 |
Community Preservation Committee Funding Recommendations for the 2013 Annual Town Meeting
The Concord Community Preservation Committee (CPC) is pleased to announce its recommendations for Community Preservation Act funding at Concord’s 2013 Annual Town Meeting. Concord’s CPA fund received fourteen applications for the $1,638,046 available this year for potential distribution. In accordance with the state CPA statute, a minimum of 10% of the available funds must be allocated to each of the three categories of Community Housing, Historic Preservation and Open Space. The remaining funds may be distributed between the categories as recommended by the CPC and approved by vote of Town Meeting.
The CPC evaluated each project in accordance with the criteria established in the Town’s Community Preservation Plan, conducted a group site visit to each of the represented properties, and presented the applications at a public hearing in November. With these assessments in mind, the CPC completed its review in December and recommended the following twelve projects for future funding:
COMMUNITY HOUSING RECOMMENDATIONS:
Regional Housing Services Program, Town of Concord: $25,000 to fund the Town’s participation in the Regional Housing Services Office, an inter-municipal organization which provides professional housing staff for the administration of Concord’s affordable housing programs.
Maintaining Concord’s Affordable Housing, Concord Housing Development Corporation (CHDC): $50,000 to complete the preliminary design and engineering needed for the proposed Junction Village development; build a reserve fund to assist in preserving existing affordable housing units; and establish a funding source for purchasing small homes to add to Concord’s affordable housing inventory.
Everett Garden Expansion Roof Replacement, Concord Housing Authority (CHA): $100,000 to preserve the affordable housing at the Everett Expansion complex, a ca. 1983 development containing 20 affordable housing units, by replacing the roofs on three buildings and completing additional work as necessary.
HISTORIC PRESERVATION RECOMMENDATIONS;
Town House Exterior Restoration Project, Town of Concord: $800,000 to complete a full restoration of the exterior facades of the ca. 1851 Italianate style building including the repair and replacement of its brownstone trim and detailing; masonry repairs; removal of the fire escape and restoration of the original window patterns; repainting; and other repairs necessary to preserve this Town landmark.
Heywood Meadow Stone Wall Reconstruction Project, Town of Concord: $15,000 for engineering and design work necessary to complete the final phase of the Heywood Meadow stone wall restoration which will reconstruct 200 feet of stone retaining wall in the west section of the Meadow along Lexington Road and remove 180 feet of cement capped wall along Heywood Street.
Wright Tavern Roof, Windows, Shutters and Door Restoration Project – Trustees of Parish Donations, First Parish: $50,000 to preserve the historical, architectural, and structural integrity of the ca. 1747 Wright Tavern by completing an Historic Structure Report for the building; replacing the existing roof; and repairing the damaged dormers and dormer windows.
Cupola Restoration Project - Emerson Umbrella: $60,000 to restore the cupola at the center of the main roof of the ca. 1929 Colonial Revival style former school building.
HISTORIC PRESERVATION AND OPEN SPACE RECOMMENDATION:
Wheeler-Harrington House Studies – Town of Concord: $33,000 to complete an Historic Structure Report for the ca. 1745 Wheeler-Harrington house; a Cultural Landscape Study of the 15.6 acre former farm along the Assabet River; and an Environmental Assessment to assist the Town in better understanding the overall Harrington Park.
OPEN SPACE RECOMMENDATIONS:
Rogers Land Restoration and Trail Access – Town of Concord: $38,800 to acquire either the land or easements over portions of two parcels adjacent to the Rogers Land to allow the Town to establish a continuous walking path along the Assabet River from Second Division Brook to Harrington Park.
Old Calf Pasture Habitat Restoration – Town of Concord: $25,000 to continue habitat improvements at the Old Calf Pasture which support the repopulation of the rare Britton’s violet by removing invasive Buckthorn.
McGrath Farm Land Acquisition and Restoration – Town of Concord: $400,000 to assist in the purchase of the remaining privately owned parcel at McGrath Farm, a 1.9 acre parcel at 449 Barrett’s Mill Road.
RECREATION RECOMMENDATION:
Infrastructure for Phase II of the Playscape at Ripley - Concord Children’s Center: $9,700 for Phase II of the universally-accessible, nature based play area adjacent to Ripley School which will include infrastructure work, an accessible loop pathway, landforms, and an accessible water and sand play area.
In February, the Finance Committee will hold a public hearing for further review and comment on these CPA funding recommendations. Further information on the Community Preservation Committee and this year’s funding recommendations can be found by contacting Senior Planner Lara Kritzer at lkritzer@concordma.gov or 978-318-3293.
Community Preservation Committee 2013 Meeting Schedule (updated 11/28/12) |
Date |
Time |
Location |
Monday, December 10, 2012 |
7:30 P.M. |
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
|
Monday, January 14 |
7:30 P.M. |
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
|
Monday, February 11 |
7:30 P.M. |
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
|
Wednesday, February 27 |
7:00 P.M. |
Finance Committee Public Hearings Town House Public Hearing Room
|
Monday, March 11 |
7:30 P.M.
|
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
|
Monday, April 8 |
7:30 P.M. |
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road |
Monday, April 22 – Thursday, April 25 |
7:00 P.M. |
Town Meeting Concord Carlisle High School Auditorium
|
The Community Preservation Act in Concord
WHAT IS THE COMMUNITY PRESERVATION ACT?
Established under M.G.L. c. 44B, the Community Preservation Act (CPA) allows Massachusetts cities and towns to raise monies through a surcharge of up to 3% of the tax levy on real property. These funds can be used to acquire, create and preserve open space; acquire, preserve, rehabilitate or restore historic resources; acquire, create, preserve and support community housing; and acquire and preserve land for recreational use. The Act also includes a significant State matching fund, which provided $26.2 million in matching funds to CPA communities last year and over $387 million to those communities to date. In addition to Concord, 148 cities and towns across the state have adopted the CPA to date.
HOW IS THE CPA USED IN CONCORD?
At the 2004 Annual Town Meeting and subsequently at the polls, Concord residents voted to adopt the CPA with a 1.5% surcharge on all real estate property tax bills. There are two exemptions, however, to this surcharge:
- The first $100,000 of taxable value of residential real property
- Residential property owned and occupied by any person who qualifies for moderate- or low-income housing (earning less than 80% of Area Median Income), or low or moderate-income senior housing (earning less than 100% of Area Median Income and are 60 years of age or older).
The CPA mandates that each fiscal year Concord must spend, or set aside for later spending, at least 10% of the annual revenues in the Town of Concord Community Preservation Fund for each of the three CPA interests: community housing, historic resources, and open space. Beyond these required allocations, Concord Town Meeting decides, based on the CPC’s recommendations, how much of the remaining 70% of the funds should be spent on the three purposes identified above or for recreation. The spending mix for the remaining 70% of the Fund can be modified each year, and any monies not appropriated remain in the Fund for future distribution.
WHERE DO THE CPA FUNDS COME FROM?
The funds available for spending each fiscal year are a combination of three sources:
- Projected Fund Revenues for the Upcoming Fiscal Year – Projected fund revenues are made up of the funds collected from the 1.5% surcharge on all real estate property tax bills and the State matching funds collected from existing surcharges on all real estate transactions at the Registry of Deeds and Land Court. These funds are termed as “projected” because the final numbers are not available until October of each year. In 2011, Concord received a 27% match from these State funds. However, legislation is currently under review at the State level which would guarantee a 75% match from the State fund in future years. State funds have added $3,363,286 to the Town’s CPA fund since its inception.
- Undesignated Fund Balance – These are funds which were collected in previous years but never allocated. Where did this money come from? Usually an undesignated fund balance represents either unanticipated additional interest received on CPA fund accounts or the receipt of more State matching funds or surcharge tax revenues than were originally anticipated.
- Reserve Funds - These are funds which were approved at previous Town Meetings to be set aside for future projects in Community Housing, Historic Preservation, and/or Open Space. At present, there is $270,801 in the Open Space Reserve Fund and $20,000 in the Community Housing Reserve Fund.
What does the surcharge really mean to Concord taxpayers? The Assessor’s Department has calculated that in FY12, the median home in Concord had an assessed value of $677,900. After subtracting the CPA exemption for the first $100,000 of the taxable value of a residential property, and multiplying this number by the FY11 tax rate of $13.58 per $1000 of value, the median tax amount is $7,848. The 1.5% surcharge, then, for the median homeowner in Concord is $118.
Concord’s Community Preservation Committee
Following Concord's 2004 adoption of the Community Preservation Act, the Board of Selectmen established the Community Preservation Committee (CPC). As specified in the enabling legislation, the Committee is charged with the task of "studying the needs, possibilities, and resources of the town regarding community preservation." The areas of study are open space, community housing, historic preservation and recreation. The Committee is required to consult with town boards and commissions to ascertain the needs of the community and hold at least one public informational meeting per year. Finally, the Committee is to solicit applications for CPA projects and after review present funding recommendations to the citizens at Concord's Town Meeting.
The first task of the Committee was to write a Plan, which was completed in 2005 and has been reviewed and updated each subsequent summer. It includes the following sections:1) The CPA in Concord; 2) How CPA Funds can be Used; 3) Needs Assessments for Community Housing, Historic Preservation, Open Space, and Recreation; 4) General Selection Criteria; 5) Application Process; 6) Guidelines for Submission; 7) Application Requirements; 8) Application; 9) Funding Process and ten Appendices. The 2012 Community Preservation Plan is available on this webpage, at the Town libraries, and in the Planning Department at 141 Keyes Road.
In writing the Plan, the Committee received input from the Town's boards, commissions and officials. They also utilized the most recent Comprehensive Long Range Plan, the Open Space and Recreation Plan and the Playground Study. The Committee continues to update the Plan each year to meet the changing needs of the community.
(Updated June 19, 2012)
| |
