Simsbury, CT - Board of Finance-Public Hearing-3/9/04

The Public Hearing of the Board of Finance was called to order at 7:36 P.M. in the Amphitheater of Simsbury High School. The following members were present: Chairman Paul Henault, Candace Fitzpatrick, Peter Askham, Michael Wade, Kevin North, and Nicholas Mason. Also present were Tom Vincent, First Selectman, Donna Lyons, Chairperson for Board of Education Capital Projects, and Kevin Kane, Director/Treasurer of Town of Simsbury, and all other interested parties.

Mr. Henault stated that the purpose of this meeting is to review the Board of Selectmen and the Board of Education capital projects being presented. This meeting will focus on the upcoming budget year requests, although it is part of a six year capital plan that is required for the Board of Education and Board of Selectmen to present to the Board of Finance.

Mr. Henault said that by Town Charter the Board of Finance is required to solicit input from the from the public. Mr. Henault said the Operating Budget Public Hearing will be held on March 30, 2004 in the auditorium.

Mr. Henault said the first list of projects on the agenda is Development Rights and Open Space for $1,000,000.00, Water Extensions for $190,000, Sewer Extensions for $240,000, Fleet Service Equipment Storage for $350,000, Sewer Rehabilitation for Church Street Extension and Elm Street for $100,000, Simsbury Meadow Improvements for $300,000, Park Improvements for $200,000. The Town projects sub-total equal $2,380,000.00.

Mr. Henault said the Board of Education Projects are Central School Roof Replacement $200,000, Simsbury High School Auditorium Upgrade for $712,500, Computer Technology for $300,000, Elementary Modular Classroom Space for $500,000, Simsbury High School Track and Stadium $1,905,014 for a total of $3,617,514.00.

Mr. Henault said the Capital Projects requests total $5,997,514.00. The source of the funding would be varied, but the majority would be Town bonding. The traditional length of bonding is ten years. Mr. Henault said the Sewer Assessment Fund is $240,000, School Building Grants are $218,000, Town Reserves Loan of $190,000, and Sewer Fund Reserves for $100,000.

Mr. Henault said Pursuant to Section 506 of the Town Charter, any appropriation in the amount of 3% of the annual budget, for the current fiscal year, shall require an automatic referendum. Mr. Henault said the debt policy was set in place in 1989 as a method as a debt payment plan.

Mr. Vincent went over the Capital Projects for the Board of Selectmen, which include Development Rights and Open Space Acquisition which is an important continuation of past years programs established to acquire open space and development rights. It is the intention of the program to acquire land that is environmentally sensitive, suitable for active or passive recreation, cultural uses and related sports support activities, prime agricultural land, complimentary to existing open space and protected properties. This project is funded through bonding, with portions of funds being recovered through grant programs.

Mr. Vincent said the existing program has resulted in the protection of 40 acres of agricultural gateway property, 231 acres of forest, ponds and recreation, and 18 acres of park land active recreation.

Mr. Vincent said the Water Main Extensions project is designed to extend water mains in to neighborhoods where residents have expressed interest in having public water. This project will be authorized by the Board of Selectmen following an informational meeting and guided by the Town of Simsbury Water Main Extension Study and Ordinance. Users will be assessed for recovery of costs.

Mr. Vincent said the Sewer Main Extension project funding will be provided by the Sewer Extension Fund, which is fully paid through benefitted property assessments. This project is to fund the anticipated sewer construction needs over the next two years. The Water Pollution Control Authority, following a Public Hearing, will authorize the projects.

Mr. Vincent said next is the Highway Fleet Service Equipment Storage, where needed storage space would be used to safely store highway seasonal vehicles, highway parks and school departments. The facility would be located at the Highway and Fleet Service Garage on Town Forest Road. The Building would be brought up to code and include fire separation walls. Mr. Vincent said bays would be provided to improve efficiency and economy in serving town vehicles and equipment. Part of the garage would be replaced as bays are undersized and the building structure is deteriorating.

Mr. Vincent said the Sewer Rehabilitation of Church Street Extension and Elm Street will be funded by the Sewer Use Fund, which is fully paid for by the sewer users. This project involves rehabilitation of 1930 sewer pipes by methods such as pipe lining, pipe bursting, inserting new pipe or replacement. The result of the project would be to reduce pump operation costs and eliminate any environmental overflow problems.

Mr. Vincent said the next item is the Simsbury Meadow Improvements, which will provide added support for the growing Simsbury Meadows activities. Walkway lighting will be provided along the northern section of Iron Horse Blvd. The park equipment storage building will be construction either as a new building or the rehabilitation and relocation of the existing buildings.

Ms. Lyons said there are five proposed projects for the Board of Education. The first project is the Central School slate roof replacement where the slate roof would be replaced with asphalt shingles. This project is partially eligible for reimbursement from the State.

Ms. Lyons said the Simsbury High School Auditorium Upgrade is for seating replacement, replacement of orchestra flooring, rigging, and updating electric components. The cost includes construction, professional services, etc., none of which is reimbursable by the State.

Ms. Lyons said the Computer Technology Plan is proposed to be funded every other year. This includes the replacement and/or expansion of computer network servers, the replacement of the network equipment, adding disaster recovery equipment, and network wiring and network drops.

Ms. Lyons said the last project is for the Simsbury High School Track and Stadium Field. This project includes the upgrading of the existing stadium field and the cinder stone dust track with an eight lane artificial track and artificial turf interior field. There would also be improved visitor bleacher seating and code upgrades as required. The artificial turf could be used year round and is safer and easier to maintain.

Mr. Henault said the total cost to taxpayers on all proposed capital projects amounts to be bonded of $5,249,514. This would be a 10 year bond with a blended interest rate of 4.2%. The average cost to each resident would be $60 per year.

Mr. Henault said there was a total of $110,516.072 worth of capital projects approved in the past eight years. Town projects totaled $44,234,483 and Board of Education projects totaled $66,281,589.

Joan Coe, 26 Woodcomb Drive said she was concerned about the Development Rights as the Land Trust has taken over a lot of that responsibility and she isn’t sure we have to bond $1,000,000 a year. The Fleet Service Equipment Storage has cosmetic problems, not structural problems. She feels Simsbury Meadows should have the symphony pay for storage for their equipment. As far as Park Improvements go, if something is necessary to keep the fields in good condition, but she doesn’t want to re-do them. She feels the roof needs to be done for the Board of Education, but the auditorium upgrade should wait. Mrs. Coe feels the Modular Classrooms are a necessity. She said the Track and Stadium Field surface will become very slick and is too big of a major expense.

Rick Collins, 6 North Drive, Assistant Simsbury High School Football Coach, would like to see the combined all purpose field and all weather track go to referendum. He is also the head coach for girls track and field and feels the need for a new track is necessary. This would be a safe, all weather surface. Our children could reach goals they thought they could never obtain.

Jerry Litner, 5 Simscroft Place, said he has a lot of respect for the job the Board of Finance does. There are very few communities like this one. Mr. Litner said the problem they are confronted with this year will lead to the temptation to look further into the six year plan. He feels the Library project that should begin 2005-06 shouldn’t be postponed.

Babs Gardner, 53 High Ridge Road, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Library, said she agrees with Mr. Litner. She feels the Library expansion is ready. They need to apply for a grant proposal, to the State Library Board, which is due in August. In order to write the proposal, they need to know how much the Town is able to spend on the project and when the construction will start.

Hugh Rice, 23 Hopmeadow Street, is in favor of the Simsbury High School track and field project. He is the head boys coach of LaCross at the High School. Most of the games are played at the High School, but when there is foul weather, they can’t use the field. Their season starts on March 22^nd and the field will not be in good shape for playing. He feels a turf field would allow them to use it a lot more for practice and games.

Lester Allen, 67 Cornhog Road, a friend of the Simsbury Public Library, feels every great Town needs a great Library. Our Library is bursting at the seams and needs to be helped now. He asked for the Board’s consideration on this project.

Joe Grace, 12 Gates Lane, is for the Track and Stadium Field upgrade. He feels a multi-purpose field could accommodate all the teams we have. The multi-purpose field would give us the opportunity to increase the games presently from 38 games to 90 games. He feels this project should go to referendum on May 4, 2004.

Kathy Miller, 21 Old Barge Road, who is the President elect of the Friends of the Simsbury Public Library, feels the Library is showing a lot of wear and tear after 20 years. They are continuing to look ahead to the future and are now playing catch-up with the past. She stands behind the Library Board and would introduce fund raising projects, after getting feedback from the Board of Finance on this project.

Mike Cohen, 4 Smokey Ridge Road, boys head coach of track and field, said the need for the new field is evident. He invited everyone to walk on the track to see for themselves. There needs to be site improvements and drainage at least. This would need to be done if a new turf is to be put in as well. He is in favor of the new track and field project so the maximum use of this land is used.

Jim Wasz, 7 Griffin Street also supports the Track and Field Project. He feels the artificial turf is soft as grass and will wear better with usage. The field surface now is unworkable. He feels it would be short-sited to re-do the track alone as more improvements are necessary. The Town could host tournaments and benefits that would benefit the Town.

Bob Hensley, 21 Cedar Hill, is also in favor of the Track and Field Project. A lot of people could play in the new field, which would also improve performance and safety. He feels this is the right thing to do now. This is the most cost effective way to handle this problem.

Karen Cobley, 8 Crestwood Road, feels the Capital Budget is fine. It’s wonderful. The Town needs a lot of things and we need to get up to par with everyone else. She feels the budget should be passed and come up with more plans for the community.

Dan Corkcoran, 302 Firetown Road has been in Town for two years and feels the youth sports programs are terrific. That is one of the reasons he moved here. He supports the new Track and Field Project.

Bill Rabbit, 4 School House Lane, also supports the Track and Field Project. He said the LaCross program has grown to 400 kids from 1^st - 8^th grade. Parents are willing to help support this project. Right now parents pay $150 to go to Farmington to use their facilities. Other people could be brought in to play in our new field. Maybe even graduation could be held on the new field.

Colleen Palmer, 2 Whitney Lane, High School Principal, said the new generation track is very safe. The physical education classes would also have access to the new field. This surface could be plowed for winter usage. She also feels tournaments here mean more business for Simsbury.

Mr. Henault said the Library has a six year capital plan. This is the first year of this plan. The total cost for projects for the next six years are projected to be 47.2 million dollars. The Library Project is 7.3 million dollars for ‘05-‘06. Henry James Auditorium project is 4 million dollars for ‘06-‘07, Simsbury Farms in ‘07-‘08 is $2.8 million dollars, the Tarrifville additions in ‘07-‘08 is 4 million dollars, Simsbury Meadows project in ‘08-‘09 for 1.3 million dollars, an art room for 2.4 million dollars, County Road and Hoskins for 3.7 million dollars. Of the 47.2 million the Town cost for issuing a bond would be 37.9 million dollars over six years.