Capital Improvement Program (CIP)

Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) Committee

DRAFT

Newmarket Town Hall

  Town Council Chambers

Thursday, September 18

 1:00 – 5:00 pm

Members present: Russ Simon, Rose-Anne Kwaks, Phil Nazzaro, Judith Ryan, and Jane Ford. Matt Angell, Interim Finance Director, and Diane Hardy, Town Planner , were also present. Nathan Lunney was excused.

The meeting was called to order at 1:10 p.m.

1.         Department Head/Agency Presentations

            Public Works Building and Grounds – Director  Rick Malasky discussed the                    cost of completion of the bunk and locker rooms on the second floor of the Fire             Safety building. He explained that with these renovations, it would reduce the             need to hire more full-time staff and allow us to get more volunteer coverage from             neighboring communities. There has only been one project estimate by Sheridan             Construction Corporation of Fairfield, Me at $286,000. The Department is also             asking for funding for a portion of the roof (14,000 square feet) which is in bad             condition.  It was last re-coated in 2004 at a cost of $10,000. The cost of repair is             estimated to be $166,650 (also submitted by Sheridan Construction Corporation.)             The roof is leaking over existing office space.

The Department is requesting funding for the Macallen Dam. The cost of repair is             estimated between $1.4 - $3.3 million dollars according to the 2014 Gomez and             Sullivan study. Two drainage replacement projects are being considered for             Beech Street Ext ($800,000) and New Road ($500,000). A new capital reserve             fund was set up last year which currently has $51,000 in. The importance of these             two projects is related to previous flooding of residential units in these areas and             the new EPA requirements under the Administrative Order and the MS4 program             related to non-point source pollution.

The Public Works equipment requests include the purchase of a F150 Pick-up to             replace the Taurus that is no longer operational. They wish to acquire the truck in             FY 2016 in the amount $24,000. Russ Simon asked that an assets list be provided             for all town buildings (22 building and facilities.  Rick Malasky will provide the             list.

Fire Safety - The Fire Safety request includes the replacement of 35 portable             radios, 8 mobile radios and 24 Scott SCBA (breathing apparatus), within the next             two years in the amount of $356,000. The Town did not grant the full amount             requested in previous years, and the Department is trying to catch up in order to             replace the needed equipment.

Water - Sean Grieg present the water CIP request. He gave an overview of the             project that are on-going and the Town’s priorities for implementation. At the             Bennett and Sewell well pumping house, there is an urgent need to upgrade             equipment that will eliminate code violations and prevent the further             deterioration of equipment due to chemical interactions. The cost is estimated at             $400,000. He is interested in completing this project in Fy 2015/2016.

There is a request for a second water tower (acquisition of land), estimated at             $200,000 to be purchased in FY 2019/2020.There is a request for $400,000 for             land acquisition related to the Tucker Well, to meet the Town’s 20 year water             demands. The Water Department is also requesting $14,000 for truck             replacements, none of which are proposed to be replaced in 2015/2016.

            Sewer – Mr. Greig presented the sewer department’s CIP. He is requesting CIP             funds in the amount of $450,600 for engineering services to address code and life             safety issues at the Town’s 6 pumping stations. This is in addition to the projected             cost of $14.1 million for the wastewater treatment plant upgrade. The overall cost             of upgrading the pumping stations are estimated at $2.5 million dollars.  This is             also  in addition to the estimated costs of upgrading the sewer collection system at             a cost of $10,000,000. The Sewer Department is requesting $14,000 toward truck             replacement, none are proposed to be replaced in 2015/2016.

            Police - Kevin Cyr presented the CIP budget for the police . There are no new             projects, no new vehicles and no new equipment.   For Dispatch and             Communications,  he will be requesting to replace 8 astro mobile radios that were             acquired in 1998 (at no cost to the Town as they were acquired with Homeland             security funds) in FY 15/16 at the cost of $28,000.  He will also be requesting             funds for $45,000 to replace Car #6 (Black and White) in the next fiscal year. He             is requesting $29,449 for equipment and $46,000 for the police vehicles. There is             currently $102,205 in the capital reserve fund for police equipment and $170,803             for vehicles.

              Recreation – Jim Hilton clarified that there are two different Capital reserve             funds for recreation.  The recreation facilities account and the  second is the             Community Recreation that was created by a warrant article related to the sale of             ‘The Pine’s’ property. The money, in the later, can only be spent by the Town for             recreation, but it must be matched dollar for dollar with a grant. The current             balance in that account is $84,186.

            He is talking today only about the recreation facilities capital reserve fund which             has $162,895 in it currently. There are 7 CIP requests this year. The first is for the             bus. It was purchased in 2007 and he has been saving for it replacement since that             time. The cost to replace the bus is $68,750 and he wishes to replace it in FY             17/18. Phil Nazzaro pointed out that if you add up all of the requests for this year,             they all could be funded out of the balance in the current Capital Reserve Account             for Recreation Facilities.

            Mr. Hilton is looking for $14,000 in FY 16/17 to resurface the in-fields at Beanie             Howcroft C and D. The committee would like to know how often the fields need to be resurfaced.  He is requesting $5,300 per year for six years to replace the 4       swing sets at the Leo Landroche field in FY 21/22. Also, he is requesting $7,000       over the next six years for re-sodding the Beaulieu Field. The NYBA is        contributing $5,000 towards this project which is scheduled for FY 18/19.  Also,       $10,000 is requested over the course of six (6) years for the replacement of   bleachers at the Leo Landroche complex. The sixth project involves replacing a   re-school wooden structure at the same location at the cost $24,500 to commence            in FY 21/22. The final request is for $10,000 for the construction of a new             vestibule/entry way in order to make the building more energy efficient and   functional.

            Veteran’s Committee –Janice Rosa was present to present the CIP request.  They             are requesting $14,500 in FY15/16 in order to re-point the memorial band stand.             She presented a cost estimate from Masonry Unlimited. The work involves             repointing, replacing bricks, where necessary, acid washing all brickwork and             finishing with a weatherseal.  She presented several photos showing the condition             of the brick, cracks and water damage that has occurred. She discussed the             urgency of this condition and concerns about the safety of the steps. This needs to             be addressed immediately to prevent further deterioration.  The committee             recommended that Ms. Rosa discuss this with the Town Administrator and             possibly request funding out of the building and grounds capital reserve to fund             this project or the Veteran Committee’s operating budget.

            Library - Carrie Gadbois, the Library Director, presented her six year CIP             involving renovations to the Town Library. She would like to do interior painting             as the walls and ceilings are showing signs of wear and tear and the plaster needs             to be fixed. Interior painting of the library was last done in 2014. She has a quote             from Jablonski painting of $48, 000. The exterior painting of the Library and             window has just been completed. She is asking for $6,000 for re-pointing of the             bricks. Jane Ford wandered if the Town were to group this project with the             Veteran’s band stand, if there would a savings.

            She talked about a re-occurring leak in the roof which is causing damage to the             interior of the building. There have been on-going problems with ice dams on the             west side of building. There is a need to insulate and fix the problem so it will not             cost more to improve in the future. She does not have an estimate yet for this             item.  The CIP request also includes money for a new boiler. The previous boiler             was put in 1994, and a new more energy efficient system is needed within the             next six years, which will save the library energy costs.

            Lastly, she presented a rendering that was done by Elizabeth Dudley, local             landscape architect. It shows the northeast corner of the Library lot with new steps             to connect the library and the municipal parking spaces, which would improve the             aesthetics of the area. The wall has been damaged and repaired with cement road             barriers and looks shabby. It was explained the handicapped access is on the             other side of the library. It is problematic as ice comes down off the roof causing icing on the ramps, which is unsafe. She presented an idea for putting the             handicapped ramp on the other side of the building, one that could be kept free             snow and ice and provided safer access to the Library during the winter time.

            The Library Capital Reserve funds has about $129,378 in it. There is a separate             Library Trust Fund which is part of the Town’s grant to the Library (in order of             $90,000) that is spent by the Library Trustees.  It is accumulation of unspent             appropriations. The Town cannot access these funds; however, the Town could             suggest that they spend funds for a specific purpose. The Trust owns the   building, although it is considered a town building. Clarification of this may           needed for future budgeting purposes. She is requesting $10,000 per year for the       next six (6) years for the Capital Reserve fund.

            Finance  -  Matt Angell, Interim Finance Director, presented the proposed CIP for             a new accounting system.   The Town is at the end of the current accounting             software, estimated to end in four (4) years. He is requesting $25,000 for four             years, for the system to be replaced in the year FY 18/19. He wants to purchase a             new module for payroll and integrate into a new accounting software in the future.             The Town wants to automate processes such as sending vendor payments by ACH             rather than by check.  He is considering a Munis system and, possibly             coordinating something with the Schools. The current cost of operating and             maintaining the system is $34,000 per year (Harris), which was pointed out to be             a large sum of             funding.  Mr. Angell is recommending that a new fund to be             formed this year. There would have to be a vote in March to create the capital             reserve fund and to appropriate the funds to capitalize it.

            Planning - Diane Hardy, Town Planner, made a brief presentation.  She is             recommending the Town set up a Capital Reserve Fund for the Master Plan             project. The Town Charter that was updated at the last Town Meeting on March   11, 2014 stated in Section 4.16 that the Master Plan shall be revised no less    frequently than once every 10 years. She indicated that the current Master Plan is at the end of its life cycle. It was updated on a comprehensive basis in 2001, so it         has been over thirteen (13) years since it was updated in a comprehensive way.     The Planning Board which is charged with preparing the Master Plan has tried to             update at least one chapter per year. Since 2001, the following chapters have been updated: Recreation (2005); Open Space and Conservation Plan (2007); Water             Resources, (2009); Economic Development (2011); and Existing Land Use           (2013).

            In years past, there have been grant funds available to update various sections             often with the assistance of the Strafford Regional Planning Commission or a             planning consultant. Much of that money is no longer available. This year the             Planning Board is focusing on a Vision Statement, Population, Housing, and             Future Land Use.  Money was appropriated in the Planning Department operating             budget last year and there is money also available through the New Hampshire             Coastal Program for this year’s work program. It is her goal to get the remaining             sections updated in FY 15/16             and she has requested funding in her operating             budget to do so.

            She has estimated the cost of updating the Master Plan in its entirety to cost             $100,000 to be completed in FY 2025. The idea is to get used to setting aside a             certain amount of money every year so that when the time comes to update the             plan again the funds will be there.

2.               Approval of Minutes

Russ Simon indicated that the clause related to the Budget Committee budget being due on October 15, 2014 doesn’t make sense and it was agreed it should be redacted.  Also, the minutes should note that Judy Ryan was excused.  The minutes should  also reflect the committee meant a building and grounds asset and real estate list as opposed to “budget”.  A motion was made by Phil Nazzaro, seconded by Russ Simon, to approve the minutes of the Wednesday, September 10, 2014 Capital Improvement Committee meeting.  All in Favor. Judy Ryan abstained.

3.         Updated Rules of Procedure

This will be taken up at the next CIP meeting on September 25, 2014. Diane Hardy will get an updated draft to the committee members.

4.         Other Business

The Committee is waiting to hear back from the School Committee as to when they might be scheduled to review their CIP with the committee.  Rose-Anne Kwaks recommended that after the CIP committee concludes its work for this year, that it continue to meet to review the CIP process with an eye to improved modifications for next years’ CIP.

5.               Next Meeting

The next meeting will be Thursday, September 25, 2014 between 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. in the Town Council Chambers of the Newmarket Town Hall. The meeting will be televised. Tuesday 9/30 is tentatively scheduled for a meeting if the Committee needs additional time or Monday 9/29 if the room is available 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

6.                 Adjourn

The Committee adjourned at 4:45 p.m., upon a motion by Phil Nazzaro and a second by Russ Simon.  So voted.