Back to Capital Outlay Committee Minutes
Minutes of the Town of Hingham
Capital Outlay Committee Meeting
1/27/2010 at Town Office Building
Attending: Chairman Ray Eisenbies, Ron Kirven, Lucy Hancock, Jonathan Asher and Andy Mooradian (both representing the Advisory Committee), Ted Alexiades (Town Accountant)
Guests: Steve Becker (Accounting Department); Michael Salerno (Sewer Department); Taylor Mills and John Norkaitis (Police Department); Jay McGrail (South Shore Country Club); Lane Partridge (Board of Assessors)
Ray Eisenbies called the meeting to order at 7:01 PM in the 3rd floor East Hearing Room.
Capital Budget Request – Information Technology
Webmaster Steve Becker presented the proposed capital outlay requests for the next five years. Most of the requests are for computer hardware / software. Steve provides computer support for every town department and oversees almost all of the town web sites.
For FY11, Steve is requesting $150,325. The first phase of the new server virtualization project will cost $90,000. Existing hardware replacement will cost $41,500. Without the server virtualization, the replacement of existing servers in FY11 would cost $66,900. The FY11 hardware savings of $25,400 will be followed by hardware savings of $14,000 in FY12, FY13, and FY14. Server virtualization will facilitate the installation of multiple servers on one physical machine and will allow the introduction of the thin client set-up. A second virtual server will be necessary in the future. The third piece of the FY11 request is an email archiving device that will cost $18,825. This includes approximately three years of maintenance. Steve backs up email to tape on a regular basis, and he must be able to archive a minimum of two years of email. The South Shore Collaborative has offered to archive one year’s worth of the town government email.
The capital outlay requests for FY12 include a new telephone system that will cost $45,000. The initial purchase will include the processor and a starter set of five phones. The plan is to replace five to ten phones per year.
Capital Budget Request – Sewer Department
Michael Salerno presented the proposed capital outlay requests for the next five years. He reduced the original FY11 amount of $339,900 to $75,000. The key initiative for FY11 is the repair of the South Street pumping station. Instead of doing a complete renovation in one year, Michael is planning to do the work piecemeal. He will replace parts in order to extend the life of the station. No vehicle upgrades are planned in the next few years. Michael will provide the COC with a revised five-year capital schedule in early February. A third sewer district may be created in Hingham, but the time line is TBD. Note that the Sewer Department is self-funded.
Capital Budget Request – Police Department
Chief Taylor Mills and Lieutenant John Norkaitis (fleet manager) presented the proposed capital outlay requests for the next five years. The request for FY11 amounts to $241,500 and includes eight vehicles, one boat engine, five tasers, and furniture / equipment.
The vehicle purchase includes seven patrol cars and one 4WD truck that can be used as a cruiser or an emergency management vehicle. The truck will replace the Harbormaster SUV. With trade-ins, the net vehicle cost is $203,000. The new boat engine for the Harbormaster will cost $19,000. The current fleet consists of one big boat and two small boats. The town may receive a large grant in the next eighteen months that will result in the acquisition of an even larger boat at no expense to the town. This would allow the retirement of the old big boat. The new boat will be slightly more expensive to operate but will not cause a big increase in the operating budget.
The Harbormaster is moving to a new office in Hewitt’s Cove, and the furniture and office equipment will cost $12,000 in FY11. There is a surplus in the harbor dredging fund, and it might be possible to use this money for Harbormaster capital. The Harbormaster would like to self-fund from other sources.
Also in the FY11 request is the purchase of five non-lethal weapons, i.e., tasers, at a cost of $5,000. The goal is to have one taser available on every shift. A taser is a deterrent in a hostile situation and may prevent the need for an officer to use a gun. Use of a taser requires some training time for the officers and OT for the trainers. Trainees have to be shot by a taser before they can be authorized to use one on duty. Tasers have a camera and recorder so usage can be tracked. The department plans to buy five additional tasers in FY12 and in FY13.
Capital Budget Request – South Shore Country Club
Jay McGrail presented the proposed capital outlay requests for the next five years. In FY11, the first phase of the five-year plan will take effect. The plan is to build up a reserve in the enterprise fund and to reinvest in the facility. The Country Club capital purchases are self-funded.
The request for FY11 amounts to $115,000 and includes replacement of an HVAC unit, replacement of a cart path, resolution of a wetlands issue, rehabilitation of the pool deck, and replacement of a truck. The wetlands problem in the driving range requires phragmites removal that is budgeted at $40,000 but may cost less. A crack in the pool support structure has allowed splash-over and rain water to leak into the basement (maintenance facility). The pool is structurally sound, but the crack must be repaired. Fixing the problem will buy at least ten years of usage at not much cost. Epoxy will be used to fill the cracks, and the concrete surface will be chemically treated to make it water-resistant. The key items for FY11 are the driving range and the pool deck. When revenue is received, it will be spent on these projects.
Jay noted that $30,000 of capital was spent in FY10, and most of it was for painting. The new caterer (Raphael’s) at the Country Club is currently doing $200,000 of renovations to the clubhouse interior. The caterer is funding this work.
Capital Budget Request – Assessor
Lane Partridge explained that he is not seeking any capital funding in FY11. He reported that the CAMA (Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal) system is working fine now, but it soon may be orphaned and unsupported. Eighty-one towns in Massachusetts use CAMA. The state is the client; the towns are the users. The MA Department of Revenue pays the maintenance fees. It is possible that a CAMA replacement may be needed suddenly in the next few years. If and when this happens, Lane will approach the COC and request a replacement system at a cost of approximately $75,000 with a maintenance expense of $3,000. It might be possible to work a deal with other towns in order to save money. This might even be a revenue opportunity for Hingham. Or perhaps the state could buy the CAMA code and keep the system going.
The current vehicle used by the assessor is a 2005 Toyota Prius. There is an eight year warranty on the battery, and Lane recommends that the car be replaced before the warranty runs out, i.e., in about three years. A new battery costs between $3,000 and $4,000.
One additional item of interest is the GIS (Geographical Information System). The base layer of this tool is a set of maps that contain property lines. This allows the town to maintain maps of all assessed properties. Lane would like to make some enhancements to the GIS, but he is not requesting funding for this purpose now.
Capital Budget Request – Building Department
Ted Alexiades represented the Building Inspector who was not in attendance. The only capital need for the department in FY11 is a new Ford Ranger light duty pick-up truck. The old vehicle is unsafe and has been taken off the road. It has no trade-in value. The new truck will cost $12,000.
Capital Budget Requests – Board of Selectmen and Town Hall
The Board of Selectmen have requested $10,000 in FY11 to clean up and close out the former DPW stockyard on Hersey Street. The BOS also has requested $30,000 for exterior painting of the Hersey House. The FY11 Town Hall request consists of $30,000 for carpeting, painting, renovations, and repairs. The Town Hall requests for FY12 through FY15 are very similar.
Capital Budget Request – Department of Public Works
The DPW has two additional capital requests not presented at the 1/13/2010 COC meeting, but they are not for FY11. An additional sum of approximately $250,000 is needed for engineering work related to the landfill closure / capping in FY12. The second item is engineering design for the proposed reconstruction of Derby Street (from Gardner Street to the Weymouth town line). The cost is estimated to be $385,000, but the source of the funds is not clear. It may be a combination of state grants, commercial beneficiaries, and the town. This is not in the FY11 capital plan. Funding sources will be defined before the project is started. The Board of Selectmen must approve this work. A third item mentioned was landfill post closure monitoring, but this will be an annual charge in the operating budget rather than a capital item.
Other Business
The COC approved the 1/20/2010 meeting minutes.
At an upcoming meeting, COC members will review the scorecard and evaluate each FY11 item using the six criteria established at the 1/20 meeting.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:32 PM.
Respectfully submitted,
Lucy Hancock, Secretary