LONGMEADOW  – During the first evening of a two-part Town Meeting the initial steps toward a new Department of Public Works (DPW) headquarters were approved as well as the town’s FY18 operating budget and all of the projects proposed by the Community Preservation Committee.

The new DPW building proved to be the most contentious issue with the voters who filled Longmeadow High School gym. Some residents, including former Select Board member Alex Grant, believed initiating another project such as this one when the town is considering a possible new middle school and a senior center, would raise taxes to the point to make living in in Longmeadow difficult for those on fixed incomes.

Select Board member Richard Foster said of the effort to relocate the Department of Public Works (DPW) with a new building, “We’re at the end of a long process.”

As noted on the warrant, “The DPW Committee, after an exhaustive site selection process, recommended this location for the construction of a new DPW facility. The recommendation has been endorsed by both the Select Board and Town Meeting. This vote would authorize the Select Board to complete the acquisition by eminent domain for fair market value if funds are approved in Article 10 and subsequent Town Election vote. The fair market value of the property as determined by two independent appraisals is $2,600,000.00.”

That location is 170 Dwight Road, the site of the Grand Meadows tennis facility.

Jeff Alberti from Weston & Sampson Engineers presented the reasons for the new building and why the recommended location was selected. The present facility was built in 1931, he noted and today’s equipment does not fit in the garage. The supports for the roof are rotting, he added.

He explained the current DPW location is on a 100-year flood plain – meaning it could not get insurance – near a brownfield and has sewer lines running near it.

Alberti said the recommended design would be a steel building, which is efficient and cost-effective. Benefits including replacing a building past its life, include providing a safe work environment and better storage for expensive vehicles and tools, he said.

The warrant noted “The article would appropriate $2,600,000.00 for the acquisition of land and $18,605,000.00 for the constructing and equipping of a new DPW facility with costs shared proportionately by the funding sources utilizing the facility. This approval would be contingent on a subsequent affirmative vote of a debt exclusion vote by the voters of the Town of Longmeadow.”

Resident Roger Wojcik asked about the impact noise and the waste materials generated by the proposed new building. Town Manager Stephen Crane said the forested buffers would be expanded.

Michael Henderson said the location would cost the town property taxes by taking Grand Meadows off the tax rolls and the location is on busy streets. He blamed the current state of the present building on poor town management.

Speaking in favor of the proposal, Larry Bernstein said Grand Meadows is the only site that doesn’t place the burden on any one neighborhood.

Grant said, “There’s a lot of reasons to vote against this.” He asserted the average home’s property tax would increase more that $300 a year for 20 years and questioned the presentation made by Alberti.

When added with the two other projects, the increase would be more that $1,600 a year in increased property taxes, he charged. Grant said building a new DPW could kill a new middle school project and a new senior center.

Crane said the committee charged with the planning of the new headquarters went through “dozens of parcels” in its search. He said the problem is the town is about 96 percent built out.  

Foster defended the validity of the information in the presentation that was shown and said the town is spending more money on its infrastructure, such as sidewalks and roads.

“This [replacement of the] DPW is the best studied event in the history of our community,” Foster said.

Responding to questions on the site location, Crane said, “If we could do it on the [present] site, why wouldn’t we?”

Curt Freedman suggested renovating the existing building at Grand Meadows for the DPW rather construct a new building. Select Board member Mark Gold said the existing building has been inspected and evaluated and could not be used.

The town still has to approve the debt exclusion on during the June election, Gold noted.

Crane presented the FY2018 Town Budget, which was slightly different than in the warrants because of a supplemental charge from Springfield Water & Sewer Commission.

The town’s schools constitute 53 percent of the budget while the DPW is the second highest amount. Costs associated with employees – wages and benefits – are the largest share of the budget, he noted.

Eighty-two percent of the revenues are from property tax and there has been an increase due to the expansion of the Longmeadow Shoppes, Crane said.

There were no “dramatic swings” in the budget other than health insurance costs, he said. Crane characterized the budget process this year as “no drama.” The goal was to meet all town services while “keeping fiscal responsibility in the front of our mind,” he added.

School Superintendent Marty O’ Shea presented highlights of the school budget. He said the budget will “allow our commitment to excellence,” as well as meeting technology needs of students and teachers and added the budget was fiscally responsible.

There was a reduction of three teaching positions at the middle school level, but O’Shea that reductions will not affect the school’s effectiveness.

The budget was passed.

The projects approved by the Community Preservation Committee were all passed by the voters, although three elicited considerable comment. The ones passed without comment include a climate control project for the second floor of the Storrs House Museum; preservation of the town’s historic records collection; renovations to the Blueberry Hill School playground; the Wolf Swamp field well installation; Bliss Park guardrails and signage; Longmeadow Cemetery gravestone restoration and preservation project; and the Community House retaining wall and areaway.

What proved controversial among some voters was the proposal to build dugouts at Turner fields, at a cost of $20,000 of Community Preservation funds;  $118,500.00 to replace the windows in the Storrs Library, some of which date back to an installation in 1932; and $34,000 for a new playscape at the Wolf Swamp Pre-School. All of the disputed projects were ultimately passed.