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Community Preservation Committee 2010 Meeting Schedule (updated 3/10/10) |
Date |
Time |
Location |
Wednesday, January 13 |
7:30 P.M. |
2nd Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
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Thursday, February 11 |
7:30 P.M.
|
2nd Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
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Wednesday, February 24 |
TBD |
Finance Committee Public Hearings TBD |
Friday, March 12 |
8:00A.M. |
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
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Wednesday, March 31
|
7:30 P.M. |
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
|
Monday, April 26 - Wednesday, April 28 |
7:30 P.M. |
Town Meeting Concord- Carlisle High School Auditorium |
Monday, May 17
|
7:30 P.M.
|
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
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Monday , June 7 |
7:30 P.M. |
1st Floor Conference Room, 141 Keyes Road
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Community Preservation Committee makes Funding Recommendations for the 2010 Annual Town Meeting
(posted 12/30/09)
The Concord Community Preservation Committee (CPC) is pleased to announce its recommendations for Community Preservation Act funding at Concord’s 2010 Annual Town Meeting. Concord’s CPA fund received twelve applications for the $1,046,100 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 received a number of compelling applications this year for a wide variety of potential projects in all four CPA funding eligible categories: Community Housing, Historic Preservation, Open Space and Recreation, and included a number of significant Town resources. The CPC evaluated each project in accordance with the criteria established in the Town’s Community Preservation Plan, conducted a group site visits 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 established the following funding recommendations:
COMMUNITY HOUSING RECOMMENDATIONS:
Peter Bulkeley Terrace Renovations, Concord Housing Authority: $500,000 to renovate and upgrade the existing Peter Bulkeley Terrace building. The former public school was converted in 1981 into a congregate living facility and is now in need of renovation and modernization. The project would convert the existing shared living environment into 29 one bedroom and studio units for senior and disabled adults.
HISTORIC PRESERVATION RECOMMENDATIONS:
Fowler Branch Library Restoration, Concord Free Public Library Corporation: $375,000 for the restoration and expansion of the Town’s first and only branch library located in West Concord’s Church Street Historic District. CPA funds are requested to make handicap accessibility improvements to the structure and to restore period finishes and architectural details found in the original ca. 1930s Colonial Revival style structure.
Concord Scout House Structural Improvements - Concord Scout House, Inc: $10,000 to complete an Historic Structures Report to guide future repairs and preservation efforts for the historic structure.
OPEN SPACE AND RECREATION RECOMMENDATIONS:
Warner’s Pond Watershed Management Plan - Town of Concord: $43,175 to complete a Watershed Management Plan for Warner’s Pond that will assist the Town in preserving the Pond and provide guidance for future projects.
Open Space Reserve Fund - Town of Concord: $87,925 to be placed in an existing reserve for future Open Space projects and/or land acquisitions involving agriculture, open space, or recreational purposes.
In addition to these recommendations, the CPC has voted to recommend that the 2010 Town Meeting support the preservation of the Caesar Robbins/Peter Hutchinson House at 324 Bedford Street by bonding up to $300,000 against future CPA fund local receipts to acquire, relocate, and/or restore the historic structure. This project was submitted by the Drinking Gourd Project, a division of the Concord Carlisle Human Rights Council, which is working to save the ca. 1780s structure built by one of Concord's first freed slaves and ultimately convert it into a Civil Liberties Museum which will be open to the public.
The CPC will work through the end of the month to format these recommendations into draft warrant articles for the 2010 Concord Town Meeting Warrant. In February, the Finance Committee will hold a second public hearing for further review and comment on these CPA funding recommendations. For further information contact Senior Planner Lara Kritzer at 978-318-3293.
The Community Preservation Act in Concord
What is the Community Preservation Act? Established in 2000 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 and preserve historic resources; create, preserve and support community housing; and acquire and preserve land for recreational use. A minimum of 10% of the revenues must be appropriated or reserved each year for each of the three interests of open space, community housing and historic preservation. The Act also provides a significant State matching fund which in past years has made more than $30 million available annually. In addition to Concord, 140 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 2009, Concord received a 67.62% match from these State funds, marking the first year since Concord passed the CPA that it has not received a 100% match. To date, these State funds have added $2,613,044 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 $147,559.04 in the Open Space Reserve Fund.
What does the surcharge really mean to Concord taxpayers?
The Assessor’s Department has calculated that in FY09, the median home in Concord had an assessed value of $707,100. After subtracting the CPA exemption for the first $100,000 of the taxable value of a residential property, and multiplying this number by the FY09 tax rate of $11.90 per $1000 of value, the median tax amount is $7,224.49. The 1.5% surcharge, then, for the median homeowner in Concord is $108.37.
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 2010 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 August 31, 2009)
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