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Folks online, and the folks in the room can hear me.

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My name is Nellie.

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This is not unique in this, but it is our problem to deal with, and local aid is just absolutely declining. So these are two charts that just show what the state aid has been. So it's my left. Hopefully that's your left. Your left is a chart that was published by the MMA. That's the Massachusetts Municipal Association, and charting the overall local aid apportionment to the entirety. All 351 communities.

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And you can see it's very small, so I will tell you that that first year is 2007.

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And then it's 2008, and you can see that this steadily goes down, 2007-2008 was the

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great recession, the local aid numbers have never been restored, and then when you adjust

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for inflation, this is actually worse, but they've never been restored to where they were

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before the recession and municipalities who are constrained under two and a half percent

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increases in taxes are now getting less of the local aid that we need more drastically

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and more dramatically.

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We went over Mansfield's specific state aid and so yes it goes up, however it's only going

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up $3 million over 10 years, that's an average of $300,000 a year and that's not going to

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do the trick either. That is not enough to keep pace with the growing needs and demands.

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So that is our sort of statewide output outlook. This is those same charts so that you don't

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have to flip back between a bunch of pages, but to also see our new growth figures. And

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we had a historic high in 2024. And now it is dropping, unfortunately. And this is why

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economic development is a critical part of our three-legged stool here. Hopefully we have

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four legs on our stool but this is a critical part of our strategy to really help build that up.

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The best thing for the town to have is at least 30% of commercial property and value that's

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30% of the value we do not have that unfortunately we're at 18% so that is a bleak outlook and that is

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where we need to focus our efforts and that's where we will be focusing our efforts.

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right there. And some of this work has already happened and been started and this is that's

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good news and we'll talk a little bit more about it. The MMA wrote two sort of it's a two

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part series on our financial situation as a Commonwealth. These are linked here on the bottom

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corner. I don't know if you can see that. This bottom left hand corner here.

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The Mass

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It's linked to the main page, and you can fiddle around on there, but there's two articles,

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and it's a pretty easy to use website you'll be able to follow along.

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But one is called a perfect storm, and that's sort of set the stage of what we're dealing

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with, and then navigating the storm.

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It's developed a series of recommendations to the state to consider.

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There's contemplation of override, and maybe changing the two-and-a-half construct and what

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that would look like.

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But that is what the state legislature is contemplating, or maybe, if they put it on the

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docket, to contemplate and discuss.

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Notably, health insurance is not there, and my personal comments to our leadership

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is always, please, please, please help us with health insurance, the costor rising, way

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to quickly, and we cannot keep absorbing this.

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This is the new gross side I was mentioning, I want you to take a look.

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this is the FY 2025 growth that came in $8,500 short of our estimate.

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Estimates in this way are supposed to be conservative, right?

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So we're supposed to meet or exceed this.

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That didn't happen, and just put us further in the hole.

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We have adjusted that for our FY27 budget.

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So our new growth is now actually decreasing.

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The town is able to increase our level of limit by 2.5% each year.

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We're allowed to do that by right, of course you're voting on that appropriation,

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but that's how we can kind of move forward and depend.

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And for Mansfield, this is about $2 million

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in allowable increase.

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Exceeding the two and a half percent threshold

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will require an override vote.

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So what this means is we get $2 million this year

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of extra money.

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Nobody can see me online, I did air quotes.

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It's not really extra, but we get this extra space.

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And I want you to keep that in mind.

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And that's a 3.2% increase over FY26, but it's a small, you know, it's the larger portions of the percentages up.

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But we have obligated cost year over year that greatly exceed that $2 million.

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And when you're compounding this with a loss of new growth and the lack of state aid,

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you are now just buried under all of this stuff.

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That is why we are here, it's been happening for years.

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That's why Mansfield is where it is.

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You are not alone.

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Other communities are here.

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And it's our job to work together

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and solve it for the long haul.

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I just want to make the statement.

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Growth at this base is extremely limited.

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And more so given, our fixed cost centers

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are required, therefore, to balance the budget.

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And that's where we find ourselves.

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This is a chart to show what fixed or obligated spending

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is in our specific budget.

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It's small and I apologize.

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I will raise this up, but I will go through it.

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So over 80% of the town's budget is actually a fixed cost or obligation.

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This is mostly benefits and salaries, obviously.

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I don't think that's a surprise to anybody.

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However, it's important to see just how much of the budget that transcends to.

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So this chart contemplates FY 2027 budget.

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This is our figures now.

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Remember, we've experienced significant cuts over FY 26 and FY 27.

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and we're coming off of cuts that really started FY 24 and some rightsizing and some

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matrician that went on.

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So I start on the second line, that's assessments.

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Those are the state charges that were required, you know, the regional school's estimates.

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We can't get out of those.

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We owe it.

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Debt service.

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That's something that has been previously approved at town meeting and this is your debt and this

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is what you've decided to move ahead with.

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Insurance costs.

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and that's property insurance, employee benefits, that would be the health insurance and the other benefits we offer school salaries and town salaries.

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And so this is what we have to grapple with every year, these don't change too much.

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That top bar is other expenses.

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That's only 18.99, so let's round up 19% of our budget is where we have the wiggle room, that's it.

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So, that's why the union conversations are important, that's why it's right sizing is important and that's why it's, you know, really important that we look at how our delivery of service is impacting the budget and if there's a cheaper or more efficient way of doing it, we should be doing that.

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This is just a little snapshot of a spreadsheet that I call the budget summary here in Mansfield, that's not called that.

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but I will forever call it the budget summary. This is what I'm talking about. It's a quick snapshot of what we need to pay for, what we used for FY26, what is budgeted for FY27 and the percent change.

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This is your snapshot of your budget, and it's important for you to look at this variation column right here.

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I'd like you to see that we are actively decreasing or barely increasing where we can in those salary lines

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and the things that are obligated and mandated to us.

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So the big one is the debt service and Nick Monticello, our town accountant, is here to talk about that if anybody has questions there.

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But we, and then the other one, the town, south-eastern regional assessment, 3.97%.

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And insurance, that's property insurance, 3.92% and employee benefits, 5.83% overall.

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That those high increases are the costs we can't really do much about, that just is what it is those are our bills.

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Everything else is decreasing or barely increasing, and then I like to bring your attention to this 1.88%.

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Our budget does not grow by the allowable 2.5%.

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And it didn't grow in FY26 by the allowable 2.5%. That's how constrained we are.

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So we are the wallet and the vice grip, that's what this picture is.

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It is tough, it is tight, we have flattened it as much as we can, and this is how we're

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going to live for FY27 as we slowly rebuild and figure it out for FY28.

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This is also a super small slide, you can view this online, but this is our list of reductions

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For the town side at least, for FY27, you can see how we attempted to balance the budget.

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Important notes, that bottom part, that non-colorful section, is affects union negotiations.

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It requires a meeting with the unions.

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It requires that conversation, so that's all up in the air, but this was how we did balance the FY27 budget.

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Should agreements not take place, unfortunately the town's only option is layoffs.

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I am working diligently as are the unions to avoid that with good conversation, collaborative

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effort, and hey, what's your great idea like let's talk about it?

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Nothing is a bad idea and we have basically brainstorming sessions.

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Some of my unions are further along than others, that'll just be, but as we move forward we will

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have a little bit more certainty.

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Unfortunately, we will not have that certainty for May 5th, so we have to go this way as we re-evaluate.

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The Falltown meeting will be utilized as a corrective meeting once we know what is

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going on with our employment agreements.

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As I said, we are requesting another waiver for the library and we are not filling certain

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positions at this time.

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Everything will be re-evaluated as we figure out some of the finances.

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But right now the finance director position will remain vacant.

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There's a public buildings worker that will be vacant and a highway school laborer position that will remain vacant right now.

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So this is our to-do list.

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This is what we have in store for ourselves how we address strategically to fix the problem, to not just symptoms to actually solve our issue.

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So despite these challenges, the select board voted not to continue with an override.

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We will coordinate our messaging, we will restructure the town, we will maximize efficiencies, we will address lingering and efficient spending if it exists, we will finalize all of our collective bargaining agreements, and we must build our foundation for long term financial health.

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That is our goal, we will work together, this is not a town V school thing, this is a collaboration, and a collaboration with the unions, we are not fighting, we all just want to get to somebody said this to me and it's the best statement anyone's ever been.

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said to me. We all want to get to the same place. We just don't agree on how to get there.

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And it is very true, but we will listen and we will hear and we will learn and we will develop.

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And that's our FY27 to do list. Salaries and benefits must be addressed. The town must reduce

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dependence upon stabilization funds and one-time revenues for balancing the budget.

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Planings required to do this. We've been used to transferring this out. We can't do that anymore.

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Not only are they all gone, but it's not a good practice.

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There's a document online and I'll reference it again.

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It identifies various strategies, I've shared that with the school, I've shared that with

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the select board, I've shared that with the finance committee.

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Various strategies on how to build this foundation and to create healthy budget practices where

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we will dig out of this permanently.

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The town must further its economic development strategies, we'll talk about it in a minute,

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but those are ongoing and will only grow.

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We must identify and grow additional revenue sources outside our standard property tax base.

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We have got to capture money and get it somewhere else.

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And it's our job to find those places and actively go seek them.

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The town must build excess levy capacity for future years.

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No more super tight windows.

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If you don't know what excess levy capacity is, it's the amount left over between your levy limit,

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which is your total allowable spending.

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and the amount that you are spending through your budget process.

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There's like a little cushion there.

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You need to have a little bit more of a cushion to build the space

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so that when the quote bad thing happens because eventually the bad thing will happen,

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you have the ability to address it and not see the sky falling.

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So that's our goal too.

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Building excess levy capacity, grow steadily, grow smartly,

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and have a stable financial future.

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As of this moment, the town will have to seek an override for FY 2028, and I'd like to be

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clear about that, that everyone, so you're on the same page, I just went through the constraints

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and how it's difficult, we're reaching critical mass, and that will be what we are contending

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with.

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However, I don't say this lightly at all, override and mylingo is a bad word, don't like to

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use it, it is a last effort to make a permanent correction. And if we don't need it, I will

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be clear about that and I will explain why we don't need it. And we will have lots

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of conversations. I like to write things down. You'll say I write a lot, and I'm a little

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long-winded, but I like to put everything in writing. And so you will easily be able to follow

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along with me and what I've got going on and what my thoughts are and how I'm maneuvering,

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there won't be any surprises.

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And if you have a question, I invite you to call me up, visit, email, drop by a meeting,

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I'm here all the time, get me, get me somewhere, and we can talk about it and have a conversation.

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But for right now, it's looking like an override might be necessary for FY28 in order to correct

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our issues.

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I do believe that the select ward was pretty clear about this, but just to reiterate, the

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goal was to permanently correct it to find a long-term solution that addresses all of

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our needs and that we are given the time to really analyze what those needs are, put

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some costs next to them, and understand how we're going to grow.

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And then if we partner that with our financial strategies, we should be charting a really

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a clear course.

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So just to give you a peek into my brain and how we are going to take care of some of our issues, we need to grow revenue sources. So this involves improving and enhancing our initiatives, the town planager, the town planager. We are one of those couples that has two names. The town planter and town manager will continue our current programs. We have a lot of great programs out there. Cool things going on with the downtown.

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the Industrial Development Commission,

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I happily appointed somebody to it,

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maybe a week or so ago, they now have a quorum.

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This is a great thing,

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so they can actually do the work that they need to do.

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And we can really engage with them

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and tap into them with their ideas and energy

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and really just build up some of that momentum.

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Sarah and I are exploring a pace initiative.

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We're tapping into mass development.

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Lynn Tacarsic is going to assist us

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in how we can sort of market ourselves.

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Man's field is perfectly situated in the highway.

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You have all sorts of transportation options.

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You can, you know, if a global company needs to stay here for a little bit,

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there's housing options for them, and then there's services for their families to come enjoy,

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and then there's shopping, and we're right next to Gillette, and we have Xfinity,

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and we have hotels.

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This is a very good region for people to be in, for whatever reason they want to be here.

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We need to tap into that, sell it, market it, and capture new, I shouldn't use that word.

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Encourage and recruit new businesses to locate.

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And so that's obviously top of mind and something that we are very much interested in.

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We have already started asking for money and asking for the state to do a little bit more for us.

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In one of these requests, we've requested $150,000 through the state budgetary earmark process.

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Unfortunately, the number came down today.

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It's not as high as it needs to be,

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so now we flip over to the Senate and say,

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please, please, please, please give us the rest.

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That email went out this afternoon.

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But the economics development study will be critical.

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This is what we will use to build everything else off on.

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It will give a demographic of the town.

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It will give opportunities of the town.

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It will vision what different properties could look like

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with certain smart growth ideas.

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It is something that can be sent to businesses,

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is prospective businesses or even property owners.

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Hey, have you thought of doing this?

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This is something that we've studied

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that would be successful here.

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It's a way to start a conversation

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and look at development that not only works

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for the business owner, but really works for Mansfield

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and is what we need.

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We've heard in the past parking traffic,

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I want to feel safe walking.

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We bring all of those to the table

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with the appropriate businesses and use our heads

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when we plan it out.

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Again, we will engage with state partners,

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Developing our partnerships with NAS development, we're going to lean into the manufacturing sector.

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It's a really good thing for us and our community.

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And we have some events, sort of no firm dates, but we're talking about them there on our radar.

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We'll work with local businesses on retention and recruiting new businesses.

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Again, utilizing the study for visioning and identifying those best business types and

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workforce measures that work for us and support the businesses that want to work here or

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and want to locate here.

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My focus is on global and national businesses,

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because there's a lot of reasons to love Mansfield,

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but if you're a global or national business,

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you get a lot of bang for your buck

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with our electricity costs.

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So much so that your return on investment

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for putting in a solar panel or something actually isn't there.

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That's how great the rates are.

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So it's a nice feature to be able to brag about.

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And then tourism, that's another leg on the stool.

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We have a lot to offer here, as I mentioned, the bike path, recreation spaces, outdoor festivals,

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using carry chase place, which we've talked about internally of what we can do there a little

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bit to kind of boost the downtown commercial activity.

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We need to celebrate this, we need to share it, we need meat and Mansfield and eat on Mondays

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or whatever will come up with the catchier phrase on that.

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but encouraging people to explore Mansfield and spend their money here, maybe it's

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bring a buddy to Mansfield and have dinner with them. But we really need to

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tap into these other options and other places. We're also going to re-examine our

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financial structures. So the town is lucky enough to have a split tax shift. We really

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need to look at that. This is a complicated bit that people might not be so

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familiar with, but every November select board is going to set a split rate.

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It's not your tax rate, it's a split shift, it's a ratio between what the property tax

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for residents and the property tax for commercial is going to be.

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Right now you're at 1.38 so that the 0.38 of the burden is heavily leaned towards the businesses.

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We can't go over 1.5 and to maintain our economic development strategy and our balance we probably shouldn't be going over 1.42, but there is some maneuvering that could be explored there as we kind of embark on what an override number would look like messing with the shift a little bit can maybe meet the resident in the half and make the the blow of the override a little bit less.

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So we have our own tools to address and try to make this workable for everybody.

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I think we can demonstrate the need.

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Now we have to demonstrate how it works and how it impacts your wallet specifically.

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So that's a tool we can use.

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Our opportunities for new growth are limited.

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The town is largely built out.

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I don't want to say it's 80%, but it's pretty high.

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And we only have few developable, I think I made that word, properties remaining.

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And now we have to be smart about what we have and getting in personal property and such.

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This is why manufacturing is a critical center for us because they can come in and fill up large space, but they have beautiful property, personal property inside that helps generate revenue.

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Storage of vehicles in some way is another way because you get that excise tax and we might have the space for it.

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So those are the strategies that's how we'll be looking to sort of enhance our current

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situation.

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And then of course reviewing debt.

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This came up sort of at the end of the season for the budget this year but excluding

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previously authorized debt became an option.

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How do we kind of capitalize on that and make sure that that's actually working for us.

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So analyzing our debt, analyzing our debt schedule, identifying exactly when something's going

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to come off and planning on making this up, but there's a roof assessment on this warrant.

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Planning out when the roof construction will take place and matching that up with when

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other debt is coming off. Really thinking about when and planning and making it sort of

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all systems go was status quo as much as we can. And then examine the TIFF and pilot agreements

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and plan and prepare for that term end. A TIFF is a tax increment financing.

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It's basically like a smaller payment than your regular tax obligation given in exchange for businesses locating here

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It's a bit of an incentive and we need to make sure when we we are prepared when those are coming on or off

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Which we have three coming off in 2027. So there's your good news for the night

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But planning and really engaging how we are how we are burdening our budget

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for not

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For my portion of this, you can learn more about the items that I was talking about.

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Most of this is linked directly to our website, so there's the financial strategies document.

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You might want to read that.

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I apologize as long as about seven pages, but it does identify how I plan to coordinate

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and collaborate with the other groups in town and get this job done.

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Then the snow and ice deficit document has a nice sort of overarching look at how we are

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We're going to curb spending now to prepare and get rid of the deficit.

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Just to note, the document was written in early April.

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Additional bills came in, so the actual deficit is $689,000.

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But the memo references a smaller number.

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It went up.

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And then, of course, those two publications from the MMA, that is my portion.

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And I will turn it over to Michelle.

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Thank you.

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Good evening, everyone.

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My name is Michelle McEwen, I'm the new superintendent of Mansfield Public Schools.

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Many of you know this is my first year in Mansfield and I want to begin by thanking

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all of you.

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This community has been so welcoming and you've extended such a warm welcome to me specifically.

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It's been clear from the start that this community deeply cares about its schools, its students

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and one another and when you come to this town, even meetings like this, the people that are

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in the room are all here because they're invested in our community, so I really appreciate

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you being here for those of you online. Thank you so much for participating, and we hope

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to see you all at town meeting next week. So as Mallory mentioned, this has been a very

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difficult budget season, and I think as brand new people here in the town, it wasn't the easiest

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start for either of us. These challenges facing our town required us to make some incredibly

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difficult decisions this year. The decisions impact our staff, they're impacting our students

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and frankly they're going to impact the opportunities that we can provide for the children

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at school. They're not choices that we make lightly. We fully understand the weight of their

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impact. We're committed to continuing to provide a high quality education for all of our students as

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we prepare for the future and as mentioned last week's school committee actually it was this week

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on Tuesdays and a lot of students and families where they are speaking up about concerns of losing

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valuable programs and things that have really made an impact for kids and we're listening,

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we're continuing to look at resources, we are continuing to go after competitive grants,

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looking at every line in the budget being very, very creative as Mallory mentioned about reducing

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our costs as well as making the cuts that we're going to talk about tonight. So this year our budget

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It was guided by three, no it's me, I'm trying to help, I'm trying to help, but I'm messing it up.

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Sorry, three core principles.

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And the first we prioritize student-focused decision-making.

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Of course, students need to be at the center of every decision that we make.

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We want to ensure that students well-being and their success is at the forefront of the things that we prioritize.

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Second, we work to maintain our core priorities.

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This is preserving programs and services that are essential for student success.

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For instance, we looked at elementary class sizes and there is a lot of research that

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suggests that lower elementary schools should not exceed 22 to 23 students per class.

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Upper elementary schools, 25 is kind of a hard cap and honestly, we don't want to be there,

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but we really prioritize looking at other resources before increasing those class sizes any higher

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than that.

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We also are really committed to looking on our facilities and our equipment.

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We know that while we need to maintain teachers and staff and programs,

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we also need to maintain our buildings so we have a safe place to come to school every day.

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And finally, we committed to fiscal awareness and open communication.

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I appreciate the partnership with the town.

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Mallory has been great to work with so far and we recognize that the way forward is to work together on this.

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And being one town, one budget, it's so important for all of us to think holistically as we move forward.

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So we're really committed to doing our part to balance the budget and work together.

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So while this moment is challenging, I remain confident in the strength of our town by continuing to work together.

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We'll stay focused on the needs of our community and we'll move forward in a way that reflects our values and what's important to the community.

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So now I'll turn it over to Matt Violet, our Director of Finance and Operations, who will review some of the highlights of the school budget for you.

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Thank you so much.

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My name is Matt Violet, I'm the Director of Finance and Operations, and I'm just going to kind of walk us through high level the school budget that will be showing up in Article 2 at town meeting this year.

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It's working, that's just, yeah.

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There we go. All right. Thank you. So the budget had a glance. So the total FY 2027 proposed budget is $60.8 million.

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It's $341,000 increase over the current fiscal year's budget that we're in, FY 26, or just over a half a percent increase over FY 26's budget.

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I'm going to talk in a little bit more details on this, but that half a percent is actually a little misleading because there are items that we had to bring back into the budget that in prior years were funded

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through other sources, which I will talk about in a little bit, but ultimately the budget

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is going up just over half a percent.

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So this next slide, and I know it's small, but

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it breaks the budget down by our cost centers. We have really two main sections of our budget.

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It's the goods and services budget, and then the salary and wage budget. The salary and wage budget

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The salary and wage budget is about 80% of the total school budget.

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The salary and wage budget is going up, you can see those little circles in the bottom corners there which is focusing on the total percent increases.

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The salary and wage budget is going up 0.3% and the goods and services budget is going up 1.6%.

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The only reason the goods and services budget is going up is like I mentioned earlier, there's a few items that we have to bring back into the budget.

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and there's also some contractual obligations.

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For example, on the central services line,

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if you work your way across the top there,

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that's going up 177,000.

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That is solely the Connolly Bus Contract.

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In fact, Connolly Bus Contract exceeds that 177,000.

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There were actually reductions in the central service,

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but we have to pay for the increase in the Connolly Bus Contract.

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Then technology, you'll notice it's going up $235,000.

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It looks like a big percentage increase.

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All of that is technology equipment, mostly things like Chromebooks.

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We have a schedule where we replace our Chromebooks every few years.

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All our students use Chromebooks.

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And in previous years, the past several previous years,

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those purchases have been funded through the capital improvement program.

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because of the financial predicament we find ourselves.

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Housing, capital, money wasn't available for those Chromebooks, for FY27. So we had to pull that back into the budget. We still need to provide our kids with Chromebooks.

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If you scroll a little bit further down, you'll see athletics, which is also going up $210,000.

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The athletics department has a revolving fund. That revolving fund is made up of fees for kids who participate in our sports.

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And in FYI, 2026, we were charging or offsetting the general fund with $400,000 from the Athletics Revolving Fund.

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The Athletics Revolving Fund only pulls in about $150,000 to $175,000 a year.

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So there was a balance in the Athletics Fund that could absorb charging $400,000 this year.

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But it's not a sustainable practice to continue charging $400,000 to a revolving fund that's only pulling in

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$1,750 to $175,000 a year will wipe out the fund.

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So we had to bring some of the athletic expenses back into the general fund budget this year to continue supporting our athletics programs.

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Next slide actually talks about these things, I've really just touched on them now.

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Again, these increases, they don't represent any new programming, they reflect contractual obligations.

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And the loss or phase out of prior funding sources, I think that's the real key note there.

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So

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as the town manager talked about in her presentation earlier, balancing the FY27 budget was difficult this year.

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So to achieve a balanced budget, they were $2.4 million in reductions that were required of the school department.

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Just over $2.1 million of those reductions came from within the school department budget.

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There was an additional $300,000 in savings realized on the town side of the budget where school employee benefit costs are budgeted for.

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This total reduction of $2.4 million, it resulted in the reduction of 22 full-time equivalent positions.

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We actually gave out close to 50 letters in total because there's also a number of our staff members who are going to have to move positions.

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But the 22 are being reduced.

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And then as additional reductions made to our goods and services budget as well.

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Before I'm going to get into a little bit of detail about what those reductions looked like, but I first just wanted to touch on some of our prior fiscal year reductions.

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So over the past three years, there's been a total net reduction of 21 FTEs.

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Sometimes there's positions that are reduced, and then we have to potentially sometimes hire physicians back.

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It might be a paraprofessional to help with some of our students.

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But over the past three years, there's been a reduction of 21 FTEs.

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We've also eliminated a number of programs that occurred this year, FY26.

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I won't read through all of them, but some of them, the bridge program, evening school,

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elementary summer school, and the little Hornets daycare.

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So now just getting into some of the FY27, more specific reductions, the staffing reductions were spread across every cost center across the school.

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So, administration, there was 2.75, FDs reduced, rolling green, one-and-a-half, Robinson, four FDs,

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Joe and Jackson, five FDs, QMS, five, and MHS, 3.75.

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These are teaching positions, these are, again, administration positions, these are nurses,

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these are custodians, they're across all cross-centers, special teachers, specialist teachers.

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On the goods and services side of the budget, there was just over $238,000 of

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reductions made. One of the big ones we're doing here is we're going to be consolidating

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some of our bus routes. So we're going to be eliminating some of the big buses, which

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is going to mean that kids are going to be on buses longer. We might have less bus stops.

426
00:49:13,830 --> 00:49:19,110
Kids might have to kind of consolidate in terms of where they're taking their bus stops this coming

427
00:49:19,110 --> 00:49:25,730
school year. We eliminated a number of stipend positions, curriculum, student supports,

428
00:49:25,730 --> 00:49:27,730
efforts, and also athletic stipend positions.

429
00:49:28,790 --> 00:49:32,250
We've reduced our facilities budget, which is becoming more and more difficult.

430
00:49:32,430 --> 00:49:35,910
We do have some aging schools in QMS in particular.

431
00:49:36,610 --> 00:49:40,210
We've run into issues all the time, just with power, right?

432
00:49:40,350 --> 00:49:46,190
So a lot of the things that we use nowadays, the QMS building wasn't built for

433
00:49:46,190 --> 00:49:50,910
the amount of tech and that type of thing that we are using nowadays in our schools.

434
00:49:50,910 --> 00:49:59,010
So we are reducing the facilities budget, also technology across the district, mostly through digital subscriptions.

435
00:49:59,810 --> 00:50:06,550
And also just at each school level, we've reduced our supply lines by close to 15% now.

436
00:50:06,870 --> 00:50:13,170
So that's things like that our kids use every day from construction paper and pencils papers.

437
00:50:13,930 --> 00:50:19,370
Any supply that you can think of that would be in our schools, we've reduced those lines by 15%.

438
00:50:22,820 --> 00:50:27,440
So just to touch on some of the impact of what these reductions are going to look like,

439
00:50:28,320 --> 00:50:32,200
we will be seeing an increase in our class sizes at the elementary level.

440
00:50:32,500 --> 00:50:39,180
As a superintendent was mentioning before, we really tried hard to keep those class sizes below 25.

441
00:50:39,480 --> 00:50:42,680
We will be probably hitting 25 in some of our classes this year.

442
00:50:43,040 --> 00:50:45,220
There's been reductions in student support services.

443
00:50:45,700 --> 00:50:48,780
We're going to have reduced offerings and fine arts in performing arts.

444
00:50:48,780 --> 00:51:14,760
We're going to have reduced supports in our athletic programs, as I mentioned earlier the adjustments to bus routes, increased time on buses, reduced access to digital programming, school supplies like we just talked about nursing services, custodial services, and one more that I'll mention that isn't on the list is our school libraries, which won't be available to students every day.

445
00:51:21,430 --> 00:51:28,270
So the FY27 outlook, and just kind of looking ahead, I think the town manager covered this very nicely.

446
00:51:29,210 --> 00:51:32,230
The FY27 budget reflects the town's current fiscal constraints.

447
00:51:32,650 --> 00:51:35,950
Our focus remains on maintaining our core services for our students.

448
00:51:36,570 --> 00:51:40,010
And again, to the town manager's point, we're looking towards the future.

449
00:51:40,290 --> 00:51:50,030
We work as a one town one budget, and our budget philosophy, as we continue working to meet the needs of our students and community in the years ahead, is to again work together.

450
00:51:51,270 --> 00:51:54,630
Thank you very much. That is the school budget overview.

451
00:51:56,310 --> 00:52:02,290
Thank you both appreciate it. I am going to continue on in the articles unless anybody

452
00:52:02,290 --> 00:52:06,770
tells me they're burning with desire to have a question on the budget if we could get

453
00:52:06,770 --> 00:52:11,790
through the other articles and then have our robust conversation. We still on track with

454
00:52:11,790 --> 00:52:16,670
that? No. I love it. I love that you just said no.

455
00:52:21,490 --> 00:52:27,370
So we're going to take, just so Nancy and the other team knows that we're going to take

456
00:52:27,370 --> 00:52:31,890
budget-related questions, so this would be Article 1 and 2, I'm just going to be mindful

457
00:52:31,890 --> 00:52:37,390
of the time, which it looks like it's, oh, 6.53, okay, so we did that in about 45 minutes.

458
00:52:37,730 --> 00:52:43,930
So I'll keep an eye on that, but I just would request that you come to that microphone so

459
00:52:43,930 --> 00:52:45,790
the folks at home can hear your question as well.

460
00:53:01,810 --> 00:53:07,330
So if you could come to the mic so that the folks at home and just so if you have all

461
00:53:07,330 --> 00:53:14,370
your documents like we do folks at home, she is pointing to motion one regarding the

462
00:53:14,370 --> 00:53:17,790
appropriation of the opioid mitigation stabilization funds.

463
00:53:18,270 --> 00:53:18,390
Okay.

464
00:53:18,610 --> 00:53:18,970
Take it away.

465
00:53:19,850 --> 00:53:22,770
To say the truth, I didn't know who was talking.

466
00:53:23,450 --> 00:53:24,850
So could you repeat that?

467
00:53:25,570 --> 00:53:30,250
Sure. I was just giving a directive to people from home that your question because you

468
00:53:30,250 --> 00:53:36,990
had mentioned this, they can't see you. So I'm just directing them to motion one, which

469
00:53:36,990 --> 00:53:41,370
is about appropriating $170,000, is that right?

470
00:53:43,530 --> 00:53:44,850
Go ahead, ask your question. I don't think

471
00:53:44,850 --> 00:53:50,790
what page you want. I am on page three. Okay, go ahead.

472
00:53:51,950 --> 00:53:59,530
well first of all my name is Sandra Levine hello 20 Walnut Street this is the

473
00:53:59,530 --> 00:54:05,950
first time we have met welcome to town thank you and how would you like to

474
00:54:05,950 --> 00:54:15,750
be addressed I'm very simple respectfully that's it just no tomatoes I'm good no

475
00:54:15,750 --> 00:54:20,610
So, but how would you like us, would you like to be town manager, Aaron's thing?

476
00:54:21,250 --> 00:54:24,090
Mrs. Aaron's thing is fine, that's a mouthful.

477
00:54:25,230 --> 00:54:25,690
That's fine.

478
00:54:26,190 --> 00:54:26,490
Okay.

479
00:54:26,850 --> 00:54:27,190
Thank you.

480
00:54:27,470 --> 00:54:28,770
Or the town manager, whatever.

481
00:54:29,350 --> 00:54:30,130
I'm not picky.

482
00:54:30,770 --> 00:54:31,070
Okay.

483
00:54:31,250 --> 00:54:31,550
Thank you.

484
00:54:36,470 --> 00:54:39,750
Underneath, underneath all of the writing, there's a paragraph.

485
00:54:41,230 --> 00:54:44,590
And that paragraph said on page three.

486
00:54:44,590 --> 00:54:51,230
And that paragraph says the total amount to be appropriated is $59 million plus.

487
00:54:53,110 --> 00:55:02,010
And it says that the individual, their estimates of the individual items, but the amount

488
00:55:02,010 --> 00:55:11,530
to be appropriated is not these line items, but rather one total line items.

489
00:55:11,530 --> 00:55:19,630
so that as a result of this total one number appropriation is what you're

490
00:55:19,630 --> 00:55:29,400
going to present and the town manager is authorized to spend such funds in

491
00:55:29,830 --> 00:55:39,240
such manner as may be needed to accomplish the list of items. Now you weren't

492
00:55:39,240 --> 00:55:43,480
last year. It was a different town manager.

493
00:55:45,780 --> 00:55:49,200
Truly, that town manager did not have enough

494
00:55:49,200 --> 00:56:04,160
supervision. But if you're going to tell us that the things we vote for may not be purchased

495
00:56:04,160 --> 00:56:14,540
or funded or whatever term you wish to use, then why do we have a town manager?

496
00:56:15,860 --> 00:56:22,600
Why do we have a town meeting and the people speak?

497
00:56:23,420 --> 00:56:29,840
If you're not going to listen to what they say and do what they ask

498
00:56:29,840 --> 00:56:37,600
After it's been appropriately explained, why bother to have spend the time that way at all?

499
00:56:40,390 --> 00:56:49,570
I have to tell you, I don't like the fact that you are going to or could.

500
00:56:50,090 --> 00:56:59,710
You have the possibility to override the people's voice in the spending of their own budget.

501
00:57:00,490 --> 00:57:05,150
So, thank you. Can I respond? Are you? Certainly, ma'am.

502
00:57:05,230 --> 00:57:07,270
Thank you. So, thank you for that comment.

503
00:57:09,350 --> 00:57:13,210
The way that article 1 is set up is very similar

504
00:57:13,210 --> 00:57:18,430
to how article 2 is set up. The superintendent has the same ability to move the money between

505
00:57:18,430 --> 00:57:25,410
the lines. It is not usurping the town meeting authority at all. The budget is created on

506
00:57:25,410 --> 00:57:30,670
estimate because just so right now is a perfect example we had authorization to spend

507
00:57:30,670 --> 00:57:36,170
X amount of dollars in the fuel or give me another one X amount of dollars to buy mulch for

508
00:57:36,170 --> 00:57:40,930
the springtime you know to make our town look nice and we put a freeze on it because we have

509
00:57:40,930 --> 00:57:47,670
other issues so if you're going to go that oh we offered you know ten thousand dollars for mulch

510
00:57:47,670 --> 00:57:51,570
and you're not spending that I think we have a good reason to not spend that because we have a

511
00:57:51,570 --> 00:57:52,170
fuel shortage.

512
00:57:52,570 --> 00:57:58,670
I think what the crux of your concern is is to make sure that you know what transfers

513
00:57:58,670 --> 00:58:01,930
are happening and that this is being done under some sunshine.

514
00:58:02,850 --> 00:58:04,370
And so we did talk about that.

515
00:58:04,430 --> 00:58:09,310
I'm aware what we have opted to do, and I've only been here for five weeks, so I only have

516
00:58:09,310 --> 00:58:10,190
one monthly report.

517
00:58:10,370 --> 00:58:13,610
The next one's coming in May 6th, but the first month of the report is from March.

518
00:58:13,810 --> 00:58:17,730
It covers two weeks, but there's a section in there for budget transfers.

519
00:58:17,730 --> 00:58:25,610
And it references the budget transfers, and that particular one has the budget transfers of the previous nine months, they're not mine, they're just what it was.

520
00:58:26,850 --> 00:58:36,890
Excuse me, stuck to the back of it. It's online under the town manager's page, and then the town accountant has also just put that report on there, where it's with all the other financial information.

521
00:58:36,890 --> 00:58:41,170
We have one more budget transfer, so I'm going to tell you, hot up the presses.

522
00:58:41,470 --> 00:58:42,610
It was for aerial mapping.

523
00:58:43,330 --> 00:58:48,750
We did that in FY26 to beat the leaf bloom so that you could, if you go on Google Maps

524
00:58:48,750 --> 00:58:54,530
right now, everything is our engine red and beautiful, full of leaves changing.

525
00:58:54,670 --> 00:58:55,390
You can't see much.

526
00:58:55,750 --> 00:58:59,510
So we wanted aerial mapping without the tree cover, so you can actually see what's going

527
00:58:59,510 --> 00:59:00,190
on in the land.

528
00:59:00,190 --> 00:59:08,290
We, it was approved by the CIP, the Capital Improvement Committee, and we opted to transfer

529
00:59:08,290 --> 00:59:14,070
lines in FY26 to get that project off the ground and going and not kind of held back

530
00:59:14,070 --> 00:59:16,130
on any sort of financial constraint that we have.

531
00:59:16,590 --> 00:59:22,650
That will be coming in the May 2026, excuse me, April 2026, monthly report submitted to

532
00:59:22,650 --> 00:59:24,170
the Select Board and posted online.

533
00:59:24,170 --> 00:59:31,550
So this is my sort of way in which I will be providing it to you, but I do not intend to make many transfers.

534
00:59:31,550 --> 00:59:33,010
That's not how I like to do business.

535
00:59:33,310 --> 00:59:39,170
I want to know that my police department costs me X, and my fire department costs me this, and my teachers cost me this.

536
00:59:39,250 --> 00:59:43,090
Whatever it is, I want to know what that number is, plan accordingly, and spend it on that.

537
00:59:43,610 --> 00:59:49,470
So I haven't really been able to provide the Mallory Air and Steam budget, right, that hasn't been able to happen.

538
00:59:49,470 --> 00:59:58,150
So, I can't kind of give you that for right now, but that's not my style to do things without letting people know.

539
00:59:58,630 --> 00:59:59,910
I'm probably an over-communication.

540
01:00:01,680 --> 01:00:29,660
That sounds good. The only thing is, by the time people get notification, the deed is done, will we be told ahead of time that this deed is about two? So it's not practical because I manage the day-to-day operations of the town and if we need to do that. But certainly, I have an open, like I've talked to both of these two individuals, substantially.

541
01:00:29,660 --> 01:00:36,400
really about Mansfield business. I'm pretty hands on. I like to think I'm approachable.

542
01:00:36,520 --> 01:00:40,900
I hope I'm approachable. I try to be. And if there's a concern that they have, I welcome

543
01:00:40,900 --> 01:00:45,940
them to give that. And if there's a concern you have, every other Wednesday, we are here

544
01:00:45,940 --> 01:00:51,140
in this room and I'd love to hear that as well. So I've only done the one. It's the aerial

545
01:00:51,140 --> 01:00:54,300
mapping and it came for a very specific reason.

546
01:00:54,300 --> 01:00:55,540
How much was that?

547
01:00:56,260 --> 01:01:00,420
It was $6,800 or so from each section.

548
01:01:01,020 --> 01:01:05,760
One was coming from what I would control, and the other five or so were coming from

549
01:01:05,760 --> 01:01:11,200
the enterprise funds, and it covered a total of like 31 or 32, somewhere in there, 39

550
01:01:11,200 --> 01:01:15,680
maybe total for the project, which is very important.

551
01:01:16,280 --> 01:01:17,920
This is not a simple thing.

552
01:01:18,020 --> 01:01:21,760
This is something we rely on in the course of our daily business, so it's an important project.

553
01:01:21,760 --> 01:01:24,920
I'm saying that the select board is going to see on a monthly basis along with the,

554
01:01:25,240 --> 01:01:28,080
with the different reports that we get what's been transferred.

555
01:01:28,160 --> 01:01:29,520
Do you know something I can't?

556
01:01:29,580 --> 01:01:30,780
Here are you very well.

557
01:01:31,660 --> 01:01:33,560
Is it that microphone again?

558
01:01:33,980 --> 01:01:39,020
I said, I said the, I said the select board on a monthly basis has seized these transfers.

559
01:01:39,500 --> 01:01:39,840
Okay?

560
01:01:40,340 --> 01:01:42,420
So on a go-forward basis, they shouldn't be an issue.

561
01:01:44,300 --> 01:01:44,740
Okay.

562
01:01:45,060 --> 01:01:45,300
Okay.

563
01:01:46,160 --> 01:01:46,600
Yes.

564
01:01:47,040 --> 01:01:47,480
Okay.

565
01:01:47,760 --> 01:01:47,980
Okay.

566
01:01:47,980 --> 01:01:57,320
Okay. It's just that the supervision from before must have been changed going forward.

567
01:01:57,900 --> 01:02:07,720
Because, well, the amount of money you quoted for that somehow rather doesn't even

568
01:02:07,720 --> 01:02:13,220
come close to the quarter of a million that was spent on one door.

569
01:02:15,460 --> 01:02:18,180
I don't know about it, so I'm not going to comment on it.

570
01:02:18,760 --> 01:02:20,720
But I appreciate the comment.

571
01:02:21,000 --> 01:02:26,040
We are kind of addressed of what we think is a pretty cyclical way to keep on top of it.

572
01:02:26,380 --> 01:02:30,340
Certainly, budget transfers don't happen with that sort of regularity.

573
01:02:30,640 --> 01:02:32,140
They're more rare than anything.

574
01:02:32,620 --> 01:02:37,380
And the budget transfer I'm talking about actually went to the Finance Committee as well.

575
01:02:37,800 --> 01:02:41,500
A couple of weeks ago, whenever that meeting was, actually it is all a blur.

576
01:02:42,380 --> 01:02:49,600
So everything is being done with residents, you know, looking at it, and I intend for that to continue.

577
01:02:50,260 --> 01:02:51,420
I thank you for that.

578
01:02:52,100 --> 01:02:52,400
Absolutely.

579
01:02:52,560 --> 01:02:54,080
And as I said, welcome.

580
01:02:54,360 --> 01:02:56,320
We're tough, but we're good people.

581
01:02:56,340 --> 01:02:59,360
You know, I'm also tough, and I'm a good person, so I'm in the right spot.

582
01:03:00,360 --> 01:03:00,720
Thank you.

583
01:03:00,880 --> 01:03:01,060
Thank you.

584
01:03:03,860 --> 01:03:04,300
Okay.

585
01:03:07,060 --> 01:03:07,760
Very good.

586
01:03:08,000 --> 01:03:09,060
So this is the biggie.

587
01:03:09,220 --> 01:03:11,340
This is the one causing the heartburn.

588
01:03:12,020 --> 01:03:17,500
So Article 3 was placed on the warrant to serve as a potential override vote.

589
01:03:17,700 --> 01:03:21,860
The select board voted not to proceed with the override.

590
01:03:22,060 --> 01:03:23,440
There's a lot of reasons for that.

591
01:03:23,540 --> 01:03:27,880
Part of my presentation did discuss that, and we do have a plan forward.

592
01:03:28,100 --> 01:03:32,760
So those who were expecting the override, I'd like to impress upon you specifically, heard

593
01:03:32,760 --> 01:03:33,620
you loud and clear.

594
01:03:34,160 --> 01:03:40,900
We're going to get together and sort of, you know, understand each other that I'm new and

595
01:03:40,900 --> 01:03:45,560
I'm just getting here, but there's a commitment on both sides, a pretty strong one, and we've

596
01:03:45,560 --> 01:03:51,540
already attempted to set a date for July to get started on FY28, nice and early, where

597
01:03:51,540 --> 01:03:52,700
everybody's communicating.

598
01:03:53,240 --> 01:03:57,320
As I just mentioned, I'm an over-communicator of nothing else, so you will definitely hear

599
01:03:57,320 --> 01:04:02,080
from me, and we will have a conversation about whatever might be going on.

600
01:04:02,500 --> 01:04:06,760
So with this article, it is anticipated that no motion will be made because there is

601
01:04:06,760 --> 01:04:15,060
no contemplation for what amount of money would go in and the budgets have been balanced accordingly

602
01:04:15,440 --> 01:04:19,860
and we are just moving forward to FY28 in that case.

603
01:04:20,000 --> 01:04:21,280
Did you get up because you had a question?

604
01:04:29,370 --> 01:04:31,090
Well, if I could be more clear, let me know.

605
01:04:33,530 --> 01:04:40,150
Three main reasons are to identify the true actual cost, to provide the fix, not the symptom

606
01:04:40,150 --> 01:04:47,890
treatment, and finalizing some of these conversations that need to be concluded in order for us to move ahead.

607
01:04:49,130 --> 01:04:57,950
Article 4 is your annual, I call some of these regulars, these are your regulars, this is your annual appropriation for the Mansfield Electric Department.

608
01:04:58,590 --> 01:05:05,650
The Mass General Law is cited in the article itself, that is chapter 164, section 57.

609
01:05:05,650 --> 01:05:12,010
you can learn all about the electrical, what the governing conversation is there, and

610
01:05:12,010 --> 01:05:14,170
the funding comes directly from electricity rates.

611
01:05:15,290 --> 01:05:18,550
Article five is the appropriation for all enterprise accounts.

612
01:05:18,730 --> 01:05:19,530
There are four motions.

613
01:05:20,130 --> 01:05:22,890
Each enterprise account has its own motion.

614
01:05:23,370 --> 01:05:27,050
We start with the water department, and here I've broken out everybody's budget.

615
01:05:27,410 --> 01:05:34,010
That's at $7 million, sewer department, $7.2 million, and you can see these various lines that make up that budget.

616
01:05:34,010 --> 01:05:37,110
These are printed right on the right on the motions.

617
01:05:38,010 --> 01:05:45,250
Mansfield Municipal Airport allocation, $239,000, closer to $240, actually, $240,000.

618
01:05:45,530 --> 01:05:49,470
And then the parking enterprise with the total allocation of $593,000.

619
01:05:49,730 --> 01:05:53,550
Again, these are all listed on the motion packet.

620
01:05:54,550 --> 01:06:01,990
Article six is the capital improvement purchases that have gone through their vetting process with the CIP board and the committee.

621
01:06:01,990 --> 01:06:05,730
There are one, two, three, four, five, six.

622
01:06:06,310 --> 01:06:09,290
None of these have a tax impact on the property levy.

623
01:06:10,250 --> 01:06:12,870
The roof assessment for the Jordan Jackson Elementary School

624
01:06:13,350 --> 01:06:15,430
is being funded through certified free cash.

625
01:06:15,690 --> 01:06:17,910
The nice thing about this is the Massachusetts State Building

626
01:06:17,910 --> 01:06:22,810
Authority will give us around 50% back on the conclusion.

627
01:06:23,130 --> 01:06:24,250
It's just chicken and egg.

628
01:06:24,390 --> 01:06:28,070
We have to have the approval before we can go forward.

629
01:06:28,470 --> 01:06:31,110
So we're fully funding, and then we get funding back.

630
01:06:31,110 --> 01:06:39,990
so they split it with us. That is the first step in our construction project and that will dictate how we kind of move forward and what the roof actually needs.

631
01:06:40,390 --> 01:06:42,690
But that is being funded through this by certified free cash.

632
01:06:43,930 --> 01:06:51,070
The water department has a slate of programs here that they're looking to fund on the motions.

633
01:06:51,070 --> 01:06:53,790
You'll see that they're set up separated.

634
01:06:53,790 --> 01:06:58,430
The first three are all being paid through the water enterprise retained earnings.

635
01:06:58,430 --> 01:07:01,710
The last one is a borrowing project and that is why it's separated.

636
01:07:01,870 --> 01:07:05,010
You need different authorization for that to prove, to move ahead.

637
01:07:06,850 --> 01:07:13,050
Interesting point, the water and sewer rates underwent a study that was an interesting conversation

638
01:07:13,050 --> 01:07:17,630
to follow, so I can get the actual meeting date with some time in March, I believe, but something

639
01:07:17,630 --> 01:07:19,190
for folks to look at.

640
01:07:19,190 --> 01:07:25,530
Yeah, airport enterprise, they're looking for some fencing at $67,000 and that comes from

641
01:07:25,530 --> 01:07:29,250
the airport enterprise retained earnings, so again no property tax impact.

642
01:07:30,430 --> 01:07:35,750
Article 7 is our friend that got added late because the snow and ice deficit was so crippling.

643
01:07:36,390 --> 01:07:39,070
We have a few options to handle a snow and ice deficit.

644
01:07:39,230 --> 01:07:42,990
One of them is to raise it on the recap sheet which basically just carries over the deficit

645
01:07:42,990 --> 01:07:47,070
into the next fiscal year due to the constraints that the budget already had.

646
01:07:47,070 --> 01:07:48,350
And we opted not to do that.

647
01:07:48,530 --> 01:07:53,430
We are wiping it off with budget transfers that I will definitely be reporting on.

648
01:07:53,930 --> 01:07:59,110
And the Reserve Fund from the Finance Committee, they are already notified that we're doing

649
01:07:59,110 --> 01:07:59,410
that.

650
01:07:59,550 --> 01:08:04,410
There's a memo on the website, and the rest was certified free cash.

651
01:08:05,010 --> 01:08:09,610
And we didn't do all of the certified free cash because of course we needed to fund the Jordan

652
01:08:09,610 --> 01:08:11,290
Jackson assessment, roof assessment.

653
01:08:12,030 --> 01:08:17,130
So, the total deficit, as I said, is a hefty $698,000.

654
01:08:17,230 --> 01:08:20,230
Never a bill that you want to get this late in the year with these kind of struggles.

655
01:08:20,770 --> 01:08:26,410
But we creatively figured out how to smush all of our options together and then hold it

656
01:08:26,410 --> 01:08:28,650
from having any impact on FY27.

657
01:08:29,330 --> 01:08:33,490
So, great job to Josh and Nick, who really figured that out before I arrived.

658
01:08:35,150 --> 01:08:39,190
I had a nice job of putting in the spending freeze memo, so thank you also for that.

659
01:08:41,030 --> 01:08:44,050
Article 8 and 9 are relevant to revolving funds.

660
01:08:44,650 --> 01:08:50,490
Article 8 is actually changing the allowable, not the allowable expenditures.

661
01:08:50,650 --> 01:08:51,570
This is actually wrong.

662
01:08:51,810 --> 01:08:57,050
It's changing the way in which our funds come into the revolving fund.

663
01:08:57,410 --> 01:09:01,930
Because revolving funds are put in a bylaw, they require language changes.

664
01:09:02,390 --> 01:09:06,870
And on the warrant, you'll see what's crossed out so you can see what's changed.

665
01:09:07,430 --> 01:09:11,670
But really, it's just taking the ambulance receipts, putting them all in their entirety

666
01:09:11,670 --> 01:09:20,350
in the ambulance revolving fund, which is the DLS and DOR authorize way to do things and

667
01:09:20,350 --> 01:09:21,350
how you should be doing things.

668
01:09:21,530 --> 01:09:22,350
So we're making a change.

669
01:09:22,850 --> 01:09:27,550
Before this is posted, I will make a note, actually Nancy, if you can just make a little

670
01:09:27,550 --> 01:09:29,230
note that we fix that language.

671
01:09:30,370 --> 01:09:34,470
Article 9 is one of your regular articles that sets the upper limit.

672
01:09:34,470 --> 01:09:39,850
So we have spending limits on the revolving funds, as you heard earlier, we use them for all sorts of things.

673
01:09:39,850 --> 01:09:45,270
They're basically user fees that go in and contribute to however you provide that service.

674
01:09:45,910 --> 01:09:53,190
So the upper limit spending must be concentrated at town meeting every year and every year you set the upper limits.

675
01:09:53,550 --> 01:09:56,330
This picture on this slide shows what your upper limits are.

676
01:09:56,870 --> 01:10:01,290
This doesn't mean you're spending 100,000, it just for the radio master box fee.

677
01:10:01,290 --> 01:10:05,450
It just means you could spend up to 100,000 dealing with that program.

678
01:10:08,010 --> 01:10:13,130
Articles 10 and 18, so I apologize for what we're kind of going out of order, but they basically do.

679
01:10:14,090 --> 01:10:17,590
There are two articles that are not going to have any motion.

680
01:10:18,210 --> 01:10:26,510
So article 10 is a recurring article, one of your regulars that deposits into basically what accounts is savings accounts for the town.

681
01:10:27,150 --> 01:10:30,570
Because of our budget constraints, we do not have any money to do this right now.

682
01:10:30,570 --> 01:10:35,010
We are holding and we will analyze this in the fall to see whatever we have left over.

683
01:10:35,230 --> 01:10:40,530
So if the rolling green parcels, the three of them come in and they give us a billion dollars,

684
01:10:40,610 --> 01:10:45,390
that's not going to happen, but one can hope, then we would divvy up the billion dollars and put it in here.

685
01:10:46,430 --> 01:10:52,730
Article 18 is another appropriation that we're just not able to fund right now and

686
01:10:52,730 --> 01:10:57,110
we'll have to reevaluate and write size for us if necessary in the fall.

687
01:10:57,110 --> 01:10:59,430
So these might come up again in the fall.

688
01:10:59,730 --> 01:11:04,490
You'll know what they're all about, but technically they should be part of your annual slate of articles.

689
01:11:05,970 --> 01:11:08,030
Article 11 is a housekeeping measure.

690
01:11:08,230 --> 01:11:12,150
This is a safety article in the event that we had an old bill.

691
01:11:12,490 --> 01:11:17,350
Municipalities are not allowed to spend money outside of the current fiscal year that they're in.

692
01:11:17,430 --> 01:11:22,630
And if we found an old bill, we would have to go to town meeting and request a special permission to pay for that.

693
01:11:23,150 --> 01:11:24,670
And we didn't find anything.

694
01:11:24,670 --> 01:11:27,370
So that's good, but there's still a handful of days left.

695
01:11:27,790 --> 01:11:28,750
So we keep this here.

696
01:11:28,890 --> 01:11:32,170
It is not anticipated that there will be a motion for this article, but

697
01:11:32,170 --> 01:11:36,490
just in case we find an old bill out there, it would require a four or fifth vote.

698
01:11:37,450 --> 01:11:39,850
Articles 12 and 13 are bylaw amendments.

699
01:11:40,510 --> 01:11:44,810
These are both relative to the fire chief and his operations.

700
01:11:45,050 --> 01:11:49,870
Basically, this enhances efficiencies and allows us to accept and

701
01:11:49,870 --> 01:11:54,490
And you know, mandate that sprinkler reports be submitted electronically.

702
01:11:55,070 --> 01:11:57,510
We like this because there's no space for an electronic.

703
01:11:57,870 --> 01:12:00,550
We don't need a box of annual reports.

704
01:12:00,750 --> 01:12:04,730
You can just stick them in a computer and they don't take up any space and we like it and

705
01:12:04,730 --> 01:12:07,310
they're accessible and we can retrieve them as needed.

706
01:12:07,890 --> 01:12:09,030
So that's the first change.

707
01:12:09,210 --> 01:12:15,430
The other is to provide technical specifications administratively for alarm, how they do their

708
01:12:15,430 --> 01:12:25,290
alarms and with commercial properties responding right to them, right now if a radio frequency needs to change technically we have to go to a by-law change at town meeting.

709
01:12:25,590 --> 01:12:29,010
That is not practical nor do you want to be voting on that every single time.

710
01:12:29,390 --> 01:12:39,990
Let's just have it be administratively handled by our police and fire chiefs and we can expand on our economic development that way as well by being a little bit more business friendly in that regard.

711
01:12:40,770 --> 01:12:49,550
And on this slide I linked when this will be relevant when you can access this, but I linked the warrant so you can actually look at the language at the same time.

712
01:12:49,870 --> 01:12:51,510
It's too much to put on this slide.

713
01:12:52,910 --> 01:12:57,870
Articles 14 and 22 are both of the same premise on different topics.

714
01:12:57,870 --> 01:13:01,330
They are the authorization to enter into a contract term longer than three years.

715
01:13:02,290 --> 01:13:07,550
Massachusetts procurement laws require that we're sort of stuck with three years with very limited changes.

716
01:13:07,550 --> 01:13:12,450
And if we want to go beyond a three-year term, we have to request the town's permission to do so.

717
01:13:12,950 --> 01:13:15,050
Article 14 is specific to the fire chief.

718
01:13:15,190 --> 01:13:19,470
It is a 10-year lease agreement for mandated equipment for cardiac monitors.

719
01:13:20,250 --> 01:13:24,750
And he found a good deal, it's equipment that's generally on the capital plan.

720
01:13:25,090 --> 01:13:30,170
He found a good deal to lease these out and get the service agreement over 10 years.

721
01:13:30,210 --> 01:13:32,790
And it became financially beneficial to do that.

722
01:13:33,130 --> 01:13:35,910
Certainly we like financially beneficial in our difficult times.

723
01:13:35,910 --> 01:13:41,870
So we're requesting that he's being authorized to enter into a 10-year agreement for this one product.

724
01:13:42,410 --> 01:13:48,310
Article 22 would allow myself as a town manager to enter into a five-year contract for bus transportation.

725
01:13:49,010 --> 01:13:55,050
This is advantageous to the bus company and they could, you know, the idea is that they're going to give us a better price

726
01:13:55,050 --> 01:13:56,870
because they're locked in for five years.

727
01:13:57,390 --> 01:14:01,390
So this was a request of the school. They're definitely on board. I'm happy to help, obviously.

728
01:14:01,990 --> 01:14:15,870
and we are going out to bid soon for our next set of bus transportation and this just helps give us firm footing in that regard and make it the best deal for the town that it can be.

729
01:14:17,390 --> 01:14:23,290
Articles 15, 16 and 17, I lumped together because they're really from the planning board sort of.

730
01:14:23,290 --> 01:14:26,270
So, for my organization, this made sense.

731
01:14:26,790 --> 01:14:32,470
Article 15, if pass would allow the end of Cobb Street to be accepted as a public way.

732
01:14:32,610 --> 01:14:37,550
This was a little bit of an administrative oopsie daisy once upon a time, and we're attempting

733
01:14:37,550 --> 01:14:38,530
to correct it.

734
01:14:38,870 --> 01:14:40,830
The planning board will be there to give a report.

735
01:14:41,450 --> 01:14:43,790
Certainly, if you have a question Sarah, I'll be happy to answer it.

736
01:14:44,170 --> 01:14:48,310
We do expect some conversation about this, that's how meeting, some items came up during

737
01:14:48,310 --> 01:14:51,570
the board's meeting on laying out the plan.

738
01:14:52,490 --> 01:14:57,190
but we do require street acceptances at town meeting they have to go there.

739
01:14:57,190 --> 01:14:58,750
Article 16.

740
01:15:00,000 --> 01:15:00,720
Any other questions? Yes.

741
01:15:08,060 --> 01:15:14,480
Bill Clawney, 55 follow street. What part of Cobb Street has not been accepted?

742
01:15:17,860 --> 01:15:32,060
The end of Cobb Street. I don't have the station markers. Okay. I'll have a conversation with cell off line because the end of Cobb Street is actually a land that's owned by us.

743
01:15:34,440 --> 01:15:37,600
There was an easement in place for many years.

744
01:15:38,040 --> 01:15:43,620
But the easement was never finalized, so I'll take this offline with you, but I didn't know this was coming up.

745
01:15:43,820 --> 01:15:50,160
So I'll take it offline with Sarah and have a discussion about it, because I would like to understand what exactly is happening here.

746
01:15:50,380 --> 01:15:58,740
Yes, it's going to be a better person to speak to is Rick Alves, he's the one that actually placed this on the war, and he prepared all the information for the select board.

747
01:15:59,100 --> 01:16:00,820
Okay, I'll give Rick a call. Thank you.

748
01:16:01,040 --> 01:16:07,140
Okay, I'll follow up with him and make sure to the plan should be on file with the town clerk's office to want to get your eyes on it.

749
01:16:08,180 --> 01:16:11,560
And Article 16 and 17 both had to do with easements.

750
01:16:12,760 --> 01:16:18,680
Unfortunately, we did not get the plans in time to post or to have on file with the town clerk's office at the time of posting.

751
01:16:18,980 --> 01:16:24,400
Therefore, any action on this would be inappropriate because the public would not have been given the opportunity to look at the plan.

752
01:16:25,540 --> 01:16:31,280
So Article 16 and 17, we are anticipating passing with no action.

753
01:16:31,400 --> 01:16:34,460
We will not make a motion, but those could come up later.

754
01:16:34,460 --> 01:16:45,740
This is just sort of housekeeping at one point there's like a little bit of a sidewalk that kind of juts out because the polls in the way and we need to take that property.

755
01:16:46,660 --> 01:16:50,760
So sort of housekeeping for us but requires action at town meeting.

756
01:16:51,760 --> 01:17:02,860
Articles 19, articles 19 and 20 are transferring ownership of land that we own the select boards purview and transferring it into the conservation commissions purview.

757
01:17:02,860 --> 01:17:05,100
that affords it a variety of protections.

758
01:17:05,620 --> 01:17:07,360
It's their first stormwater management.

759
01:17:07,980 --> 01:17:11,380
There was a lovely packet put together by Sarah

760
01:17:11,380 --> 01:17:14,900
and my giant arrow is pointing you

761
01:17:14,900 --> 01:17:16,320
to where to click on that.

762
01:17:16,600 --> 01:17:18,960
You can learn a little bit more.

763
01:17:19,080 --> 01:17:20,200
We've blown up the parcel.

764
01:17:20,540 --> 01:17:21,460
You can see where it is.

765
01:17:21,960 --> 01:17:24,000
At town meeting, we're currently working on

766
01:17:24,000 --> 01:17:26,900
a sort of large map that would identify

767
01:17:26,900 --> 01:17:29,060
where these parcels are.

768
01:17:29,980 --> 01:17:32,480
So you know exactly what we're talking about.

769
01:17:32,480 --> 01:17:34,600
So that will be there and that's in the works.

770
01:17:35,120 --> 01:17:37,640
This change has no monetary impact of the sound,

771
01:17:37,720 --> 01:17:40,200
so it is a land transfer, it does require two thirds,

772
01:17:40,400 --> 01:17:42,740
but it's just going from one entity of the sound

773
01:17:42,740 --> 01:17:45,260
to another, and Caitlin Gagne will be available

774
01:17:45,260 --> 01:17:48,080
to talk about these at town meeting.

775
01:17:49,340 --> 01:17:50,320
Articles, yep.

776
01:17:55,260 --> 01:17:58,840
I'm Stan Poon, 125 Central Street.

777
01:17:59,500 --> 01:18:04,440
And so yes, there are no immediate monetary impact, right?

778
01:18:04,440 --> 01:18:08,040
for these two parcels of land transferring to?

779
01:18:08,540 --> 01:18:11,120
So this is more than two parcels of land.

780
01:18:11,900 --> 01:18:19,140
If you look, this is Article 19, and it traverses over two pieces of paper, unfortunately,

781
01:18:19,140 --> 01:18:20,080
I apologize for that.

782
01:18:20,620 --> 01:18:26,560
But there's a bunch of properties that the town owns, and this is transferring it into conservation,

783
01:18:27,060 --> 01:18:28,720
which gives it a certain set of protections.

784
01:18:29,220 --> 01:18:34,940
So once it is in conservation, can it come out, come back out from conservation?

785
01:18:36,360 --> 01:18:37,440
Once it goes to conservation.

786
01:18:38,200 --> 01:18:41,320
I think once it goes to conservation, it stays there, it can't come back out.

787
01:18:42,260 --> 01:18:50,700
So if somehow, I say, 50 years later, somebody wanted to farm it, and this time became nobody's land.

788
01:18:51,000 --> 01:18:52,680
Somebody wanted to farm it, what happens?

789
01:18:52,680 --> 01:18:58,220
If I'm wrong, though, a lot of these pieces, like orphan pieces, pieces that are non-buildable

790
01:18:58,220 --> 01:18:59,140
pieces of land.

791
01:19:00,220 --> 01:19:02,060
Not buildable, doesn't mean there's not formable.

792
01:19:02,660 --> 01:19:04,660
Rutland can be farmed by state law.

793
01:19:04,980 --> 01:19:09,040
And I think that there's different protections, I think is primarily a protection against

794
01:19:09,040 --> 01:19:09,620
building.

795
01:19:10,560 --> 01:19:15,700
Right, but if you're in conservation, can you say that you cannot?

796
01:19:15,700 --> 01:19:20,660
It could, actually, in some cases you would work the conservation agent, and you could

797
01:19:20,660 --> 01:19:24,920
even put an agriculture, like, a restriction on a portion of the law that might be

798
01:19:24,920 --> 01:19:26,460
upland and not wet.

799
01:19:27,260 --> 01:19:28,840
So there are opportunities there.

800
01:19:29,000 --> 01:19:29,180
Okay.

801
01:19:29,380 --> 01:19:38,580
So, is it the town's policy, like, does the town have some interesting rules or charter

802
01:19:38,580 --> 01:19:45,200
that say, once it's in conservation, you can never pull it back out, does that have anything

803
01:19:45,200 --> 01:19:45,540
like that?

804
01:19:45,600 --> 01:19:47,400
So, once it's, yeah, sorry, go ahead.

805
01:19:47,400 --> 01:19:53,740
Oh, sorry. Yeah, exactly. That's actually part of the reason of the impetus for pulling

806
01:19:53,740 --> 01:20:00,360
this list together. There has been a lot of conversations about selling buildable town

807
01:20:00,360 --> 01:20:11,120
land over the past decade or so. And the conservation plan advised us when we were doing this most

808
01:20:11,120 --> 01:20:18,300
most recent round of review of Townland that she's already told multiple generations of

809
01:20:18,300 --> 01:20:25,580
town managers and their planners that and select boards that these are not buildable parcels.

810
01:20:26,180 --> 01:20:35,100
For various reasons they really need to get taken out of general pop from the select boards

811
01:20:36,080 --> 01:20:36,800
Slate of own.

812
01:20:37,020 --> 01:20:43,840
Slate to conservation so that we know in perpetuity that these are not buildable

813
01:20:43,840 --> 01:20:44,400
land.

814
01:20:44,560 --> 01:20:46,880
What doesn't mean that it is not formidable in perpetuity?

815
01:20:46,880 --> 01:20:52,340
No, I think we answered that question before that you can do other things, but you

816
01:20:52,340 --> 01:20:55,000
cannot build, and that's what we wanted.

817
01:20:55,200 --> 01:20:55,860
Can you do other things?

818
01:20:56,160 --> 01:20:57,760
Yeah, and so we don't want to-

819
01:20:57,760 --> 01:20:59,460
How, how, that was the mechanism for-

820
01:20:59,460 --> 01:21:03,400
So, you would want to buy, you would want to buy a piece of this land and then farm it?

821
01:21:06,240 --> 01:21:11,900
no body in this town, the only thing that is viable is, I guess you can talk to the

822
01:21:11,900 --> 01:21:12,360
constipation.

823
01:21:12,360 --> 01:21:14,480
Just blew up the town I want to be in forever.

824
01:21:15,020 --> 01:21:21,540
No, it's not like, outside of Portland, not in any case, they're already owned by the town,

825
01:21:21,920 --> 01:21:24,840
so it would be us opening up farming.

826
01:21:26,100 --> 01:21:32,480
The parcels are already town owned, so regardless of whether, if you voted no on this, they would

827
01:21:32,480 --> 01:21:34,160
still remain town on parcels.

828
01:21:34,360 --> 01:21:41,340
Right, wait, so, sir, before you leave the microphone, sir, I'm over here, I'm speaking over here.

829
01:21:41,580 --> 01:21:46,380
Maureen Daredi select board, I just didn't say I hadn't experienced with this in another town I worked with.

830
01:21:46,800 --> 01:21:53,620
That there was conservation on land and actually we wanted it to go back to the town land for different use.

831
01:21:54,420 --> 01:22:00,200
It was conservation on land and we wanted to transfer it over to the golf course we had in that town.

832
01:22:00,200 --> 01:22:06,740
And there's a process because once it becomes conservation, it's a whole different set of rules by the state.

833
01:22:07,080 --> 01:22:15,020
Exactly, so we can come out, but it's a petition that has to be made by the town to the state to use something else.

834
01:22:15,200 --> 01:22:19,080
So that there is already a set of procedures to do that.

835
01:22:19,440 --> 01:22:26,620
So just because it goes in doesn't mean that if the town decides 50 years from now,

836
01:22:26,620 --> 01:22:40,540
Hey, we think we're going to do agriponic as that, what it's called, water farming, hydroponic thank you, that it's a mechanism that the state already has in place and you just have to follow the rules.

837
01:22:40,960 --> 01:22:44,460
I don't know them line by line, but that would be something for the conservation agent.

838
01:22:45,040 --> 01:22:48,480
Okay, well there's no monetary impact, so what's the point of doing it?

839
01:22:48,480 --> 01:22:56,100
Because the conservation is a guardian of the land, a protector to make sure that the land remains.

840
01:22:56,460 --> 01:22:57,340
Is there a risk right now?

841
01:22:58,120 --> 01:23:00,720
Yes. Well, not yet. These will go into it now.

842
01:23:01,660 --> 01:23:04,100
Are these pieces of land at risk right now?

843
01:23:04,120 --> 01:23:05,900
No, but the town owns those pieces right now.

844
01:23:07,400 --> 01:23:07,580
Okay.

845
01:23:09,320 --> 01:23:12,280
So when they did the review, a lot of these are not buildable, right?

846
01:23:12,380 --> 01:23:14,160
And you said, but they might have water. You could farm them.

847
01:23:14,160 --> 01:23:18,640
Some of them are orphan pieces that builders left in developments that were never,

848
01:23:19,840 --> 01:23:24,820
you know, stuck along somebody else's property or the town never received them in easements.

849
01:23:25,300 --> 01:23:28,660
So that's what this is doing, it's kind of cleaning up those areas.

850
01:23:32,080 --> 01:23:32,960
There's still only, right?

851
01:23:33,240 --> 01:23:33,380
Yep.

852
01:23:34,620 --> 01:23:35,620
Okay, thank you.

853
01:23:36,660 --> 01:23:39,960
Just quickly, Steve Shrumpel, a good question, by the way.

854
01:23:40,560 --> 01:23:44,880
This is the largest list I've seen a while, and some of these properties are 12.5 acres.

855
01:23:44,880 --> 01:23:46,540
That's a pretty large problem.

856
01:23:47,240 --> 01:23:48,660
Another one, 7.7 acres.

857
01:23:48,760 --> 01:23:50,080
A lot of them have actual addresses.

858
01:23:50,260 --> 01:23:53,480
They're not just, you know, on-law and laying this little section.

859
01:23:53,720 --> 01:23:56,820
So, perhaps maybe providing some photos during Tommy.

860
01:23:57,020 --> 01:23:57,680
So, they can-

861
01:23:57,680 --> 01:23:58,460
Yes, so that-

862
01:23:58,460 --> 01:23:59,040
Have them as a backup.

863
01:23:59,300 --> 01:24:03,620
That link there actually links to the individual parcels.

864
01:24:04,000 --> 01:24:04,840
I'm afraid-

865
01:24:04,840 --> 01:24:08,060
I'm afraid to touch it because I don't want to lose the thing.

866
01:24:08,280 --> 01:24:14,700
But at the end of this, I will go back and we'll pass it.

867
01:24:14,700 --> 01:24:20,280
But to your point about the larger parcels, those are actually, I think Chandler's way,

868
01:24:20,480 --> 01:24:28,240
Griffin's way, they were articulated in cluster subdivision decisions that needed to actually

869
01:24:28,240 --> 01:24:37,940
either go to H.O.A., the town's conservation commission or nonprofit, it ended up just going

870
01:24:37,940 --> 01:24:38,640
to the town.

871
01:24:39,260 --> 01:24:42,420
So this is actually tucking it in its appropriate style.

872
01:24:42,420 --> 01:24:44,840
Some of these smaller ones, did you ask the abouters if they want to purchase?

873
01:24:45,420 --> 01:24:48,220
We don't want them to, because we want-

874
01:24:48,220 --> 01:24:49,180
You don't want to add to the tax roles?

875
01:24:49,460 --> 01:24:51,800
Well, that's what you're getting ahead of us.

876
01:24:52,060 --> 01:24:56,780
That's what the next article is, but these ones are slated for protection through the conservation commission.

877
01:24:56,920 --> 01:24:57,900
All right, if you go through that-

878
01:24:57,900 --> 01:25:03,360
We'll them that way and show some photos that might be well, and I do like Marie's idea of a golf course, so we can do that with this property.

879
01:25:04,020 --> 01:25:06,180
We had a golf course, yeah, the other one.

880
01:25:10,760 --> 01:25:17,120
I will come back to this, I'm just afraid to lose the presentation, so we'll come back.

881
01:25:17,560 --> 01:25:21,440
Article 21 is designating land as surplus property.

882
01:25:21,940 --> 01:25:27,000
These are parcels that would not be given over to any protective measure.

883
01:25:27,540 --> 01:25:28,980
These are owned by the town.

884
01:25:29,720 --> 01:25:32,600
Here on this slide, this is an important note.

885
01:25:32,600 --> 01:25:41,520
They're all grouped together at town meaning they will be two separate motions and that has to do with how the town came to own these parcels at the origin.

886
01:25:42,100 --> 01:25:47,420
So there's a set of parcels that came to us as tax title and those will be grouped in one motion.

887
01:25:47,760 --> 01:25:53,360
And that's obviously a default on taxes and there's a set that the town just owned through various mechanisms.

888
01:25:53,360 --> 01:25:59,780
Also, something to know here, Thorne Road, after the warrant and the motions were posted,

889
01:26:00,040 --> 01:26:02,440
we determined that Thorne Road actually has an easement on it.

890
01:26:02,500 --> 01:26:05,720
We cannot at this time dispose of that.

891
01:26:05,940 --> 01:26:10,680
So that's my little cross out, so people can sort of follow along that I didn't miss one.

892
01:26:10,800 --> 01:26:11,560
I didn't make a mistake.

893
01:26:11,720 --> 01:26:14,800
Nope, we're leaving that off, and the motion will be read without that.

894
01:26:15,400 --> 01:26:20,620
But these, to your point, about notifying a butters that is part of the process when we're

895
01:26:20,620 --> 01:26:27,160
ready to sell that a butters notices will go out in case a neighboring person is interested

896
01:26:27,160 --> 01:26:32,480
and we have actually already received communication. So by virtue of this process alone, we are

897
01:26:32,480 --> 01:26:38,620
already jumping up some interest for people to purchase this. And again, selling off and getting

898
01:26:38,620 --> 01:26:44,540
rid of land that we're not using and putting it back on this act rolls is obviously a good thing

899
01:26:44,540 --> 01:26:50,060
for this town to do. So that's something that we will be moving forward. The town does have a process

900
01:26:50,060 --> 01:26:55,600
us here, though, it goes under a little bit of a study with an ad hoc committee and then

901
01:26:56,100 --> 01:26:57,060
gets on the street.

902
01:26:57,260 --> 01:27:00,540
So, a little bit of time goes by, that's why we can't count on this.

903
01:27:00,680 --> 01:27:01,580
I mentioned this earlier.

904
01:27:01,720 --> 01:27:06,620
We can't count on this for FY27 because there's some work to be done, but it will be done.

905
01:27:07,540 --> 01:27:07,940
Any other questions?

906
01:27:12,420 --> 01:27:14,720
Sandra Levine, 21th Street.

907
01:27:16,860 --> 01:27:18,780
I don't remember the year.

908
01:27:18,780 --> 01:27:28,060
Here, perhaps Maureen, you understand it better, but the year that a former selection

909
01:27:28,740 --> 01:27:37,380
died of cancer and came to our board, I was on the board at the time.

910
01:27:38,820 --> 01:27:48,080
And he, what you could see that he was terminal and he died a couple of weeks later.

911
01:27:49,140 --> 01:27:58,300
He had begged and begged for a long time to have the property across from Memorial Park,

912
01:27:58,440 --> 01:28:05,820
which is possibly one of the properties that are listed here for Hope Street.

913
01:28:05,820 --> 01:28:24,210
He had begged to have them be built by habitat for humanity, and I guess you could say his

914
01:28:24,210 --> 01:28:28,650
whole selection career he had begged for that.

915
01:28:28,650 --> 01:28:41,570
At that particular meeting, the whole Board of Selecman did vote to try to honor that request.

916
01:28:43,130 --> 01:28:46,110
I know the vote was taken.

917
01:28:47,210 --> 01:28:49,290
You know, I wish I could remember the date.

918
01:28:49,530 --> 01:28:54,670
Actually, they can just talk about the topic and try to search for it.

919
01:28:54,670 --> 01:28:59,510
So, Carrie can put in a topic and search for the minutes.

920
01:28:59,850 --> 01:29:02,770
Do you have a year or a span of time?

921
01:29:03,450 --> 01:29:05,170
No, because that, yeah, okay.

922
01:29:05,410 --> 01:29:06,130
We'll look into it.

923
01:29:06,470 --> 01:29:09,850
And the way that the town would handle that is just which,

924
01:29:10,010 --> 01:29:12,390
so let's pretend it's the 0.54 acres.

925
01:29:13,670 --> 01:29:16,990
We would put in our documents, you know,

926
01:29:17,050 --> 01:29:19,210
must be built for affordable housing or we would,

927
01:29:19,390 --> 01:29:21,010
we, if the board wanted to do that,

928
01:29:21,010 --> 01:29:23,910
that they would just put it in the sale as a condition.

929
01:29:24,850 --> 01:29:26,450
That's a pretty easy thing to do.

930
01:29:26,910 --> 01:29:32,630
Sandy, I just want to bring up that the housing corporation, right now,

931
01:29:34,030 --> 01:29:40,210
they've gotten other land that was given to them by the town to build on.

932
01:29:40,550 --> 01:29:45,130
So they have a good piece of land now that they can build multiple houses on it.

933
01:29:45,130 --> 01:29:57,310
So I think that is something that they're using their money and their resources now to do on that, so they might not be able to do something like this.

934
01:29:57,610 --> 01:29:59,930
I know it was Steve's dream. I was the one.

935
01:30:00,000 --> 01:30:06,940
Who? Yes, who took the, who fulfilled his dying wish and got the housing

936
01:30:06,940 --> 01:30:11,520
cooperative incorporated. And then I left and turned it over to Louie on Baruso because

937
01:30:11,520 --> 01:30:15,920
we had a conflict. I managed his contract when I worked with the state so we couldn't

938
01:30:15,920 --> 01:30:22,960
be on anything together. So Lou is taken over it now, but they are ultimately very, very busy

939
01:30:23,500 --> 01:30:27,580
with this other piece of land that they're working on. I will say I'm going to put out a

940
01:30:27,580 --> 01:30:32,440
It's plugged down there or anybody wants to get into a portable housing and developing this land.

941
01:30:32,880 --> 01:30:36,300
They need members, they only have three people and

942
01:30:36,300 --> 01:30:39,980
it's they need more people to step up and apply for that committee.

943
01:30:40,460 --> 01:30:49,040
So I think that they would probably tell you, we would probably tell you that this would be a better use for the land, let them work on what they have.

944
01:30:49,040 --> 01:31:03,560
is there a possibility that this particular, I don't know if Steve was thinking about

945
01:31:03,560 --> 01:31:14,420
these two pieces attached because at that particular time, I don't think anybody had

946
01:31:14,420 --> 01:31:16,640
I really measured the land.

947
01:31:17,120 --> 01:31:17,920
Senator, let's do this.

948
01:31:17,980 --> 01:31:19,360
Let's start with pulling the minutes.

949
01:31:19,960 --> 01:31:21,100
Why don't we try to pull the minutes?

950
01:31:21,120 --> 01:31:25,380
Well, in the minutes, and then I will direct the ad hoc committee to understand

951
01:31:25,380 --> 01:31:28,180
the situation and look at it, and then we get with the map.

952
01:31:28,340 --> 01:31:32,100
You might be able to search by address, you might be able to search by a Slack board, or whatever.

953
01:31:32,300 --> 01:31:38,100
The lot numbers lead me to believe that they don't connect, but we can look into it.

954
01:31:38,220 --> 01:31:41,180
And then that can be directed to ex.

955
01:31:41,180 --> 01:31:45,520
Okay, then maybe they could hold it to a later time or something.

956
01:31:46,040 --> 01:31:49,980
I would like to follow through on that, sure.

957
01:31:50,580 --> 01:31:53,980
Just because this gets voted through, it doesn't mean it goes to sale the next day.

958
01:31:54,420 --> 01:31:55,360
No, I know that.

959
01:31:55,840 --> 01:31:56,660
I know that.

960
01:31:57,120 --> 01:31:57,320
Yes.

961
01:31:57,580 --> 01:31:58,360
Things are bringing it up.

962
01:31:58,640 --> 01:31:59,520
Okay, thank you.

963
01:32:01,780 --> 01:32:04,920
So you'll run with having carried, dig it up.

964
01:32:05,240 --> 01:32:06,040
I'll get you the dates.

965
01:32:06,360 --> 01:32:09,040
I'm writing some notes here, my to-do list.

966
01:32:09,200 --> 01:32:11,720
I'll get you the dates of Steve's death tomorrow.

967
01:32:11,720 --> 01:32:12,360
Thank you.

968
01:32:13,500 --> 01:32:18,860
Okay, and we are going to switch over to Article 23, which is a zoning.

969
01:32:20,920 --> 01:32:23,500
Okay, and I'm going to do a great job on this.

970
01:32:23,640 --> 01:32:25,920
Okay, Sarah Raposa, Director of Planning and Development.

971
01:32:26,220 --> 01:32:31,000
I'm going to run through the planning boards only zoning article this year.

972
01:32:31,160 --> 01:32:34,420
I know it's a relief that there's only one, but it's kind of a doozy.

973
01:32:35,440 --> 01:32:46,180
The planning board is proposing an article that would regulate data centers in Mansfield.

974
01:32:46,890 --> 01:32:55,180
The board voted unanimously to recommend approval following a public hearing held on March 25th, 2026.

975
01:32:56,370 --> 01:32:57,660
Why this article?

976
01:32:57,940 --> 01:33:02,000
So right now data centers are not defined in our zoning by law.

977
01:33:02,000 --> 01:33:08,460
That means they could be treated like office or warehouse uses, but of course they're

978
01:33:08,460 --> 01:33:09,080
very different.

979
01:33:09,380 --> 01:33:15,220
They're very infrastructure heavy facilities, so this article puts clear rules in place

980
01:33:15,220 --> 01:33:17,560
before any proposal comes forward.

981
01:33:18,160 --> 01:33:24,540
I want to stress most importantly that right here at the outset that this proposal bans

982
01:33:24,540 --> 01:33:28,240
large data centers from being located in Mansfield.

983
01:33:31,040 --> 01:33:32,640
What is a data center?

984
01:33:32,640 --> 01:33:37,660
They are facilities that house servers and digital infrastructure.

985
01:33:38,220 --> 01:33:41,920
They require significant electricity and cooling systems.

986
01:33:42,220 --> 01:33:46,220
They often include backup generators and specialized equipment,

987
01:33:46,680 --> 01:33:50,720
and they do not function like traditional employment centers.

988
01:33:53,600 --> 01:33:56,680
This by-law is intentionally conservative.

989
01:33:57,400 --> 01:34:00,740
It only allows smaller, lower impact facilities.

990
01:34:00,740 --> 01:34:18,380
Large-scale data centers are not allowed in any proposal that would come forward in Mansfield if this was approved would require a special permit from the planning board so that we can evaluate impacts on a case-by-case basis.

991
01:34:21,290 --> 01:34:25,790
These uses are limited to appropriate commercial and industrial areas.

992
01:34:25,790 --> 01:34:30,170
They are not allowed in residential districts or most business areas.

993
01:34:30,750 --> 01:34:36,090
Even in the allowed districts, they require a planning board special permit to ensure

994
01:34:36,090 --> 01:34:39,670
site-specific review before any approval is issued.

995
01:34:40,430 --> 01:34:47,790
The districts that they may be allowed in, industrial one, industrial two, the planned business

996
01:34:47,790 --> 01:34:48,310
district.

997
01:34:48,310 --> 01:34:55,450
So we're looking at the zoning districts that are shown in shades of purple and orange.

998
01:34:58,480 --> 01:35:06,600
The special permit process focuses on the real impacts, which include energy demand, water usage, and noise.

999
01:35:07,320 --> 01:35:13,660
It also ensures that our infrastructure, electric, water, and public safety can handle the use.

1000
01:35:14,140 --> 01:35:17,380
If it can't, a project cannot move forward as proposed.

1001
01:35:17,380 --> 01:35:24,860
For the small-scale data centers that could be allowed in Mansfield, the planning board

1002
01:35:24,860 --> 01:35:29,960
can set clear limits on operations to protect our shared electric and water resources.

1003
01:35:30,520 --> 01:35:35,960
They are enforceable standards for noise and infrastructure use, and projects are required

1004
01:35:35,960 --> 01:35:38,840
to report regularly to demonstrate compliance.

1005
01:35:39,480 --> 01:35:42,560
Importantly, these approvals are not permanent.

1006
01:35:42,880 --> 01:35:48,540
They must be renewed every five years, giving the town the opportunity to ensure ongoing

1007
01:35:48,540 --> 01:35:57,580
compliance. Again, this article is not tied to any specific proposal. There is no project before the town.

1008
01:35:57,960 --> 01:36:01,600
This is simply about putting rules in place so that we are prepared.

1009
01:36:02,020 --> 01:36:04,880
It does not change anything in residential neighborhoods.

1010
01:36:08,400 --> 01:36:11,020
The bottom line is that this is a proactive measure.

1011
01:36:11,500 --> 01:36:19,660
It protects the town's infrastructure and resources, and it allows only limited, lower impact uses.

1012
01:36:19,660 --> 01:36:26,580
And ensures the planning board and the town retain, retain control over any future proposal.

1013
01:36:26,900 --> 01:36:31,960
And again, the planning board recommended approval by a vote of five to one.

1014
01:36:32,440 --> 01:36:36,800
The dissenting member just felt like the concept was new and

1015
01:36:36,800 --> 01:36:44,760
they didn't have enough information to vote in favor, but the other five members did.

1016
01:36:45,520 --> 01:36:49,620
So thank you, I would take comments.

1017
01:36:51,140 --> 01:36:52,280
Thank you very much.

1018
01:36:52,360 --> 01:36:53,080
That was well done.

1019
01:36:53,300 --> 01:36:54,040
Steve Schoenfeld again.

1020
01:36:54,640 --> 01:36:55,640
I see you members up there.

1021
01:36:55,820 --> 01:36:56,540
The two not attend.

1022
01:36:57,280 --> 01:37:03,040
So the planning board has seven planning board members and one associate member.

1023
01:37:03,420 --> 01:37:10,960
So the associate member doesn't vote on zoning under 48 section five and we had one member absent.

1024
01:37:11,480 --> 01:37:12,160
So it was six members.

1025
01:37:12,380 --> 01:37:14,380
And is there another associate member vacancy right now?

1026
01:37:14,380 --> 01:37:19,740
There is a vacancy, so again, if anybody wants to join the planning board or the ZDA.

1027
01:37:19,960 --> 01:37:25,160
So the question is, you talk about what it doesn't do, and I ironically want to chat GBT,

1028
01:37:25,340 --> 01:37:27,360
which is a data place to ask this question.

1029
01:37:27,700 --> 01:37:29,520
There are four types, and I think you mentioned the four of them.

1030
01:37:29,960 --> 01:37:34,320
The small ones aren't as painful, and they could actually bring in $3 million

1031
01:37:34,320 --> 01:37:35,300
of tax revenue here.

1032
01:37:35,840 --> 01:37:37,200
What does this allow?

1033
01:37:37,700 --> 01:37:39,200
Not by right, obviously not by right.

1034
01:37:39,300 --> 01:37:42,380
It's going to go through a lot of that same small facility.

1035
01:37:42,380 --> 01:37:46,600
it takes 10 megawatts of power potentially. So, clearly it's got to go through a lot of

1036
01:37:47,660 --> 01:37:52,140
conversations, but does it allow something somewhere if a very small one wants to be built?

1037
01:37:52,540 --> 01:37:58,400
Indeed. There are, as you've mentioned, there's different types of data centers

1038
01:37:58,400 --> 01:38:08,120
that we translated into tiers. So your smallest facility is going to be an edge or micro

1039
01:38:08,120 --> 01:38:13,280
data center and that's more in line with what we're thinking that could be

1040
01:38:13,280 --> 01:38:19,400
located here in Mansfield. Your research may have indicated that that was

1041
01:38:19,400 --> 01:38:26,040
maybe like a 10 megawatt usage. Based on our conversations, based on our

1042
01:38:26,040 --> 01:38:31,820
conversations with MMED, we're looking at a max of two megawatts. So it's

1043
01:38:31,820 --> 01:38:38,060
substantially less but it is enough to provide the data center type of

1044
01:38:38,060 --> 01:38:43,760
service that is ancillary to most businesses that rely on data services.

1045
01:38:44,720 --> 01:38:47,440
And it's a lot of personal property in those facilities.

1046
01:38:48,160 --> 01:38:52,000
Clearly, it could be a $3 million gain, day one, day two.

1047
01:38:52,080 --> 01:38:58,920
Yeah, and that's the, and so when we're talking about personal property, that's the hope that

1048
01:38:58,920 --> 01:39:03,900
if one were to generate income that way, because they're certainly not generating income

1049
01:39:03,900 --> 01:39:09,140
through, you know, being a manufacturer or multiplier or something like that.

1050
01:39:09,140 --> 01:39:16,400
And not that there are too much expense because people aren't going to work there in bringing kids into the town and other things like that, so not much traffic, either.

1051
01:39:16,600 --> 01:39:22,400
But I'm glad you're talking more about that time being and talking more about what it can do versus what it can.

1052
01:39:22,900 --> 01:39:23,900
Thank you for that feedback.

1053
01:39:25,260 --> 01:39:33,780
I was trying to walk the line between getting to specific and actually just letting the folks who wanted.

1054
01:39:33,780 --> 01:39:42,240
more details like that, ask the questions, because I didn't want to drown the techno-speak.

1055
01:39:42,240 --> 01:39:43,220
Yeah, the techno-speak.

1056
01:39:44,080 --> 01:39:47,220
Two megawatts is a good starting point, and obviously, there's going to be conversations

1057
01:39:47,220 --> 01:39:48,960
about what I want to do this, but thank you.

1058
01:39:49,220 --> 01:39:49,680
Thank you, Steve.

1059
01:39:50,240 --> 01:39:56,280
I'm actually going to switch to, I will, is it about this particular item, sir?

1060
01:39:56,660 --> 01:39:56,820
No.

1061
01:39:57,340 --> 01:39:57,420
No.

1062
01:39:57,880 --> 01:40:03,020
I mean, there's a, I see a small number of four, I think there's questions on the webinar,

1063
01:40:03,020 --> 01:40:06,280
So, I'm just going to switch to the virtual space for a minute if that's okay.

1064
01:40:06,960 --> 01:40:14,180
And I think the virtual team for their patients, Nancy, if you want to, it looks like people

1065
01:40:14,180 --> 01:40:18,120
may have inputted, I don't know, my contacts are fresh, but I can't see that.

1066
01:40:18,540 --> 01:40:25,220
So, if you have joined us in the webinar virtually and you would like to make a comment or ask

1067
01:40:25,220 --> 01:40:30,860
a question, please use the raise your hand tool to indicate your interest.

1068
01:40:30,860 --> 01:40:36,660
If you're not sure where that is, the raise your hand tool is at the bottom of your screen.

1069
01:40:38,600 --> 01:40:42,220
And I will identify by name those who raised their hand.

1070
01:40:47,370 --> 01:40:54,310
Francis M, if you would unmute yourself, maybe just a moment here.

1071
01:40:55,830 --> 01:41:00,150
And then once you have unmuted, you are free to ask your question or make a comment.

1072
01:41:01,230 --> 01:41:02,190
Hi, good evening.

1073
01:41:02,450 --> 01:41:03,370
This is Francis McDonald.

1074
01:41:03,370 --> 01:41:05,010
Can you guys hear me, okay?

1075
01:41:05,350 --> 01:41:05,870
Yes, we can.

1076
01:41:06,110 --> 01:41:06,590
Thank you.

1077
01:41:07,070 --> 01:41:07,450
Perfect.

1078
01:41:08,390 --> 01:41:16,170
So, with the data center, my concern, definitely, is the impact on our child's resources

1079
01:41:17,150 --> 01:41:20,550
and also environmental and health.

1080
01:41:20,950 --> 01:41:27,730
As many data centers, there's starting to be health issues surrounding the people who

1081
01:41:29,650 --> 01:41:37,550
So has that been researched and thought of before we try to get into this space?

1082
01:41:38,230 --> 01:41:39,130
Thank you for your question.

1083
01:41:41,450 --> 01:41:45,490
Bila has subsections regarding performance standards.

1084
01:41:46,070 --> 01:41:51,270
So you're going to see sections having to do with electrical demand and infrastructure capacity

1085
01:41:51,270 --> 01:41:58,330
where we're going to need information from an applicant on their proposed electrical

1086
01:41:58,330 --> 01:42:01,490
demand that MMED can review.

1087
01:42:02,670 --> 01:42:09,670
If upgrades are needed to the system, then the applicant would be responsible for the

1088
01:42:09,670 --> 01:42:10,670
cost of those.

1089
01:42:11,450 --> 01:42:18,610
The second performance standard is water use and cooling systems, very similar responsibilities

1090
01:42:18,610 --> 01:42:23,490
for the applicant for impacts.

1091
01:42:25,050 --> 01:42:29,050
The noise section is new for the town of Mansfield.

1092
01:42:29,050 --> 01:42:31,950
We don't have a general noise by-law in Mansfield,

1093
01:42:32,430 --> 01:42:35,570
and we rely on mass DEPs requirement.

1094
01:42:36,570 --> 01:42:39,390
That hadn't been updated since 1996,

1095
01:42:39,850 --> 01:42:46,810
and they are actually in the process of updating the DEP noise by-law now.

1096
01:42:46,810 --> 01:42:55,790
now, but we wanted to take some of the really good portions of the DEP by-law and put them

1097
01:42:55,790 --> 01:43:07,410
into our local zoning for data centers having to do with noise requirements at points of compliance.

1098
01:43:07,410 --> 01:43:32,970
So, basically, it's a shift away from the standard sound decibel reading at the property line, and it actually shifts that over to where houses are residential zoning districts and houses that may be near industrial districts where they might be allowed.

1099
01:43:34,190 --> 01:43:43,370
So professional noise studies will be required to be peer-reviewed, pre-construction, baseline

1100
01:43:43,370 --> 01:43:45,430
levels, and post-construction.

1101
01:43:47,950 --> 01:43:54,070
The next two sections have to do with backup-powered emissions and site design and physical

1102
01:43:54,070 --> 01:44:00,710
impacts, where we're also looking at air quality and emissions, and then general municipal services

1103
01:44:00,710 --> 01:44:01,550
and infrastructure.

1104
01:44:01,550 --> 01:44:31,530
So, the planning board did meet with the folks from the Electric Department and the Water Department to really understand the infrastructure capacities that we have now and the types of impacts that we generally hear about, particularly with the large data centers which we would not be approving, but even on the small scale, we would be looking at what the impacts of that law.

1105
01:44:31,530 --> 01:44:37,630
would be. Okay, so so I appreciate that. We didn't answer the question of the health issues.

1106
01:44:38,370 --> 01:44:47,070
So there's actually been documented health issues of people living near data centers that have been in existence for a few years now.

1107
01:44:47,810 --> 01:44:55,850
Portland, Oregon is an example of one. They're having major health issues of people living near data centers that have one big issue.

1108
01:44:55,850 --> 01:44:59,670
The other issue is I don't think we want to run into an

1109
01:45:00,000 --> 01:45:29,160
We're not in a situation where we allow them to build, right? And then because maybe we have all these restrictions on the area that they don't stay, right? And then you're kind of like, well, another failed business in the area, right? So, I think it's a balance. It doesn't make sense to put it in such a highly populated town like ours. Or, you know, maybe this is just something that isn't a good fit.

1110
01:45:29,160 --> 01:45:41,400
for our town at this time until they can produce more efficiently and more effectively and more responsibly.

1111
01:45:41,900 --> 01:45:54,860
So the alternative would be to just ban any data center uniformly, is that what your alternative to this would be?

1112
01:45:56,060 --> 01:45:59,600
I think if we do not have sufficient information

1113
01:45:59,600 --> 01:46:02,100
for the protection of our town and our resources,

1114
01:46:02,660 --> 01:46:06,300
yeah, that would probably be something we need to look at.

1115
01:46:06,680 --> 01:46:07,780
Sorry, you should explain that.

1116
01:46:07,780 --> 01:46:09,780
Until we know, I'm not saying I can't.

1117
01:46:09,900 --> 01:46:11,140
I'm just saying I should look at you.

1118
01:46:11,740 --> 01:46:12,940
And I don't think you know.

1119
01:46:13,740 --> 01:46:16,220
Well, I just want to make one comment about it.

1120
01:46:16,900 --> 01:46:19,620
I don't know if you can see us, Jill, but this is Mallor Earnstein.

1121
01:46:21,460 --> 01:46:49,560
The attempt to sort of put in some parameters and guardrails I think is very important in this space because it's rapidly developing and if we don't have something that we can hold folks looking to do business in this way, if we don't have something to hold them to, then we're a little bit more liable to not have, you know, some say in the way and how they're aware and where they're located.

1122
01:46:49,560 --> 01:46:57,280
and what they're doing. It does require special permits, so that's important, and I think what really landed with me, because this is not, I don't love these either.

1123
01:46:57,840 --> 01:47:03,500
I find them to be kind of a drain, and so that worries me when times are limited.

1124
01:47:03,740 --> 01:47:15,720
But our bi-law proposal contemplates the smallest here, and it allows us to sort of baby-sep into this, protect the town by dictating terms by which you would locate here with something like this.

1125
01:47:15,720 --> 01:47:21,900
But I think your points are pretty valid and we should all be looking into that with any new technology.

1126
01:47:22,340 --> 01:47:26,300
So I didn't want to, I just wanted to address that because it was a good point.

1127
01:47:30,440 --> 01:47:35,460
Any other hands raised on, well sorry, I'm still on my digital space here.

1128
01:47:35,600 --> 01:47:38,020
Any other speaking of data centers, any other hands raised?

1129
01:47:38,040 --> 01:47:39,360
Any other hands raised?

1130
01:47:40,020 --> 01:47:44,300
Okay, I'm actually going to go to the gentleman behind you because he was first.

1131
01:47:45,200 --> 01:47:47,120
Oh, okay, sorry.

1132
01:47:47,120 --> 01:47:50,320
Sorry, I'm trying to keep my order.

1133
01:47:54,140 --> 01:47:55,400
You're doing well.

1134
01:47:55,880 --> 01:47:57,900
Sandra Levine, 20 won't.

1135
01:47:59,960 --> 01:48:03,820
I agree wholeheartedly with that last speaker,

1136
01:48:04,460 --> 01:48:10,440
because even if you open up the door, a small amount,

1137
01:48:11,720 --> 01:48:17,280
that particular data center, again, even if it's tiny,

1138
01:48:17,280 --> 01:48:26,480
is going to be a bother to somebody that's close to it, but it also,

1139
01:48:29,120 --> 01:48:30,420
if nobody has

1140
01:48:30,420 --> 01:48:39,560
anybody I should ask, has anybody requested a data center permit? No. Well,

1141
01:48:39,980 --> 01:48:46,800
everything that we're doing now, the research that we're doing, the culling

1142
01:48:46,800 --> 01:48:58,400
of spaces where this could go within the town would have to be started again, if somebody

1143
01:48:58,400 --> 01:49:03,060
applied for it, if we don't pass it.

1144
01:49:04,440 --> 01:49:11,740
And my thought is, if you don't open the door, perhaps the rat doesn't come in.

1145
01:49:11,740 --> 01:49:21,420
And I think that's a whole lot simpler than having to say put it in this place and can't

1146
01:49:21,420 --> 01:49:24,000
have more electricity than this.

1147
01:49:24,400 --> 01:49:34,980
And I've spoken to Joe Salicito and also Sean about the amount of resource that we have

1148
01:49:34,980 --> 01:49:38,080
to give up for them.

1149
01:49:38,080 --> 01:49:47,820
last year we gave we sold a ton of water to Adelboro if we give that same ton

1150
01:49:47,820 --> 01:49:57,950
of water to a data center we're not we're not improving lives we're just making a

1151
01:49:57,950 --> 01:50:06,910
data center work at the cost of our water supply suppose we have a drought

1152
01:50:06,910 --> 01:50:19,610
that's horrendous. I don't want to jeopardize our water, the amount, the quality. I think it's,

1153
01:50:20,590 --> 01:50:26,530
well, I'm not in favor of it. And I just think if you don't put it on the books,

1154
01:50:27,390 --> 01:50:33,650
you don't ever have to worry about a larger one or that one. Thank you.

1155
01:50:35,930 --> 01:50:43,510
The reality of the situation, the reality of the situation in the data center is that the square footage that you need is hundreds of thousands of square feet.

1156
01:50:43,830 --> 01:50:46,470
We really don't have a spot in town that's going to have it.

1157
01:50:46,690 --> 01:50:51,110
The micro ones, the hurdle on the micro ones of finance, you're not going to be able to put one in town.

1158
01:50:51,550 --> 01:50:55,110
These places are hundreds of thousands of square feet, they're huge.

1159
01:50:56,170 --> 01:50:59,730
And we don't have spots in town that would be able to accommodate them to begin with.

1160
01:50:59,730 --> 01:51:07,310
I think it's great that we're putting guardrails around them, but at the end of the day I'm thinking it's more of a waste of time than someone trying to sneak in the back door.

1161
01:51:07,630 --> 01:51:10,850
And it also requires a special permit, so that's how you shut it down at the end of the day.

1162
01:51:11,730 --> 01:51:17,330
And then we're also the light commissioners, and we're not going to have them drive the price of our electricity through the roof.

1163
01:51:17,330 --> 01:51:22,370
We know how much of a buffer we have between what we use and what we're contracted for.

1164
01:51:23,430 --> 01:51:27,430
So I think it's great that we're putting guardrails around it, but there are other safeguards in place.

1165
01:51:28,710 --> 01:51:30,390
including a water connection, too.

1166
01:51:30,710 --> 01:51:32,330
So your comments about water?

1167
01:51:32,430 --> 01:51:34,990
Yeah, and the water connection was because you weren't here, but

1168
01:51:34,990 --> 01:51:40,150
Natalboro, they went dry in the reservoirs, and we hooked up so they could do.

1169
01:51:40,150 --> 01:51:42,450
Oh no, that's great, I like it in the neighbor.

1170
01:51:42,650 --> 01:51:46,110
I just mean, when the new business comes in and they have to pay for a water connection.

1171
01:51:46,170 --> 01:51:46,270
Right.

1172
01:51:46,590 --> 01:51:47,990
You know, how much draw they can have about that.

1173
01:51:47,990 --> 01:51:52,490
Yeah, but we would also look, we would also look at the water department tell us we can do this, we can't do it, right?

1174
01:51:52,610 --> 01:51:53,650
Right, right, so.

1175
01:51:53,870 --> 01:51:54,910
So, but thank you, Sandy.

1176
01:51:55,190 --> 01:51:56,230
Speak a little louder next time.

1177
01:52:01,030 --> 01:52:08,450
Standphone from 125 Central Street. May I go back to Article 3? I'm just curious, what's

1178
01:52:08,450 --> 01:52:18,810
the outlook for two questions for Article 3? What is the outlook for 2028 in terms of

1179
01:52:18,810 --> 01:52:28,450
override and stuff like that? And the second question is, how did we arrive at the conclusion

1180
01:52:28,450 --> 01:52:32,190
that we are not going forward with the override for this year.

1181
01:52:33,770 --> 01:52:36,230
Okay, so I'll answer from the select board's perspective.

1182
01:52:38,410 --> 01:52:42,770
We have the override last year and I got voted down at town meeting, and

1183
01:52:42,770 --> 01:52:46,370
the override last year also got voted down at the ballot box a couple weeks later.

1184
01:52:47,470 --> 01:52:52,930
At that time, all the groups got together and we had discussed, we know that we're in a situation,

1185
01:52:53,170 --> 01:52:55,850
again this year, that we're going to have a 2 million plus override.

1186
01:52:55,850 --> 01:53:11,790
And I think Matt, and I think would agree, Nick, that if we don't do anything we're going to have another two million dollar override, at least as a minimum for next year without any, without any changing of the infrastructure, right?

1187
01:53:11,870 --> 01:53:16,550
And the infrastructure to me is, we have the, go ahead, Matt, did you want to go ahead, Nick?

1188
01:53:16,550 --> 01:53:17,230
Right, Nick?

1189
01:53:17,890 --> 01:53:29,830
Yeah, more just like a course correction in terms of expenses, as I think what the board really wanted to go in the direction of that for this year without just arbitrarily putting up a number that we thought would get us through for one year.

1190
01:53:30,270 --> 01:53:40,450
So, at the end of the day, we have the contracts that have come up on the school side, the contracts coming up on the town side, and that includes wages and health care.

1191
01:53:40,950 --> 01:53:54,110
And at the end of the day, everyone's going to, you know, everyone's going to have to take a hit, you know, we're going to pay more in taxes, the union's going to have to take a hit on wages or health care or something in order for us to fix the curve on a go forward basis.

1192
01:53:54,570 --> 01:54:07,830
We felt that without fixing the curve, you put it up this year, it gets approved or doesn't get approved, we're in the same boat next year because we haven't changed the drivers, the drivers of the health care costs overall, salaries and wages are driving it.

1193
01:54:07,830 --> 01:54:15,350
You saw the conversation earlier about state aid as a percentage has really hasn't moved in the last you know 10 years

1194
01:54:15,350 --> 01:54:20,910
So we're you state even though the states collecting more money the politicians using it for their pet projects

1195
01:54:20,910 --> 01:54:25,550
They're not pushing it back to the cities and towns. So we felt that if we didn't have a solution

1196
01:54:26,650 --> 01:54:30,330
We weren't going to vote for it because yet the town has to remain affordable too, you know

1197
01:54:30,330 --> 01:54:33,790
You can't just say I mean, oh if you can afford to pay it that's great

1198
01:54:33,790 --> 01:54:37,590
But there were a lot of people who can't afford to pay an extra 500 to 600 dollars this year

1199
01:54:37,590 --> 01:54:40,810
And then $1,000 next year, and then $50,000 a year after.

1200
01:54:41,190 --> 01:54:47,290
So that was the thought process behind it is that we felt that we have a chance as a community to try to fix this.

1201
01:54:47,710 --> 01:54:49,830
So we're not in the same situation next year.

1202
01:54:51,250 --> 01:54:54,030
Can I piggyback and so, I'm sorry.

1203
01:54:54,430 --> 01:54:57,290
So I put up this slide just as a refresher.

1204
01:54:57,510 --> 01:55:00,710
So we did contemplate and hemdenhawk quite a bit and

1205
01:55:00,710 --> 01:55:05,190
decided that we have some to do items to accomplish before we go back to the town and

1206
01:55:05,190 --> 01:55:05,790
and ask them.

1207
01:55:06,030 --> 01:55:11,330
Part of it is to identify exactly what we need specifically and then what that translates

1208
01:55:11,330 --> 01:55:12,270
to in services.

1209
01:55:13,530 --> 01:55:20,250
It requires our economic development strategies to be granted the opportunity to come into

1210
01:55:20,250 --> 01:55:20,550
play.

1211
01:55:20,810 --> 01:55:23,970
And some of these things are already going on, it's just going to take us some time.

1212
01:55:24,310 --> 01:55:26,610
We want to really examine and write size the budget.

1213
01:55:26,730 --> 01:55:33,050
We want to really analyze exactly, instead of making reactive cuts because we're coming

1214
01:55:33,050 --> 01:55:34,990
up and, you know, oh, what if we get the override?

1215
01:55:35,170 --> 01:55:41,170
We'll just do this and then just cut it all to really take a look and redesign what needs

1216
01:55:41,170 --> 01:55:44,850
to be redesigned and expand our efficiencies, all of those things.

1217
01:55:44,990 --> 01:55:49,870
And we just want to, or at least I do, I really want to get my hands on the budget in a, you

1218
01:55:49,870 --> 01:55:52,230
know, elbow's deep kind of way and really just look at it.

1219
01:55:52,510 --> 01:55:54,070
So we do need that opportunity.

1220
01:55:54,390 --> 01:55:58,090
It is very difficult as Dr. Keane discussed it.

1221
01:55:58,090 --> 01:56:02,610
And we really tried to give the least impact possible.

1222
01:56:03,210 --> 01:56:06,790
As far as the town side goes, we still need to have all of our union conversations.

1223
01:56:06,830 --> 01:56:09,070
They're not done and we still need to have those.

1224
01:56:09,250 --> 01:56:15,970
So I cannot go to you, the voter, and say, please support this $3.8 million override.

1225
01:56:16,110 --> 01:56:22,070
Because I don't feel that I've done my due diligence or my homework to say, yes, that's exactly what I need, it hears why.

1226
01:56:23,190 --> 01:56:27,850
Again, I don't know when you came in, but I said the phrase that override is a bad word for me.

1227
01:56:27,850 --> 01:56:34,350
Like I don't like to use it, it's a kind of last-ditch effort and it's a correction, a permanent correction.

1228
01:56:34,570 --> 01:56:39,930
That's why you have to have the permanent adjustment to the tax levy because we have all these constraints

1229
01:56:39,930 --> 01:56:43,530
that are in the slides before and nobody's denying them, they exist.

1230
01:56:43,970 --> 01:56:51,790
We need to get a better solution that contemplates everything for everybody and then present it to you

1231
01:56:51,790 --> 01:56:56,470
and explain how we arrived at that situation, how we arrived at these determinations and what

1232
01:56:56,470 --> 01:57:02,410
that they ultimately cost you so that you know what you're buying in an override because taxes equal services.

1233
01:57:03,170 --> 01:57:09,470
So you need to know what services costs and you need to tell us where you want the money to go, which services.

1234
01:57:10,170 --> 01:57:17,290
And also, you remember we end up in a better position the next couple of months based on the negotiations with the town and the schools.

1235
01:57:17,770 --> 01:57:21,070
Then we have a full town meeting and maybe we make an adjustment there.

1236
01:57:21,790 --> 01:57:50,710
So, you know, we're making an adjustment based on the fact that we haven't done everything that we can do, but that might not be the case come 90, 120 days from now, but right now at town meeting, we haven't had the negotiations on the health care, on the salaries, you know, with the unions, et cetera, they're in process, so we have to see what those land, and if they land in a positive place, then maybe in the fall we come back and is an adjustment that we can make to schools and towns.

1237
01:57:51,070 --> 01:57:51,930
in the town.

1238
01:57:53,090 --> 01:57:54,810
Um, another question, actually.

1239
01:57:55,090 --> 01:57:55,870
Please educate me.

1240
01:57:56,650 --> 01:58:05,150
Um, so that 2.5% is it on the tax rate or is it on the total taxed levy?

1241
01:58:05,550 --> 01:58:07,610
Like the total million dollars of levy?

1242
01:58:07,870 --> 01:58:08,350
The total levy.

1243
01:58:08,710 --> 01:58:09,470
The later.

1244
01:58:09,670 --> 01:58:15,210
So, a tax levy is the total amount a town can spend in a year.

1245
01:58:15,670 --> 01:58:19,670
And we are allowed to go up two and a half percent every year.

1246
01:58:19,670 --> 01:58:20,170
plus growth.

1247
01:58:20,430 --> 01:58:21,110
Plus growth.

1248
01:58:21,370 --> 01:58:21,930
Which is small.

1249
01:58:22,030 --> 01:58:22,310
That's what you're doing.

1250
01:58:22,610 --> 01:58:24,350
Our growth is declining.

1251
01:58:24,650 --> 01:58:26,010
It was a half a million right last year.

1252
01:58:26,350 --> 01:58:26,710
It was small.

1253
01:58:26,930 --> 01:58:27,050
Yes.

1254
01:58:27,450 --> 01:58:27,990
What's the growth?

1255
01:58:28,950 --> 01:58:30,450
What's the population growth or something else?

1256
01:58:30,530 --> 01:58:33,650
No, growth in the levy.

1257
01:58:33,650 --> 01:58:35,970
In fact, so that's what this slide behind me is all about.

1258
01:58:36,830 --> 01:58:40,130
Generally, our 2.5 percent increase from year to year

1259
01:58:40,130 --> 01:58:41,850
is landing around $2 million.

1260
01:58:42,650 --> 01:58:45,970
And what we're trying to communicate is that our fixed costs

1261
01:58:45,970 --> 01:58:48,850
are far and away more than $2 million

1262
01:58:48,850 --> 01:58:54,490
dollars increasing year over year and the state aid is not cutting it to help us address

1263
01:58:54,490 --> 01:59:02,710
this. So then we look at our new growth which came in $8,500 under budget which an estimate

1264
01:59:02,710 --> 01:59:07,330
for your growth is usually very conservative so that you meet it and don't end up in the

1265
01:59:07,330 --> 01:59:16,430
situation where we didn't make that revenues or we didn't meet that bottom line. So now

1266
01:59:16,430 --> 01:59:21,590
Now we are decreasing our amount of growth to just half a million dollars when in a town

1267
01:59:21,590 --> 01:59:25,310
like us we should have something around like 800, we should be able to develop.

1268
01:59:25,790 --> 01:59:31,110
So we need to tap into how we can develop maybe we get a cost center and that adds $3 million

1269
01:59:31,110 --> 01:59:34,490
of value and we can get the revenue from them.

1270
01:59:34,930 --> 01:59:39,470
So that's why our economic development part of the stool is just so important.

1271
01:59:40,110 --> 01:59:45,490
So our new growth is going down and that is growth on buildable, taxable entities.

1272
01:59:47,150 --> 01:59:48,070
Does that make sense?

1273
01:59:49,250 --> 01:59:50,030
A little bit.

1274
01:59:50,030 --> 01:59:50,310
Thank you.

1275
01:59:50,990 --> 01:59:51,810
Thank you.

1276
01:59:51,910 --> 01:59:52,030
All right.

1277
01:59:52,370 --> 01:59:53,930
How do I get a farm from you?

1278
01:59:54,970 --> 01:59:55,730
It's a farm.

1279
01:59:56,350 --> 01:59:59,610
You know, if I'm through the time with all of you, I'm sorry.

1280
02:00:01,700 --> 02:00:07,560
We can figure it out, I don't know. If it's a recent land, but come on up.

1281
02:00:15,060 --> 02:00:35,740
And I live on benefits straight. And I had two questions. One is some of the slides was so impossible to see the detail in my sight. It's not that great. Is there a way of getting them before the town? Yes. So I do have to make one change that this exercise showed that I had the wrong language there. And then it will be up online so that you can read, you know, we're going to have

1282
02:00:35,740 --> 02:00:37,500
Printed copies as well, correct?

1283
02:00:37,680 --> 02:00:40,520
Well, I'm probably going to update the town meeting one,

1284
02:00:40,780 --> 02:00:42,620
but those will be available as well.

1285
02:00:42,700 --> 02:00:43,260
Okay, that's great.

1286
02:00:43,580 --> 02:00:46,400
This specific one will be online as soon as I make that change.

1287
02:00:47,220 --> 02:00:49,460
With all the attachments that went with it?

1288
02:00:49,580 --> 02:00:50,940
Yes, there are links.

1289
02:00:51,340 --> 02:00:55,660
Yep, there, like see right here, it's like a hyperlink.

1290
02:00:55,860 --> 02:00:57,000
Okay, okay.

1291
02:00:57,420 --> 02:01:00,480
The other question is, my husband would love to have a meeting

1292
02:01:00,480 --> 02:01:02,980
with you to talk about an issue we've been having

1293
02:01:02,980 --> 02:01:05,700
with snow removal for at least five years.

1294
02:01:06,320 --> 02:01:08,440
I just ask that you wait till after May 5th.

1295
02:01:08,440 --> 02:01:08,900
Is that okay?

1296
02:01:09,120 --> 02:01:09,760
That's okay.

1297
02:01:10,740 --> 02:01:11,880
After May 5th, please.

1298
02:01:12,700 --> 02:01:13,560
May 5th.

1299
02:01:13,560 --> 02:01:14,640
May 5th, you can wait.

1300
02:01:14,880 --> 02:01:16,020
It's like, what date is that?

1301
02:01:16,020 --> 02:01:16,620
After May 5th.

1302
02:01:17,520 --> 02:01:18,780
After May 5th.

1303
02:01:18,780 --> 02:01:22,140
No, but we can wait till after May 5th for that.

1304
02:01:22,500 --> 02:01:23,560
Absolutely, come on in.

1305
02:01:23,900 --> 02:01:24,200
Thank you.

1306
02:01:24,420 --> 02:01:26,200
I just request after May 5th, if you don't mind.

1307
02:01:26,880 --> 02:01:27,900
Hopefully it doesn't snow.

1308
02:01:29,280 --> 02:01:29,480
No.

1309
02:01:30,260 --> 02:01:32,100
We don't have any money for it anyway, so.

1310
02:01:32,100 --> 02:01:33,860
So, good

1311
02:01:37,480 --> 02:01:43,960
afternoon, I may have known who I am, but I'm Amos Robertson from 178 Mill Street

1312
02:01:43,960 --> 02:01:52,900
out of East Mansfield, next to the Northern line, so I served in this community and I feel

1313
02:01:52,900 --> 02:01:58,140
for you guys and ladies and whatever, because the year that I was the first year I was the

1314
02:01:58,140 --> 02:02:07,720
like we was facing the same thing. And yeah, we had to make some tough calls. And I feel

1315
02:02:07,720 --> 02:02:15,460
for you, you know, I know the pain, I know the phone calls I got and everything. You

1316
02:02:15,460 --> 02:02:23,560
know, what are you doing? But, although we can get, we've gotten through it then, we get

1317
02:02:23,560 --> 02:02:30,040
through it now. I don't know I know I'm sure on my age but when Prop 2 and a half came in

1318
02:02:30,040 --> 02:02:36,900
we all thought we was at a disaster but we found ways to get through it.

1319
02:02:40,920 --> 02:02:41,660
And we're going

1320
02:02:41,660 --> 02:02:48,180
to find a way to get through here. I mean if I can be any help to anybody you know most of you know

1321
02:02:48,180 --> 02:02:57,240
I don't get around town like I used to, but when they give them period of time, if I can

1322
02:02:57,240 --> 02:02:59,040
help, I'll be able to help you.

1323
02:02:59,440 --> 02:03:05,890
One thing that struck my mind was that they talk about the bussiness.

1324
02:03:07,570 --> 02:03:13,630
I do not want to see a kindergarten of first to second grade going to a bus stop.

1325
02:03:14,950 --> 02:03:18,910
The people in this town drive too fast and too reckless.

1326
02:03:19,290 --> 02:03:26,930
How you know because I was hit by a car as a runner and I just don't want to see that

1327
02:03:26,930 --> 02:03:29,590
happen to a child in this town.

1328
02:03:31,880 --> 02:03:36,440
I mean, many people, you know, they, I get calls saying, you know, why don't you run for

1329
02:03:36,440 --> 02:03:37,240
select men again?

1330
02:03:37,400 --> 02:03:41,360
You are such a, you know, enhanced of bringing the town forward.

1331
02:03:42,460 --> 02:03:43,380
I said no.

1332
02:03:43,600 --> 02:03:44,920
It's time for young people.

1333
02:03:44,920 --> 02:04:00,500
I'm a senior citizen now. I want to enjoy my senior life. And that brings us to another thought and it just I don't have any particular. I'm just saying this. So, you know, who, you know, I came. I was talking with another fellow. That's the same age as I am.

1334
02:04:01,420 --> 02:04:09,980
And he was saying that you know, he said, it's in tough to live in town. He said, I'm on a prescription medication now.

1335
02:04:09,980 --> 02:04:13,720
Black pay $50 for a month supply.

1336
02:04:16,640 --> 02:04:22,740
In the new prescription coverage to a contract that we get, I'm going to pay $400 a month.

1337
02:04:23,840 --> 02:04:31,040
I know, my gosh, I understand pain, I said, you know, I don't know what to say.

1338
02:04:32,460 --> 02:04:39,700
I mean, you know, I understand everybody wants to make a dollar, but you know what?

1339
02:04:39,700 --> 02:04:47,660
But it's come to stop some place because we, my age group, won't be able to live in

1340
02:04:47,660 --> 02:04:47,900
town.

1341
02:04:48,940 --> 02:04:52,080
And if you wonder how long I've been here, I've been here 52 years.

1342
02:04:54,060 --> 02:04:56,840
When I came here, this was just a sleeping community,

1343
02:04:58,870 --> 02:05:00,590
you know, that's basically what it

1344
02:05:00,590 --> 02:05:00,750
was.

1345
02:05:01,290 --> 02:05:08,550
But I found a home, I found people that accept me, I found people that enjoyed having me and

1346
02:05:08,550 --> 02:05:16,350
And I'm here, but that's just some of the things, and for the town manager, please, I hope

1347
02:05:16,350 --> 02:05:24,090
I can get a list of what's on the capital improvement, because it seems that some years

1348
02:05:24,910 --> 02:05:25,770
it's balloon,

1349
02:05:27,860 --> 02:05:33,360
and I just want to see before I get to town mean, because I am not a person

1350
02:05:33,360 --> 02:05:34,540
that will not speak out.

1351
02:05:34,660 --> 02:05:35,820
I'll speak my mind in a minute.

1352
02:05:37,960 --> 02:05:39,360
Are you looking?

1353
02:05:39,360 --> 02:05:43,420
for just what's being voted on this year or the whole plan.

1354
02:05:43,960 --> 02:05:46,660
Okay, so it's listed right here in the motions.

1355
02:05:46,660 --> 02:05:49,200
If you grab a packet before you leave, it'll be there.

1356
02:05:49,660 --> 02:05:53,740
And it's article six, and they're all there.

1357
02:05:53,980 --> 02:05:57,800
So it's certified free cash for an assessment for the Jordan Jackson element you will have.

1358
02:05:58,140 --> 02:06:04,580
My last point is for the board of select, but you guys got it me because you want to meet twice.

1359
02:06:05,920 --> 02:06:10,420
When we went through this idea before, when I was my first year on the board, we met

1360
02:06:10,420 --> 02:06:18,640
every week we had to because we were determined that we was going to get through this, and

1361
02:06:18,640 --> 02:06:24,160
we was not going to ask the people for an override because we could hear it in the community.

1362
02:06:25,720 --> 02:06:30,800
It's going to be dead when you guys get there, so that's all I got to say.

1363
02:06:30,800 --> 02:06:32,720
Before you leave, sir.

1364
02:06:33,340 --> 02:06:39,660
So the gentleman that you had referenced whose prescription was rising at such a drastic rate.

1365
02:06:40,180 --> 02:06:44,540
If you could just encourage him to contact the council on the Z-Live in town.

1366
02:06:45,140 --> 02:06:50,980
If you could contact the council on aging for benefits, there's some outreach available there,

1367
02:06:51,000 --> 02:06:55,500
and explanation of services that could potentially yield some savings.

1368
02:06:55,840 --> 02:07:00,280
But there's conversations that can be had to maybe help him in his way.

1369
02:07:01,000 --> 02:07:06,560
I guess the only thing I was trying to say is I'm sure is somebody else in this town is in the same position

1370
02:07:08,360 --> 02:07:08,840
People

1371
02:07:10,300 --> 02:07:15,420
How do you say people don't like to say well look? I'm poor. I can't afford this

1372
02:07:15,920 --> 02:07:22,500
When the last time you eat oh two days ago. I mean, you know people just yeah, they're very private independent people and

1373
02:07:23,780 --> 02:07:24,080
You know

1374
02:07:24,080 --> 02:07:24,640
No, it just,

1375
02:07:27,190 --> 02:07:27,710
it's okay.

1376
02:07:28,350 --> 02:07:30,530
My name is Don't Break, don't wreck the place on us.

1377
02:07:31,730 --> 02:07:33,790
Michael, the microphone is clear on us.

1378
02:07:34,430 --> 02:07:43,450
I'll pay for it, I mean, you know, I'm not that poor, but I thank you for

1379
02:07:43,450 --> 02:07:51,960
hitting me out and, you know, I hope that everything works out.

1380
02:07:54,260 --> 02:07:55,120
All right, we'll see you Tuesday.

1381
02:07:55,640 --> 02:07:55,920
Thank you.

1382
02:07:55,920 --> 02:08:00,600
And Amis is one of the new young people who stepped up for the board.

1383
02:08:02,180 --> 02:08:04,720
I just want to say I'm on the Capitol Improvements Committee and

1384
02:08:04,720 --> 02:08:06,680
I'll sit down with you any time to go through everything.

1385
02:08:07,780 --> 02:08:10,900
Yeah, because you know, I don't know where to go.

1386
02:08:11,060 --> 02:08:12,280
It'll be like the old days.

1387
02:08:13,940 --> 02:08:16,200
All right, you're wearing us down, you can have a farm.

1388
02:08:16,300 --> 02:08:17,880
So, come on up.

1389
02:08:18,720 --> 02:08:21,020
I'm just going to actually go to the last article.

1390
02:08:21,160 --> 02:08:24,920
I'm going to go to the last article and then we'll finish up with questions.

1391
02:08:24,920 --> 02:08:33,380
if that's okay. Mr. Fleming, would you like to discuss this? And this is the slide we put

1392
02:08:33,380 --> 02:08:38,780
together, so it's a zoning petition, and we have the citizen here. If you want to just give

1393
02:08:38,780 --> 02:08:45,320
me a little nod, and I will move this along for you. You can leave it on that slide for now.

1394
02:08:45,600 --> 02:08:51,400
William Fleming, I'm the petitioner of this citizen's petition. It was presented with

1395
02:08:51,400 --> 02:08:54,980
Just planning board back in April, end of March, beginning of April.

1396
02:08:56,060 --> 02:09:02,940
The petition is basically asking to rezone the large possible land six acres behind the shores and

1397
02:09:02,940 --> 02:09:07,720
staples that separates the plaza from South Walnut neighborhood.

1398
02:09:08,500 --> 02:09:14,520
The land is currently zone I-1 and it was changed to I-1 in 2012.

1399
02:09:15,180 --> 02:09:20,400
At the time, retail growth was going well and we thought that we could continue to expand the plaza.

1400
02:09:20,400 --> 02:09:24,060
and the town agreed that that would be a good thing for the town to have.

1401
02:09:24,780 --> 02:09:29,820
Unfortunately, over the last 10, 12 years, retail has not grown the way that it was expected to.

1402
02:09:30,300 --> 02:09:35,280
And what we found is a lot of the people that wanted to have retail wanted to be on 140,

1403
02:09:35,520 --> 02:09:39,320
because they want to expose it to the 20,000 cars that come down the road every day.

1404
02:09:40,120 --> 02:09:46,500
So at this point, this article is requesting to change the zone from I1 back to I2 residential.

1405
02:09:47,780 --> 02:09:53,800
The key reasons for that is almost all of the potential retail customers want to be on 140, not behind shots.

1406
02:09:54,460 --> 02:10:05,420
The retail opportunity for this site is limited at this point, and at this time we have no interest in developing it in other I-1 uses.

1407
02:10:06,520 --> 02:10:12,300
Going back to R-2 will allow for assisted care facility potentially, over 55 development or

1408
02:10:12,300 --> 02:10:17,720
across the development for assisted care facility for regular houses.

1409
02:10:18,460 --> 02:10:22,760
Leaving it, I-1 would potentially allow for other industrial uses, other than retail,

1410
02:10:23,120 --> 02:10:25,660
that could be more intrusive to neighbors.

1411
02:10:27,140 --> 02:10:31,540
The, you go forward a couple of slides, so it might be easier, one more.

1412
02:10:31,680 --> 02:10:31,940
One more?

1413
02:10:32,440 --> 02:10:34,220
That's just a bigger picture of the same thing.

1414
02:10:35,140 --> 02:10:40,460
So, we did go to the planning board for the recommendation in the beginning of April.

1415
02:10:40,460 --> 02:10:45,760
The planning board voted five to one to recommend the article to the select board for

1416
02:10:45,760 --> 02:10:46,280
town meeting.

1417
02:10:47,060 --> 02:10:50,460
Some of their quotes included zoning chains was better for the abouters and the neighbors.

1418
02:10:51,480 --> 02:10:54,880
Some of the I-1 allowed uses would not be conducive to the neighborhood.

1419
02:10:55,780 --> 02:10:59,760
I-2 would better serve the town by encouraging productive use of the land rather than leaving

1420
02:10:59,760 --> 02:11:00,260
it vacant.

1421
02:11:01,300 --> 02:11:03,840
I-2 is a less intense and better use of the land.

1422
02:11:04,960 --> 02:11:10,440
I-1 allows many uses by right without oversight from the planning board or import from the

1423
02:11:10,440 --> 02:11:16,800
the neighbors, whereas the R2 uses are more limited, more restrictive and often require special permits.

1424
02:11:17,640 --> 02:11:22,220
The final thing was R2 would be enabled, would enable needed housing, especially for 55 plus.

1425
02:11:22,540 --> 02:11:27,020
And all of those are quotes from the planning board before they recommended it for

1426
02:11:27,020 --> 02:11:29,580
the town meeting with a voter five to one.

1427
02:11:30,100 --> 02:11:34,300
So we ask the town to please support this article, a town meeting.

1428
02:11:34,300 --> 02:11:51,300
And what, you know, our idea is that we'd like to take it from the retail use and make it a an over 55 or small, small neighborhood, whatever it might be at six acres of land, it could be maybe 10 to 12 houses, it could be over 55 assisted living.

1429
02:11:51,960 --> 02:11:57,700
But what it could be doesn't matter because that goes back to the planning board and most of those require a special permit.

1430
02:11:57,700 --> 02:12:04,600
So, what is trying to change it back to R2, and then we'll have the opportunity to present whatever plans we have to the planning board.

1431
02:12:05,240 --> 02:12:05,760
Thank you.

1432
02:12:05,920 --> 02:12:06,280
Thank you.

1433
02:12:09,020 --> 02:12:10,200
Here's an explanation, too.

1434
02:12:10,440 --> 02:12:12,000
And this, again, will be posted.

1435
02:12:13,260 --> 02:12:15,040
So, here's the real slide for questions.

1436
02:12:15,640 --> 02:12:19,100
I am going to go to digital, and then to you, I think it's just the number one.

1437
02:12:19,280 --> 02:12:21,960
So, that's good. Nancy, do we have any raised hands?

1438
02:12:23,340 --> 02:12:32,500
If you'd like to make a comment for your question at this time, you're welcome to raise your hand, and I will identify you by meeting.

1439
02:12:33,280 --> 02:12:36,980
I do see that Francis, him, has her hand up.

1440
02:12:41,440 --> 02:12:45,460
Yeah, time for me to go back to the school budget.

1441
02:12:45,460 --> 02:13:05,780
So I know this has been brought up in the past when I feel like each year in the slide is just ignored in the comments, but over the past 10 plus years, our school population has dropped dramatically like I think like 1000 students or so.

1442
02:13:07,100 --> 02:13:14,000
And yet, it seems like the positions and the admin positions have significantly increased

1443
02:13:14,000 --> 02:13:14,800
over that time.

1444
02:13:16,780 --> 02:13:23,660
So I was wondering, is that something that, you know, like you guys kind of just always

1445
02:13:23,660 --> 02:13:30,220
put up like a few positions that are lost, but it's really like what is still staying and

1446
02:13:30,220 --> 02:13:37,340
And what is supported overall, like where are all the positions in the schools, right?

1447
02:13:37,860 --> 02:13:46,340
And what is necessary, I guess, compared to things that have been added on over the years, in the good years.

1448
02:13:47,380 --> 02:13:54,500
So you look at for a list of how many teachers they have, is that, like not the name is but the number, so I can address a few things there.

1449
02:13:54,500 --> 02:14:01,940
So we have addressed this in probably over a dozen meetings over the past several months.

1450
02:14:04,280 --> 02:14:08,420
The FTE accounts have gone down consistently every single year.

1451
02:14:09,140 --> 02:14:11,240
We have that data in slides.

1452
02:14:11,820 --> 02:14:17,380
Our administration costs are actually lower than all of our comparable districts.

1453
02:14:20,240 --> 02:14:25,760
We have a lot of times I think what people see is our power professional numbers have grown.

1454
02:14:25,760 --> 02:14:31,720
over the years, out of necessity, but we obviously have all that data.

1455
02:14:31,780 --> 02:14:51,580
If you go on the school's website under the budget information, there is a public hearing presentation which we presented in March, and there's also a supplemental presentation that contains pretty much every data metric compared to in some cases over 30 other communities that you can look at.

1456
02:14:52,340 --> 02:14:55,880
And I would also add, I appreciate you bringing this up.

1457
02:14:56,060 --> 02:14:59,980
We heard that loud and clear this year and Matt and I are both-

1458
02:15:00,000 --> 02:15:29,300
Both new to our positions. I can tell you we went line by line through the entire school budget this year. We met with every one of our principles in the entire leadership team, including directors of technology. Anyone who might be responsible for a dollar of this budget sat with us and talked about what they need, why they need it, and why it supports our students. I feel like we did a really responsible job cutting where we did.

1459
02:15:29,300 --> 02:15:31,780
And we are going to continue to do that.

1460
02:15:31,940 --> 02:15:37,340
The backup document with the supplemental information tracks over 20 years of enrollment.

1461
02:15:37,980 --> 02:15:42,880
And over the last few years, the enrollment has stabilized.

1462
02:15:43,580 --> 02:15:51,940
And the projections are out for the next 10 years that we will continue to operate right around the same number that we're at now for students.

1463
02:15:52,500 --> 02:15:58,440
So while there may have initially been, it seems like an over abundance of staff members.

1464
02:15:58,440 --> 02:16:07,320
We have corrected that and we are in line with state averages for class size recommendations and for teacher student ratios at this point.

1465
02:16:08,800 --> 02:16:11,440
Okay, I think it's just maybe more your slide.

1466
02:16:12,100 --> 02:16:12,300
Sure.

1467
02:16:12,880 --> 02:16:13,440
We can add something.

1468
02:16:13,880 --> 02:16:28,220
Unicated is my feedback, I guess, so that if that's the point you're trying to make, your slide just seems to continually call out the individual positions as well as positions we all saw last year.

1469
02:16:28,220 --> 02:16:38,380
we know that versus kind of overall numbers and maybe that compares them to what the average

1470
02:16:38,380 --> 02:16:41,840
is in the state to feel for people to feel comfortable with it.

1471
02:16:41,940 --> 02:16:42,340
That's all.

1472
02:16:42,780 --> 02:16:48,080
I just think it's more of a just laying the data or communicating the data to the people

1473
02:16:48,080 --> 02:16:48,440
then.

1474
02:16:49,040 --> 02:16:56,420
Because I will be honest, I don't have children in the school anymore, but there were a lot

1475
02:16:56,420 --> 02:17:00,240
a lot of positions that don't seem a capacity when I did.

1476
02:17:01,000 --> 02:17:05,220
And so maybe the position's there, but are there really a capacity?

1477
02:17:05,500 --> 02:17:07,120
I guess this is my question.

1478
02:17:08,160 --> 02:17:13,540
So, and then, that was it, actually I think that's all.

1479
02:17:13,880 --> 02:17:14,440
Thank you.

1480
02:17:15,300 --> 02:17:17,080
Thanks for that feedback, we appreciate it.

1481
02:17:17,480 --> 02:17:19,520
Do you have one more question that can't be about the farm?

1482
02:17:30,190 --> 02:17:36,610
I'm kind of curious, like, so the interest that we pay, that service, I guess, the interest

1483
02:17:36,610 --> 02:17:41,250
that we pay, right, has gone up, like, 40 percent for something percent.

1484
02:17:41,270 --> 02:17:41,910
That we know.

1485
02:17:42,590 --> 02:17:42,930
Go ahead.

1486
02:17:43,090 --> 02:17:43,650
What do you talk about?

1487
02:17:43,690 --> 02:17:44,070
It's all of it.

1488
02:17:44,490 --> 02:17:44,710
Yeah.

1489
02:17:44,950 --> 02:17:49,490
So it's a collective principle and interest short-term, long-term debt.

1490
02:17:49,670 --> 02:17:52,170
So there's a lot that kind of is encompassed in that.

1491
02:17:53,410 --> 02:17:57,530
Most recently, there has been multiple authorizations for borrowings.

1492
02:17:59,170 --> 02:18:03,510
For the last few years, we had been doing like road bonds, so those were 2 million or 2.5 million.

1493
02:18:04,950 --> 02:18:10,210
There was also a lot of school projects with the gym floor, track and field, Robinson playground.

1494
02:18:10,590 --> 02:18:16,590
So all of those are kind of coming online now for debt payment, so that's kind of why we see this big jump this year for that.

1495
02:18:17,550 --> 02:18:25,730
So even though they were voted three or four years ago, you voted, you go out to bid, you build the project, then you get the debt.

1496
02:18:26,130 --> 02:18:33,850
I'm curious how much of them are floating rate or flexible rate, how much of them are fixed rates?

1497
02:18:34,410 --> 02:18:35,610
They're all fixed rates.

1498
02:18:36,090 --> 02:18:37,310
All fixed rates, thank you.

1499
02:18:38,050 --> 02:18:38,550
Thank you.

1500
02:18:40,250 --> 02:18:43,970
Okay, we are rounding out at two and a half, it's like, oh, you have a question.

1501
02:18:43,970 --> 02:18:51,250
All right, we're you're going to be our final no pressure into Corpo eight seventy nine west street man's field

1502
02:18:51,250 --> 02:18:56,730
I just want to say a word of thanks to everyone here in this room. I

1503
02:18:56,730 --> 02:19:04,530
Value the partnership between the town manager and the superintendent of schools and I applaud the school committee

1504
02:19:04,530 --> 02:19:13,690
I mean the select board for their efforts to write the ship. I look forward to what you all bring to our to us the voters in

1505
02:19:13,690 --> 02:19:28,170
I'm writing the ship in 2028 and feel confident that what you ask for in 2028 will be valuable and will be accurate and therefore greatly supported by members of the town.

1506
02:19:29,010 --> 02:19:43,350
My wish is that our school committee and our finance committee members, I wish they were here at the table this evening to be on the same page with all of you in the building here.

1507
02:19:43,350 --> 02:19:50,070
And I just to plead out the school committee members sat in the audience, but the chair of the school committee is here tonight.

1508
02:19:50,470 --> 02:19:51,750
Thanks, Jen Walsh for being here.

1509
02:19:52,010 --> 02:19:55,270
And a finance committee vice chair is also here.

1510
02:19:55,270 --> 02:19:56,050
I apologize for any questions.

1511
02:19:56,610 --> 02:20:03,770
And as I mentioned, I did share my budget strategies ahead of time with those boards.

1512
02:20:03,990 --> 02:20:09,790
I've mean it when I want collaboration, and I am going to walk the walk if you know what I mean.

1513
02:20:09,790 --> 02:20:13,470
So we are, it's a new day, I guess, right?

1514
02:20:13,810 --> 02:20:15,990
Thank you, and I apologize, I didn't know they were sitting there.

1515
02:20:15,990 --> 02:20:18,570
They're incognito, I think they would rather that, right?

1516
02:20:18,870 --> 02:20:19,690
We saw you.

1517
02:20:19,830 --> 02:20:21,030
One of them stressed like a homeless man.

1518
02:20:21,970 --> 02:20:23,750
One of them stressed like, Scott, no more questions.

1519
02:20:24,050 --> 02:20:25,770
What part of no more questions did you not have?

1520
02:20:26,270 --> 02:20:26,970
We've got a hit problem.

1521
02:20:26,990 --> 02:20:27,410
We've got a hit problem.

1522
02:20:27,850 --> 02:20:30,990
But Scott, Feeley 49, Bruce Street, and member of the Finance Committee.

1523
02:20:31,590 --> 02:20:34,790
Look, you guys have made the call, the decisions made.

1524
02:20:35,030 --> 02:20:37,450
The Finance Committee is here with you, I can't speak to the school committee.

1525
02:20:37,450 --> 02:20:42,070
We have a job to do over the next year, and that's to follow the path that's been laid out.

1526
02:20:42,630 --> 02:20:47,170
You made the decision, you laid out the path, it's a tough one, we've talked about it, made our comments.

1527
02:20:47,470 --> 02:20:49,110
Now it's time to get on board and get the job done.

1528
02:20:51,220 --> 02:20:51,660
Well said.

1529
02:20:52,840 --> 02:20:57,600
I would just like to extend a sincere thank you for everyone who's spent their time to-

1530
02:20:57,600 --> 02:21:04,960
Oh, I just want to echo what's not said, because I think that there's a lot of inaccuracies.

1531
02:21:05,720 --> 02:21:16,320
We worked hard together, you know, ultimately the decision way with the select board, it is what it is now is the time for the real work because we can't be in this position next year.

1532
02:21:16,540 --> 02:21:25,500
So I think that putting everything aside and continuing to work, everybody wants to provide services to the town on both the town and the school side.

1533
02:21:25,780 --> 02:21:28,600
So it's just looking forward to a productive.