From left: Chief Ed Denmark waits as B.J. Pessia, Anne McWaters, and John Lee of the Parks and Recreation Commission discuss an item at last year’s Annual Town Meeting. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
At next Tuesday’s Town Meeting, voters will be asked to approve 53 articles. Here’s a synopsis of each, in plain English, including its fiscal impact. If you’re looking for legalese, you’ll find it in the Town Meeting booklet, which all residents should have received in the mail last weekend. The booklet contains the exact wording of all 53 articles, their cost, and the recommendations of the Finance Committee.
Readers should be aware, however, that the final wording of some articles won’t be known until their motions for adoption are read on the floor of Town Meeting. These motions can themselves be amended, so pay attention.
Town Meeting will be gaveled to order at 7 p.m. on Tuesday evening, April 1, in Cronin Auditorium. If this year’s meeting is like many previous meetings, 93 percent of the spending could be finished in the first hour, when the Omnibus Budget (Article 5) is voted.
Article 1: Annual Reports
An annual housekeeping formality, this article asks voters to hear reports from the Board of Selectmen, School Committee, and any other boards with prepared reports to present. Written reports for virtually every town committee and department appear in either the 2013 Town Meeting booklet, which includes reports from the Finance and Capital Committees, or the 2012 Annual Town Report, which includes everyone else. Both documents will be available at Town Meeting.
Article 2: Reimburse
CPA Conservation Fund
Amount: $2,573.23 from
Stabilization Fund
This article corrects an error made in a prior year when an invoice from town counsel was mistakenly paid in full from the CPA’s Conservation Fund rather than paying from the fund only the portion of the bill the Conservation Commission had incurred. The article was inserted by the Conservation Commission and is supported by the Finance Committee.
Article 3: Pay bills of prior fiscal years
Amount: $174.27
from Stabilization Fund
This article authorizes the town to pay an outstanding Verizon bill of $174.27 incurred by the Department of Public Works in fiscal 2013. The Board of Selectmen inserted the article. The Finance Committee recommends the sum be paid from the town’s Stabilization Fund.
Article 4: Transfer of funds to stabilization
Amount: $20,000 from free cash
A stabilization fund is a mechanism for setting aside money either for unforeseen needs or for capital projects, according to the state’s Division of Local Services. Such a fund is intended to equalize the effect of capital expenditures over time and to provide a “rainy day” fund.
Last year Harvard’s Stabilization Fund was used to make an initial payment to its new OPEB trust fund in the amount of $150,000. The transfer of $20,000 from fiscal 2013 Certified Free Cash to the Stabilization Fund will bring its total to 5 percent of the Omnibus Budget (prior to excluded debt) as of June 30, the level required by our bylaws. As of December 31, 2013, the fund balance was $1,135,668.
Article 5:
Payment of CPIC debt
Amount: $156,053 from free cash
This article is necessary to fund the cost of servicing the debt of the Capital Planning and Investment Committee (CPIC). The money will come from the town’s 2013 free cash and is recommended by the Finance Committee. By funding some capital projects by debt rather than outright withdrawals from its investment fund, CPIC has been able to stretch its available dollars. The article was added to the warrant at the request of CPIC. The Finance Committee recommends its passage.
Article 6: Transfer of fiscal 20 Certified Free Cash
to Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund
Amount: $612,564
The Finance Committee is asking that free cash, unspent money from the fiscal 2013 budget, be moved in its entirety to the Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund, where it can be used to pay for various capital expenses. To date, free cash has been the source of dollars for the fund. Last year the amount totaled $109,423; this year, the free cash transfer to capital totals $612,564, the amount left after passage of Articles 4 and 5 . The Finance Committee recommends passage of this measure, as it has since the fund was established in 2009.
Article 7: Omnibus Budget
Amount: $21,963,828
Months in the making, the Omnibus Budget is typically approved by the voters in a matter of minutes, often without a single question or comment. In seven pages, the budget document shows departmental spending over a five-year span, so voters can track the changes.
The proposed fiscal 2015 operating budget totals $21,963,828, representing a 3.2 percent increase over this fiscal year. As always, the school request accounts for the biggest chunk of town spending, totaling $12,119,518, a 1.25 percent increase. Benefits and insurance take another big portion, amounting to $3,829,813. That line is up 9.61 percent, mostly because of the town’s OPEB (other post-employment benefits) obligations. Other big spending categories include General Government ($1.2 million), Public Safety ($1.6 million), and Physical Environment ($1.3 million), most of which is for the Department of Public Works ($1.07 million). The budget also includes a contribution of $425,000 to the Town’s OPEB trust fund. Having thoroughly vetted the budgets of every town department and committee, the Finance Committee recommends passage of this article.
Article 8: Reserve Fund Fiscal Year 2015
Amount: $350,000
Not all of the money spent by the town is included in the Omnibus Budget. There are always unforeseen expenses. The Finance Committee wants to set aside $350,000 for the town’s Reserve Fund this year, half for traditional emergencies, such as extra plowing and treatment of roads in an especially snowy winter, and half to cover potential unforeseen special education costs.
This money is under the control of the Finance Committee and saves the town from having to hold numerous special town meetings to authorize the expenditures of small sums. A table in the Town Meeting booklet shows how these funds were used during the 2012 fiscal year, with $172,404 unspent and returned to the General Fund.
Article 9: Fund a new OPEB actuarial valuation
Amount: $10,000 from the fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
State law requires towns to estimate their OPEB liability every two years. Town officials hope that new eligibility rules and a growing trust fund will reduce the size of the estimated $27 million liability determined by the last study, which was completed in 2013. But there’s only one way to find out, and that’s by doing the math. An actuarial valuation studies a number of factors to estimate what the future holds. It also provides the town with an estimated amount it should set aside each year to meet its future obligations. The article was inserted by the selectmen, who are driving the effort to manage OPEB. The Finance Committee recommends its passage. (See “Tackling Harvard’s $27 million health care liability”)
Article 10: Hire an assistant town administrator for human resources
Amount: $44,165 from the fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
At present, human resources work—such as benefits levels, insurance, the ethics questionnaire, and retirement—is done by six different people. This leads to inefficiency and inconsistency. Town officials say there is a real need for one person to be in charge of human resources and to serve as assistant town administrator. Passage of the article will allow the town to hire a 30-hour per week employee to fill the position at a maximum salary of $44,165. In subsequent years this position would become a line item in the selectmen’s personnel budget. (See “Selectmen ask to hire human resources administrator”)
Article 11: Electronically convert file documents
Amount: $20,000 from fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
A visit to the second floor of Town Hall reveals a roomful of unfiled paper town documents that have accumulated there over the past decade. The selectmen have asked for money to begin converting this material to an electronic format that will not only eliminate the need for physical storage space but also provide officials and citizens a more searchable archive. The Finance Committee recommends its passage.
Article 12: Replace 500 feet of water pipe on Pond Road
Amount: $9,500 from fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
The pipes on Pond Road that deliver town water from the wells at the water pumping station still contain a 500-foot section of cast iron pipe. Cast iron pipe is subject to build-up, which restricts water flow. Plastic pipe will be installed in this last section. The request is from DPW and the Water Commission. The Finance Committee recommends the article.
Article 13: Waterproof exterior of Bolton Road water tank
Amount: $8,700 from fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
The cement water tank on Bolton Road, which is part of the town water system, needs exterior waterproofing to prevent decay. The request was made by DPW and the Water Commission. The Finance Committee recommends the article.
Article 14: Prepare and electrostatically paint DPW fuel tank
Amount: $8,750 from fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
DPW is asking for $8,750 to paint its rusting fuel tank to reduce the risk of leaks and extend the life of the tank. The Finance Committee recommends the measure.
Article 15: Seasonal mowing
Amount: $15,000 from
fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
The DPW has been using its boom-flail mower for the past two years to gradually cut back the thickets of brush that have grown up along Harvard’s roads over the years. But since the mower is also used to keep the annual growth of grass and weeds at bay, the larger job could require another two or more years. Director Rich Nota has recommended that an outside contractor be hired for seasonal mowing so the town’s crew can devote its time to the larger task and complete it this year.
The Finance Committee recommends this article.
Article 16: Preservation of historical town documents
Amount $10,000 from fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
These documents provide a permanent record of the town and are necessary to an understanding of Harvard’s history. More than half of the old records have been restored and preserved using CPC funds. Now that Massachusetts law requires towns to maintain their old records, funding must come from a sustainable source, the town budget. The request was inserted by the Town Clerk. The Finance Committee recommends its passage.
Article 17: Town planner
Amount: $60,000 from fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
The Planning Board is asking for $60,000 for fiscal 2015 to retain for another year the contract services of planner Bill Scanlan, who has been working as Town Planner since October 2013. The Planning Board inserted this article, which has the support of the Finance Committee.
Article 18: The Bromfield School –
Sand and paint exposed steel
Amount: $22,000 from fiscal 2015 Omnibus Budget
The cost of this project will be assumed by the schools. (See news story.)
Capital Spending
Articles 19 through 28 are this year’s capital spending articles. Most of the funding is from the Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund, with one item to be financed by a capital exclusion. Several projects will be withdrawn by the School Committee on the floor of Town Meeting, thanks to unanticipated savings in its budget.
According to the Town Meeting booklet, the Dec. 31, 2012, balance in the Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund was $802,754.
Article 19: Amend Chapter 17 (Capital Planning and Investment Committee and Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund) of the Code of Harvard
This article amends the bylaw passed by Town Meeting in 2009 that established the Capital Planning and Investment Committee and established its fund. The purpose is to increase the bar on projects that the committee will consider for funding and to outline in greater detail the process by which decisions will be made. If passed, the committee will consider only projects whose cost exceeds $20,000 “and/or” whose useful life is greater than five years. The previous minimums were three years and $10,000. The committee has stated that smaller projects should be considered “maintenance” and made part of the annual operating budget of each department. The Finance Committee agrees with the changes.
Article 20: Hildreth Elementary School –
Resurface front roadway and parking lot
Amount: $50,000
The cost of this project will be assumed by the schools. (See news story.)
Article 21: Hildreth Elementary School –
Building assessment of K-wing
Amount: $20,000
The cost of this project will be assumed by the schools. (See news story.)
Article 22: The Bromfield School
Repair and replace heat recovery units and bathroom exhaust systems
Amount: $22, 600
The cost of this project will be assumed by the schools. (See news story.)
Article 23: The Bromfield School –
Add entire building to emergency generator
Amount: $60,000
The cost of this project will be assumed by the schools. (See news story.)
Article 24: Harvard Cable Television/Bromfield School – air conditioning
Amount: $19,850 from Capital
Stabilization and Investment Fund
This money is needed to air condition the new Harvard Cable Television studio in the basement of Bromfield School. Inserted by the School Committee, the Harvard Cable Committee, and CPIC. The Finance Committee recommends passage of this article.
Article 25: The Bromfield School
Replace spalling concrete in front entrance and walkways
Amount: $115,000
The cost of this project will be assumed by the schools. (See news story.) The Finance Committee originally recommended paying for these repairs by capital exclusion. The withdrawal of this article leaves Article 26 as the only remaining capital exclusion measure on the warrant.
Article 26: Purchase new DPW front-end loader
Amount: $160,000, financed by a capital exclusion
DPW seeks $160,000 to replace its 15-year-old front-end loader with a new one; the old one would remain as a backup. DPW Director Rich Nota calls the front end loader “the quarterback of our snow removal fleet.” CPIC and DPW jointly inserted this article. The Finance Committee recommends funding it as a one-year capital exclusion, requiring voter approval at both Town Meeting and the ballot box on April 8. If passed, the measure would raise property taxes about $75 on a $500,000 house for one year only.
Article 27: Purchase new DPW light duty one-ton dump truck
Amount: $70,000 from Capital
Stabilization and Investment Fund
DPW and CPIC also joined in requesting $70,000 for a new one-ton dump truck to replace a truck that is 6 or 7 years old. The old truck will go to the school maintenance department for lighter duty over its remaining life. The Finance Committee recommends transferring money from the stabilization fund for this purchase.
Article 28: Beach parking expansion
Amount: $30,000 from Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund
Changes last year to Pond Road and the beach area to control stormwater runoff significantly decreased parking for boat trailers. With this funding, Parks and Rec would create four angled parking spaces along the south side of Pond Road to accommodate boat trailers up to 50 feet long. (See story.)
The Finance Committee supports this article, which was inserted by Parks and Recreation Commission and Capital Planning and Investment Committee.
Article 29: Community Preservation Committee report
The Community Preservation Committee (CPC) oversees the Community Preservation Fund and reviews applications for funding distributions. Each year, a minimum of 10 percent of the incoming monies to the fund must be allocated for each of three purposes: historic preservation, development of affordable housing, and acquisition and restoration of open space and recreational assets. The CPC report is on page 16 of the Warrant.
Article 30: Transfers among Community Preservation funds
The CPC manages the Community Preservation Fund, but town approval is required to transfer funds among accounts within the fund. This article asks to transfer $4,300 to affordable housing reserves and $17,000 to historic preservation reserves from the unspecified use reserves to make the money available for articles 31 and 33.
Article 31: Harvard Municipal Affordable Housing Trust fund
Amount: $150,000 from Community Preservation Fund
The Municipal Affordable Housing Trust (MAHT) is requesting Community Preservation funds for debt service and development of the former Poor Farm and its surrounding 29 acres that MAHT purchased last August for $1,200,000. MAHT plans to develop the property for affordable and market-rate housing “targeted for the Harvard empty-nester market.” The housing units are expected to be completed by a private developer under the state 40B law. According to the project’s plans, MAHT may sell up to three house lots along Pinnacle Road from the property to defray development costs.
Inserted by Municipal Affordable Housing Trust and Community Preservation Committee.
Article 32: Conservation fund
Amount: $100,000 from Community Preservation Fund
The Conservation Commission purchases and manages town conservation land and conservation restrictions. Last year, the Conservation Commission bought the Hoch Land in Still River for conservation and is in the process of evaluating other properties for possible purchase. Prior to adoption of the Community Preservation Act in 2001, funding for the Conservation Fund was a line item in the Omnibus Budget.
Inserted by Conservation Commission and Community Preservation Committee.
Article 33: Replace windows at Hildreth House
Amount: $66,600 from Community Preservation Fund
At last count, 19 windows at Hildreth House were cracked, broken, difficult to operate, or inoperable. The Hildreth House Improvement Committee included window replacement as part of a proposed $3.7 million renovation and addition to the town senior center. The building project has been deferred, but window replacement is urgently needed and can be accomplished this summer with passage of this article.
Article 33 was submitted by the Hildreth House Improvement Committee and the Community Preservation Committee with endorsement by the Harvard Historical Commission.
The Finance Committee makes no recommendation on Community Preservation articles.
Article 34: Resurfacing (restoration of) McCurdy Track
Amount: $120,000 from Community Preservation Fund
The surface of the McCurdy Track on Lancaster County Road needs to be redone every 10 years. The CPC recommends allocating $120,000 from the Community Preservation Fund for the work.
Article 35: Shaker burial ground perimeter tree removal
Amount: $17,000 from Community Preservation Fund
The Historical Commission seeks $17,000 from the Community Preservation Fund to remove trees around the edges of the Shaker Burial Ground. Many markers were damaged when large pine trees fell across the cemetery during a storm in 2012.
Article 36: Community Preservation Committee administrative expenses
Amount: $2,500 from Community Preservation Fund
The CPC’s administrative expenses include necessary legal fees and Community Preservation Coalition membership.
Inserted by Community Preservation Committee.
Article 37: Hildreth House parking repairs
Amount: $12,000
Town Meeting will be asked to take no action on this article. Funding for necessary repairs to the Hildreth House parking lot will come from other sources.
Article 38: Amend dog bylaws
This article would add the state’s definition of “dangerous” or “nuisance” dogs to the town bylaw, as well as setting higher fines for owners whose dogs fall into those categories. The state law already applies to Harvard, but having the standards in a bylaw makes the information more accessible to residents. The article was inserted by the Board of Selectmen, who voted 3-2 to support it.
Article 39: Central Mass Mosquito Control project
Amount: $55,000 annually for three years
Passage of this article would mean that Harvard will join the Central Massachusetts Mosquito Control Project for three years. The article was submitted by the Board of Health in an effort to afford Harvard residents some measure of protection from mosquito-borne illnesses such as EEE and West Nile virus. CMMCP’s policy of spraying on resident request has caused concern in the community as well as among members of the Conservation Commission. While the article has the support of two of the three Board of Health members, it is not recommended by the Finance Committee, the Conservation Commission, or the Board of Selectmen.
Article 40: Amend the Protective Bylaw 125-3–Existing lots, structures and uses
Many homes in Harvard are “non-conforming,” either because they are antique homes that pre-date zoning, or because the bylaws under which they were built have since changed. Consequently, anyone with a nonconforming lot needs a special permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals to build an addition, which can require numerous hearings. This amendment raises the threshold triggering the need for a special permit and otherwise clarifies when a special permit is required, and when a building permit will do.
There are three key changes. First, expansions increasing a building by 20 percent will be allowed by right, up from 15 percent. Second, changes in use would still require a special permit, but the new use must be in the same category as it was previously, rather than leaving that question entirely up to the ZBA. The amendment also creates rules—where none existed before–for reconstructing non-conforming buildings damaged by a catastrophe. The changes were originally requested by the ZBA, but this article, like all the other zoning articles in the warrant, was inserted by the Planning Board.
Articles 41 and 42: Zoning amendment – Wireless Communication Overlay District and zoning map
for wireless communication
The idea for Article 41 originated with Fire Chief Rick Sicard, who noted that dead spots in radio communication were preventing “wall-to-wall” communication between Harvard’s fire and police departments. The article requires cell tower companies to reserve space for municipal communication service on new towers and on existing towers due for modifications. The town would pay for the communication equipment and its installation, which would cost much less than creating separate towers for municipal use.
Article 42 fixes errors on the map that shows where towers are allowed; it does not change the areas, which were defined in 2000.
Article 43: Zoning amendment – Driveways
The purpose of the article is to improve the safety and appearance of residential and commercial driveways, and to minimize disturbance of land, trees, and stone walls. For instance, the amendment will allow some home driveways to be narrower than before, based on new sight line formulas. It will also introduce more precise limits on curb cuts, which in some cases will be limited to two. For commercial drives, regulations for traffic islands, landscaping, and traffic studies will be added.
Article 44: Zoning amendment – Floodplain Districts
Recent changes by FEMA to Worcester County’s floodplain maps mean that Harvard must update its maps, too. According to Town Planner Bill Scanlan, changes to the 100-year and 500-year floodplains in Harvard are minimal and will have no effect on the cost of flood insurance. Large-scale maps are available for review in the Planning Board office.
Articles 45 and 46: Zoning – Add new provision for medical marijuana treatment centers and adult entertainment centers
State zoning law forbids outright bans on marijuana facilities, either by means of “silence” in the bylaw or by decree. The same is true for adult entertainment uses, but on the grounds of free speech. If Harvard does not specify where these facilities are allowed and create other regulations for them, they could be built almost anywhere in the commercial district, depending on the proposed size. The new provisions say that facilities cannot locate closer than 500 feet to homes, churches, schools, childcare facilities, parks, playgrounds, adult entertainment uses, or another center. Neither can they locate within 200 feet of the commercial district boundary, which runs from the Route 2 ramps to Myrick Lane. Given these setbacks, only three lots on Ayer Road would be eligible.
Article 47: Home rule legislation to manage other
post-employment benefit liability of the town of Harvard
Passage of this article by the state Legislature would give Harvard selectmen the power to change eligibility rules and premium contribution rates for health and other post-employment benefits (OPEB) of town employees. Such changes would not be subject to collective bargaining. The new bylaw would not result in the termination of the health coverage of a retiree, surviving spouse, or dependent who is currently participating in the Town of Harvard’s health plan. It embodies many of the recommendations made by a state commission in 2013 and written into House Bill 59, which is currently stalled in the state Legislature. The new law’s purpose is to give the town options for lowering the cost of benefits that it provides future retirees, but first it must make its way through the Massachusetts House and Senate. (See “Tackling Harvard’s $27 million health care liability”) The Finance Committee recommends this article and says, “It will allow the town to better manage its costs for other post-employment benefits (OPEB).” If passed, its provisions would apply only to employees of the Town of Harvard.
Article 48: Home rule legislation to make
community solar shares exempt from local taxation
This article seeks through a home rule petition to the state Legislature to define community-shared solar energy systems distinct from commercial solar energy systems and to exempt community solar participants from local taxation comparable to the tax exemption granted residents and business for energy generated on and used by their own properties. A community solar energy system is defined by the petition as a system owned by a collection of residents or non-utility businesses and placed on property owned by a cooperating local property owner, nonprofit organization or non-utility business. Each resident or business owner is limited to a share in the energy generation that is not more than 125 percent of the annual energy needs of the participant and not more than 25 kilowatts. If approved by the state Legislature, the definition and tax exemption would apply only to Harvard.
Inserted by citizen petition. The Finance Committee does not recommend its passage.
Article 49: Revolving funds
This article re-authorizes revolving funds for COA (maximum $35,000 in fiscal 2015), Fourth of July Committee ($25,000), Harvard Ambulance Service ($150,000), Fire Department’s S.A.F.E. Program ($15,000). No funds are appropriated by this article, but necessary authorization is provided for accounts to collect and disburse funds. The Finance Committee recommends its passage.
Article 50: Extend sunset date of funding to evaluate town fire ponds
Last year the Fire Department asked for $52,000 to evaluate all the fire ponds owned by the town to recommend maintenance and repairs that may be necessary. CPIC agreed to fund the request using its Capital Stabilization and Investment Fund. The funds are set to expire on June 30, 2014, but the Fire Department has asked the date be extended until June 30, 2015. The Finance Committee has recommended the date be extended.
Article 51: Extend sunset date of funding for Master Plan
The Planning Board reports that more time is needed to complete the town’s 10-year Master Plan. This article allows the $100,000 that was allocated in 2012 to be used to complete the plan by June 2015, rather than by June 2014. No additional money is requested. The Finance Committee supports the extension.
Article 52: Acceptance of gifts of property
This vote is required to accept land donated to the town. It is inserted annually by the Board of Selectmen and has the support of the Finance Committee. At the time the paper went to press, Town Administrator Tim Bragan reported that no such gifts were anticipated.
Article 53: Acceptance of highway funds
Inserted by the Board of Selectmen, this vote is required by state law to accept so-called Chapter 90 funds the state Department of Transportation provides each year for the repair and improvement of the town’s 64 miles of roads. It has the support of the Finance Committee, which says it is “pleased these funds continue to be distributed.” The amount that Harvard will receive in fiscal 2015 has yet to be determined. For fiscal 2014, according to DOT, the town received $309,298.
