Mr. Moderator...

Sandy Gleed - President of North Andover United Inc.

North Andover United has worked very hard over the past year to provide accurate and complete information to the citizens of North Andover.  We strongly believe that the future of our town depends on receiving honest answers to honest questions.  Voters need to be informed, in order to make financially responsible decisions.

Selectman Rick Nardella said it well, when he said that we ought to manage our finances carefully so that we can avoid the need for future operational overrides. 

Article 19, as well as article 22, (the police station and preschool articles), put us at high risk of annual budget shortfalls from 2010 to 2015.  Regardless of which five-year financial forecast is correct, passage of these articles will REQUIRE annual operational overrides, possibly starting as early as 2010.  If these operational overrides fail, we’ll see cuts in both municipal and school services far deeper than any we’ve ever experienced in the past.

The question is not "Do we need these buildings?" - we ABSOLUTELY do.  These are long-overdue capital improvements that will serve town residents well.

The question is:  How can we pay for them? 

It is true that the building projects alone will not put us over the edge - it’s the combination of a slowing economy, dwindling revenues, rising union contract costs, rising health insurance and retirement benefit costs, rising regular expenses like fuel and utility costs, AND adding debt service costs for new building projects that may push our budget further into the negative numbers. 

We must look at our municipal budget as a combination package - we must know:  what our revenues and expenses are, what the risks of taking on more debt are, and what our payment alternatives are.

Tonight, we have insufficient financial information to vote to build either the police station or the preschool building. 

Please vote "NO" on this article, and "NO" on article 22 as well.  Voting "NO" does not necessarily mean you don’t support the police station or preschool; we should not abandon these sound proposals.  However, voters should not be asked to make a decision of this magnitude without a thorough understanding of the long-term financial impact on our town services.

Please join NAU in asking our elected leaders to bring these proposals back, at a future town meeting, when they have finalized the union contracts; when the October 1st deadline for joining the state health insurance plan has passed; and when our finance committee and town manager have achieved a united financial forecast.

Rather than our town leaders asking us "How much are you willing to risk to build these buildings?"  NAU says. "Wait six months, put the projects back on the table then, and show us (1)  whether you have achieved affordable union contracts, (2)  whether you have lowered the town’s expenses by joining the State Insurance Plan and (3) an accurate, up-to-date picture of how much money we really have to spend.  Allow us to make financially responsible decisions for the future of our town."

Thank you!

From Eagle Tribune on 5/15/08 

By Drake Lucas - Staff writer

NORTH ANDOVER - Town Meeting overwhelmingly approved construction of a preschool next to Atkinson Elementary School last night.

The School Committee said the 10-room, $4 million preschool will relieve overcrowding at the elementary schools, which are so tight on space that libraries, computer rooms and art rooms are all being used as classrooms.

School Committee member Charles Ormsby said the new school won't give the district all the space it needs over the next few years but that at least the space will replace classrooms lost when the Bradstreet School closed in 2005.

"We're ecstatic," said committee member Chris Nobile when asked about the outcome. Although no official tally of votes was taken, most supported the preschool's construction.

Committee Chairwoman Barbara Whidden described the school as a "very simple, one-story preschool building" that will include just the basics: classrooms, bathrooms and offices.

Whidden said the state mandates that preschool be provided for special needs students where they can interact with typically developing peers. She said putting all classrooms in the same building allows classes to share supplies, equipment and specialists.

The preschool could also be accredited, making it eligible for grant money from the state. The school can also save money by educating students with special needs within the district instead of busing them to another town and paying tuition.

The proposal to borrow $2.1 million for the preschool and pay it back within the budget was supported by selectmen and the School Committee. The Finance Committee recommended against this plan because it said the town will have trouble paying for everything it needs in future years due to rising costs, including employee health insurance.

The Finance Committee had a similar recommendation at Tuesday night's Town Meeting, recommending against borrowing $4.7 million to build a $5.6 million police station. Town Meeting voted to go ahead and build the police station Tuesday night.

Some questioned whether the Bradstreet School, last used as a kindergarten three years ago, could be used for a school again. Whidden said the town's building inspector and contractors deemed the building unfit for educational use, and that the money to renovate the school would cost more than constructing a new preschool.

She also said the building's design, including many flights of stairs, would not make the school accessible for some students with physical disabilities.

Selectman Mark Caggiano said the town is planning to develop a plan on how to use or whether to sell its vacant property, including the Bradstreet School and the current police station building once the new station is built.

Part of the money for the preschool was listed as coming from $600,000 the state gave to the town after Town Meeting approved a project to go in at 1600 Osgood St., the former Lucent Technologies property, which would include restaurants, businesses and apartments. Some residents asked whether that money is still available because Avalon Bay Communities Inc., the developer that was to build the apartments, may have backed out of the project.

Selectman Chairman Mark Caggiano said the $600,000 is guaranteed by the developer even if the apartments are not built on the property.

Last night was the second and final day of Town Meeting, which started Tuesday night. Attendance was low, with fewer than 150 people voting on some articles. More people voted for the preschool, although no official count was taken. Many left after the vote on the preschool was taken.

Also at last night's meeting:

Town Meeting approved rezoning land on Route 125 across from Osgood Landing for commercial business use from Barker Road to the Haverhill line. Town Planner Lincoln Daley said the change will encourage more business to come to the area. The streets behind Route 125 that have houses now will remain residential.

Town Meeting approved lifting a zoning restriction from a part of the town farm on Dale Street so fields can be built for youth sports. The land has a conservation restriction that will be lifted for two 3-acre parcels.

22. Borrow to build a preschool. Approved

23. Town and school consolidate administrative duties. Approved

24. Petition Legislature for exemption to prevailing wage on projects under $50,000. Approved

25. Enforce town bylaws. Not approved

26. Enforce 600-foot setback of wireless antennas. Not approved

27. Limit ability of town to take property by eminent domain. Approved with amendments

28. Expand Revenue and Fixed Costs Review Committee duty. Withdrawn

29. Accept Foulds Terrace. Approved

30. Accept Autran Avenue. Approved

31. Excavation and Trench Safety Board. Approved

32. Athletic fields on Town Farm. Approved

33. Stormwater Management and Erosion Control Bylaw. Withdrawn

34. Machine Shop Village Neighborhood Conservation District Bylaw. Approved

35. Allow more family suites in R-4 residential district. Approved

36. Amend sign and sign lighting regulations. Approved

37. Add Corridor Development District. Approved with amendments

38. Change zoning on Route 125. Approved with amendments

39. Change bylaw for off-street parking screening and landscaping. Approved

40. Allow Planning Board more flexibility for phasing schedules with developers. Approved

41. Change fire alarm rules description. Approved

42. Clarify definition of a structure. Approved

43. Limit size of retail establishment in Business 1 and 2 districts. Approved

44. Rezone two parcels on Turnpike Street. Approved

45. Rezone four parcels on Andover Street. Withdrawn

From Eagle Tribune on 5/14/08  

By Drake Lucas - Staff writer

NORTH ANDOVER — Residents will be getting a new police station after a narrow vote by Town Meeting last night to borrow $4.7 million to buy and renovate the former Merrimack Valley Credit Union on Route 125.

Police Chief Richard Stanley, who has been trying to get a new police station for more than 20 years, beamed as residents gave him handshakes and congratulations after the proposal barely received the two-thirds majority needed, 193-84. The plan required at least 184 votes for approval.

He said the new station is a necessity for 67 employees working in a "lawsuit waiting to happen" in the current building, which was built in 1967. He described a lack of security and privacy in a building where prisoners are unloaded 100 feet from an elementary school and victims have nowhere to talk privately with officers.

Men and women share a locker room, 67 employees share one toilet, and the building doesn't meet health, electrical, plumbing and handicapped accessibility standards, Stanley said.

The town voted to spend $1.75 million to buy the former credit union building and then $3.88 million on renovations. More than $95,000 of that is already available through money set aside from other projects.

Nobody denied the need for a new police station, but how to pay for it sparked an hourlong debate last night with Town Manager Mark Rees and selectmen recommending residents vote to borrow the money and pay it back within the budget.

The Finance Committee, using more conservative budget projections than Rees, recommended against borrowing the money and paying it back within the budget, saying it would lead to cuts in town services or an override in future years because of other rising costs in town, including employee health insurance.

Selectmen urged the town to vote last night because the building already has another buyer and might not be available soon. They also said the cost had been reduced from the almost $10 million proposal for a police station in 2005.

Resident Ted Tripp said he was opposed to the 2005 proposal, but supported the police station last night because the town won't have to raise taxes and the cost is less.

"We badly need a police station and this is the best opportunity we've seen in a long time," he said.

Others, including Sandy Gleed, president of the citizens group North Andover United, said they were against spending the money when the Finance Committee was showing numbers that the budget would be running a deficit in future years. They worried that taxes might have to be raised to pay for expenses in town.

Police Building Committee Chairman Sam Yameen said the need exists now for a police station, and the town can find a way later to pay for future needs.

"This community does need a new police station. If we all agree to that, why not take the next step and move it forward?" he said.

Stanley said the low turnout at Town Meeting and the close vote made him nervous, but he said it worked in his favor.

The building will take at least a couple of years to be ready for the department to move in, but Stanley said "at least there is a light at the end of the tunnel."

Also at last night's Town Meeting:

1. Hear reports. Approved
2. Accept reports. Approved
3. Authorize awarding of contracts in excess of three years. Not approved
4. Accept grants of easements for access. Approved
5. Authorize to grant easements for access. Approved
6. Salary and compensation of elected officials. Approved
7. Transfer money from surplus accounts to deficit accounts. Approved
8. Amend Capital Improvement Plan Appropriation Stevens Estate. Approved
9. Pay unpaid bills. Approved
10. Spend $77 million to operate schools and town. Approved with amendments.
11. Approve water enterprise fund. Approved
12. Approve sewer enterprise fund. Approved
13. Approve Stevens Estate enterprise fund. Approved
14. Spend $3.6 million on Capital Improvement Projects. Approved with amendments
15. Reauthorize existing revolving funds. Approved
16. Spend $1.8 million in Community Preservation funds. Approved
17. Spend $18,000 on Senior Work Program. Approved
18. Spend $9,400 on July 4. Withdrawn
19. Buy former Merrimack Valley Federal Credit Union for police station. Approved
20. Spend $903,288 to renovate Bradstreet School for a police station. Withdrawn
21. Convert Bradstreet School into police station. Withdrawn
    

Town Meeting will resume tonight (5/14) at 7 p.m. at the high school when residents will decide whether to build a 10-room preschool next to Atkinson Elementary School.

The Town’s finances face the following challenges:  

• On the Revenue Side:
• stagnant New Growth [tax revenues from new residential and commercial buildings]
• decreasing revenues on excise taxes and interest income
• over-reliance on using Free Cash (surplus monies from prior years) to balance our budgets
  

• On the Expense Side:
• high percentage increases in health and retirement benefits
• the cost of our 13 Union contracts
• regular expenses, such as utilities, increasing at a rate that far exceeds the inflation rate
  

What our Board of Selectmen and School Committee are asking us to do:

• Voters are asked to approve the use of operating funds to pay the debt on two new building projects.  Beginning in Fiscal year 2010, for twenty years, this will reduce the amount of operating funds available to cover NEEDED basic town services.
  
  
• If the building articles pass, under the Fincom’s present forecast, in 2010, at an average of $60,000 per position, we would need to eliminate 28 positions or make comparable program cuts.  In 2011, 42 additional positions.  In 2012, another 63.  In 2013, another 88.  In 2014, another 117.  Under the Town Manager’s present forecast, no cuts until 7 needed in 2012, then 18 in 2013, then 32 in 2014.  
  
  
• Under either forecast report, our boards are asking us to plan on choosing between major town-wide cuts or an operational override as soon as 2010.  And every successive year until at least 2014.
  
  
• The police station will require borrowing approximately $ 4.76 million.  The cost of debt service begins in 2010 at $ 428,670, and declines gradually over the course of 20 years.
  
  
• The preschool will require borrowing approximately $ 2.00 million.  The cost of debt service begins in 2010 at $ 177,300 and declines gradually over the course of 20 years.
  

What we are being told:

• The Finance Committee and Town Manager have presented two widely divergent financial five year forecasts, showing the Town’s financial outlook, if the building projects’ articles pass.  Click here for Finance Committee Forecast.   Click here for Town Manager forecast .
  
  
• The Fincom version predicts shortfalls in five consecutive years of $1.7 million starting in 2010, then escalating to $2.5M, then $3.8M, then $5.3M, and over $7M in 2014.
  
  
• The Town Manager’s version shows small surpluses in 2010 and 2011, then shortfalls of $ 429K in 2012, $ 1.05M in 2013, and $1.9M in 2014.
  

Why are there differences in the forecasts?  

• The Town Manager included the 2008 override in his 5.3% average tax increase assumption; Fincom excludes the override because the override is not a typical tax increase.
  
  
• The Town Manager offered a second forecast, that requires a fixed cost factor of 5.5%, rather than the Fincom’s assumed 9.76%.  The Town Manager is striving to reduce his union and benefits costs to achieve the lower percentage, whereas the Fincom’s forecast assumptions are based on historical actual data.
  
  
• The Town Manager budgeted Free Cash [assumed surpluses from each prior year’s budget] to reduce the deficit;
  

The Fincom upheld the pledge in the Joint Resolution [authored by the Town Manager in 2008] to discontinue the “over reliance on one time only funding sources to balance the operating budget”.  

NAU’s Conclusion:

• We are being asked to vote the articles before significant expense details are known.
  
  
• We won’t know the outcome of union contract negotiations until after August 30th.
  
  
• We won’t know the outcome of our negotiations with the unions to join the state insurance plan “GIC” until after October 1st.
  

Leadership requires recognition of both the needs and financial limitations of our community, and a commitment to sound planning that uses our revenue resources prudently.  NAU supports uniting under one forecast budget.  If important details and more accurate financial information will be available within approximately six months, it makes practical, prudent sense to wait to approve these projects until then.  Voters need to know if basic services are at risk if we pass these articles – we need a more thorough understanding of the long-range implications of the decisions our elected leaders are asking us to make.

{!jomcomment}

• Vote YES on Article 10
• General Budget for FY2009
• Minor amendments expected from Fincom to reflect changes in their votes after publication of the warrant booklet.
  

•  Vote YES on Article 16
• Article 16 seeks approval to spend Community Preservation Funds on restoration work as part of the Senior Center renovation, funding to complete the window restorations at Stevens Estate which will address window deterioration and hopefully lower utility costs, and contribute funds to NOAH's affordable housing project, "Stevens Corner".
  

• Vote NO on Articles 19, 20, 21 and 22
• New Police Station and Preschool Building projects articles
• NAU strongly believes that Town Manager and Town Boards should bring these articles back to a future town meeting when they have concluded the union contracts, passed the deadline for joining the state insurance plan, and arrived at a united long-range financial forecast that clearly explains the risk of losing municipal and school positions and services in exchange for funding these two new building projects.
  

• Vote NO on Article 27
• This is a citizen petition to limit local government taking private land by Eminent Domain.
• As currently written, this article could severely jeopardize the Town’s ability to expand commercial development on Route 125.

Click on this link to view the "Simplified Warrant" for the 2008 North Andover Town Meeting being held this coming Tuesday, May 13, 2008.

CLICK HERE to view the recorded video of the FinCom meeting!   There were two distinct portions to the FinCom's May 6th meeting. The first part is a presentation on the preschool building proposal, and the second is the finance committee's discussion of the five year budget forecast. The video from this FinCom meeting is broken out into these two parts and posted HERE for our YOUR benefit. It is very important to come to town meeting informed, and it is our hope that by providing these videos for your review contributes to that end. 

From the Eagle Tribune  

NORTH ANDOVER — The Finance Committee recommends taxes be raised to pay for a new police station and preschool building rather than obtaining the money through the general budget.

Chairman Douglas Swatski said committee members are worried that debt from borrowing money for the projects and paying it back over the next 20 years would have a severe impact on the budget, possibly leading to layoffs and cuts in services.

"We would like to avoid that," Swatski said. "We feel that services have been reduced over the years."

Selectmen, however, want the money for those projects to stay in the general budget as planned rather than ask the town to support a $7.7 million Proposition 21/2 override that would raise property taxes above the state limit of 2.5 percent.

The two buildings are part of the town's capital plan. Town Manager Mark Rees said establishing the police station in the former Merrimack Valley Credit Union building on Route 125 would cost $5.7 million.

A 10-room preschool next to Atkinson Elementary School that the School Department has requested to free classroom space at the elementary schools is estimated at $4 million, with about $2 million coming from money already available. Residents would have to authorize the town to borrow the money this year and start paying it back through the fiscal 2010 budget.

Rees said the Finance Committee is being too conservative with its projections as it looks ahead to what the budget will be in the next few years. Under his plan, he said, debt service costs would remain under 5 percent, allowing the town to replace outdated buildings and keep up with maintenance, such as road work.

The Merrimack Valley Credit Union is available for the town to buy, but Rees said the building could be sold to someone else if North Andover doesn't take advantage of the opportunity.

"It is a balancing act as to how to allocate funds," he said. "But if you ignore your infrastructure, you are going to pay more in the end."

The Finance Committee voted unanimously last week to eliminate the cost of the police station and the preschool from the budget. The committee then recommended a motion be made at the May 13 Town Meeting to ask for a debt exclusion override for the police station.

Swatski said the committee will decide on the preschool building after hearing from the School Committee at its meeting Tuesday.

A debt-exclusion override raises taxes above 2.5 percent until a particular project is paid off.

Swatski said the Finance Committee agrees that North Andover needs a new police station, but explained paying for one through the operating budget could mean the town can't meet all its expenses in future years, especially with rising costs such as those for employee health care.

The committee will reconsider its decision before Town Meeting if new information comes forward that will change panel members' minds.

"We need to balance the needs of the town and what we do financially," he said.

Selectmen against override

Selectmen Chairman Mark Caggiano said the Finance Committee's plan to take the police station and preschool building costs out of the budget is the same as voting against them.

He said because residents approved a $1.65 million override to raise taxes last year and a $7.3 million override for a police station was voted down in 2005, it is unlikely the town will vote for an override this time around.

"We think this is all workable without an override," he said. "The Finance Committee is being fiscally prudent, which is their job, but we can do this in the existing budget."

Caggiano said costs are being kept as low as possible for both the station and the preschool building so they will fit in the town's budget. He said other projects have also been eliminated for now, including the planning of a new fire station and some road work in town.

Selectmen are the only ones who can put a debt-exclusion override on the ballot. Even if Town Meeting approves the override, selectmen would have to decide whether to put it to a townwide vote.

"I'm not recommending it," said Selectman Daniel Lanen. "We just had an override. We are finally trying to get things done within the operating budget."

Selectman Rosemary Smedile said the Police Department needs a new station, and she would rather go back and work within the budget than ask residents for an override. She said that in the current financial climate, with the cost of everything rising, asking residents for an override would just be one more hit.

"I cannot express how bad it is," she said of the current station's condition. "We can't just keep ignoring our infrastructure."

Police have said the station, built in 1978, is outdated, cramped and deteriorating, with mold, one bathroom for employees, and no locker rooms for women.

The School Committee has also advocated the need for a preschool building because of overcrowding at the elementary schools, some of which are using libraries and other spaces for classrooms.

School Committee Chairman Barbara Whidden said seven classrooms at two of the elementary schools are being used for preschool, leaving the schools short on space.

The music room, art room, library and computer room are all being used for classrooms at Thomson Elementary School. The School Department is mandated by the state to provide integrated preschools for students with special needs.

Whidden said she was concerned that if the preschool is taken out of the budget, an override won't be approved.

"It takes time to put an override together," she said. "We need to get this preschool built quickly."

The  2008 Town of North Andover Annual Meeting Warrant has been posted on the Town of North Andover web site .   You can review it by clicking on this link .

The following is an article from the League of Women Voters.   In addition, it is our hope that many people will take advantage of our web site to discuss issues relating to our town in advance of our annual tradition we call town meeting.

North Andover still uses an open town meeting as its legislative body.  Any registered voter can attend and vote on the budget, zoning changes, and any other matters for the coming fiscal year beginning July 1.  Town meeting is normally held on the second Monday evening in May, although special town meetings can be called by the Selectmen at any time.

The agenda for the meeting is called a warrant and the items to be voted are called articles.  Most articles are placed on the warrant by town boards, but any 10 voters can put an article on the warrant before the Selectmen close it before town meeting.  The warrant must be available to voters at least a week before the meeting. It may be mailed to voters or published in a newspaper (which must assure that all voters get a copy).  It will also be available on the town’s web site http://www.townofnorthandover.com/.  No issue can be voted on unless it has been published in advance in the warrant.  So, warrant in hand, you make it to the High School and check in at your precinct, just as for voting. Don’t know your precinct? Someone will help you.  You will receive a colored card to use for hand counts of votes.

What’s all this stuff on the tables?  There will be explanatory information on many of the articles provided by town boards and proponents (or opponents).  Take as much as you want.   Who are all those people on the stage? Standing at the podium is Charles Salisbury, the Moderator.  He runs the show.  In the front are the Selectmen and the Finance Committee.  The Selectmen will have taken a vote on each article, for or against.  The Finance Committee has studied all money articles and will make recommendations on each. In the back are the School Committee and the Planning Board, which will make recommendations on all zoning questions.  Town Clerk and Town Counsel are also up there.

Who’s Rules of Order?  The Moderator makes the rules, which he will explain. Articles are taken in order unless town meeting votes to take one out of order.  An article must be moved and seconded or it can’t come before the meeting.  At some point a vote for reconsideration will probably be made.  This is usually a defensive move.  Since the Moderator only allows one vote to reconsider any article already voted on, defeat of reconsideration "locks in" a vote so that it can’t be brought up again after supporters have left the hall.

How to join the action.  If you want to speak on an issue, go to a microphone in an aisle and wait for the Moderator to recognize you.  State your name and address clearly, then make your comments.  Some words of advice that are usually ignored: avoid multi-page prepared statements.  Try not to repeat a point or argument already made by previous speaker(s).  A barrage of nearly identical statements can sometimes swing the meeting’s opinion the opposite direction.  Resist applauding your favorites or booing the opposition - it’s not a ball game.

Will we get through all these items in one night?  It hasn’t happened yet.  Town meeting traditionally continues on for a second and possibly third night.  So why go?  Most voters don’t.  Nonetheless, this is still one of the few places in the country where you directly control what happens in your town.  You can learn first hand how the town operates and why "they" were able to build there or where that new fee came from.  It can be boring, it can be theater of the absurd, but it is definitely worth attending.  See you there!

--Marty Larson for the League of Women Voters

By Douglas J. Swatski, Chairman, North Andover Finance Committee

You asked, so here’s the short answer.

What is the mission of the Finance Committee?

The Finance Committee’s mission is to make objective and concise recommendations to Town Meeting on the annual budget and any other finance-related warrant articles.  To achieve this mission, the Committee reviews and considers any matter which may have a long- or short-term fiscal impact on the town and communicates with other Town boards, departments, employees, and members of the public for the purpose of gathering relevant and accurate information for evaluation, debate and the formulation of a recommendation.

Where does the Finance Committee fit with respect to the town’s government?

Three boards have significant responsibilities associated with Town Meeting: the Board of Selectmen, the School Board, and the Finance Committee. Town citizens elect the selectmen and the school board members, and the Town Moderator chooses the members of the Finance Committee.

Members of the Board of Selectmen set policy for a majority of the Municipal departments, except for the School Department. The Town Manager reports directly to the Board of Selectmen and oversees the day-to-day operations of all municipal departments. The Town Accountant, also reports to the Board of Selectmen, and is responsible for maintaining accurate accounting for the whole Town. All other municipal departments report to the Town Manager. By state law, the public school system is somewhat independent of the town government. While the town’s legislative body (you) controls the level of funding the school department receives, the day-to-day operational control of the school falls to the Superintendent, who reports directly to the School Committee. Similar to the Board of Selectmen, the School Committee’s role is to set policy for the schools only.

The Finance Committee, or FinCom, is a committee which has no authority over setting policy. All nine members are volunteers and receive no compensation for their services.

What does the town’s Finance Committee do?

In January 2008, the Massachusetts Municipal Association (MMA) produced an informational video/television program that presents the compelling case for a comprehensive state tax revenue-sharing policy. The program features interviews with key local leaders as well as leading economists, all of whom recognize the fiscal crisis facing cities and towns, and the critical importance of local fiscal health to the sustainability of the state’s economy and quality of life.

The MMA is providing this program as a valuable resource tool for local use in educating the public and community leaders on the need for revenue sharing.    Click on the screen below to start the video.