounts. Some accounts have less than half percent interest and there is the question of whether this has to do with the accounts being fluid. Evan Watters asks why the maximum percentage rate doesn’t increases. Myleen Mallari states a new account was created because there was no interest rate to open a new account. Evan Watters sums up by saying this rate will increase and it’s just because it’s a new account. b. Municipal Investing Evan Watters questions if the banks on the documents just banks for general accounts or is there anything specific for municipalities within the banks themselves. Myleen Mallari states they all fall under the master law and under chapter 44 section 55 operating funds. Chris Menard questions if there is any ability to invest like we would our own retirements funds where they are doing better than the rate of inflation. The rates seem to be mediocre around the board. Myleen Mallari states the stabilization funds fall under chapter 44 section 54. They are in a safety type of investment. The institution Bartholomew specializes in and has an expertise on investments and how to invest those funds without losing anything. Evan Watters asked if they could go into a money market account. Myleen Mallari confirms they can, but they must be secured for insurance. They must fall under certain guidelines and the legal list of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts General Laws. Some of the banks have lower interest but they don’t charge fees to make this available to the taxpayers. Dave Passios questions if there are a lot of fees on these accounts. Myleen Mallari states they do charge fees for wire. They offer free service to have investments there with a good interest rate. Chris Menard questions if there is a policy related to how to invest money. Heather Lemieux confirms there is, and it can be found on the select board policy and procedure page 47. c. Capital Plan Committee Input Dave Passios is putting together a list of future projects that may qualify for Green Communities. Dave Passios Will provide spreadsheet to chair of green communities and contact those departments to get into the look early. Below are 2 changes to Capital Plan request: The study and schematic design for windows at Turkey Hill Elementary School was pushed back another year so it will now fall under FY 26. The Marshall Pond request decreased to $50,000. Instead of treating the entire pond they will only start with a small portion. Evan Watters shares that at the School Committee meeting they shared frustration that the MSBA was not getting their recommendations out and what projects to go forward with and fund. The school department will be writing a letter to send to the commissioner of MSBA to advocate for smaller communities that work on a smaller budget and don’t have reactionary funds available. Heather Lemieux states that back in 2021 Attorney Costa researched the MSBA funding laws and the MSBA rule is that they can recover any payments made to the town and stop any future payments to the town if it was outside of that period of time. 7. New Business a. Budget Season Calendar Members can find a copy of the budget season calendar in the Finance Committee folder. The budget season kicks off January 18th when the town manger presents the Capital Plan recommendations. 8. Minutes a. 11/13/23 The approval of the minutes will be discussed at a further date as some members weren’t able to find them under the committee group drive. 9. Committee Reports Dave Passios states that the Green Communities Committee has a meeting scheduled for the week of the 18th. Evan Watters discusses the Plan Lunenburg survey. 10. Topics for Future Meetings An additional member will be added to the committee and appointed on December 13th. The committee will now consist of a full board. At an upcoming meeting there will be a full committee reorganization and committee liaison assignments. 11. Upcoming Meetings a. Jan 11th – Reorganization/Committee Liaisons b. Jan 18th – 5 yr Financial Forecast & Capital Plan Recommendations c. Jan 25th – Regular meeting 12. Important Dates a. Jan 19th-20th (MMA Annual Meeting) Current there is funding for 3 people to attend. b. Jan 9th-Mar 18th – Town Meeting Warrant c. Feb 15th – TM Preliminary Budget Presentation d. Apr 2nd – FinCom Report for Warrant e. May 4th – Annual Town Meeting f. May 18th – Annual Town Election 13. Public Comment No public or committee comment. 14. Adjourn Motion to adjourn the meeting by Chris Menard, seconded by Dave Passios. All in favor The meeting ended at 8:58PM.