The Select Board approved extending almost $563,000 in outstanding capital project balances beyond their statutory two-year limitation at its meeting on July 25.
That sounds like a lot, but Town Manager Sarah Stanton told the board that it’s a big step toward expediting projects after financing is approved by town meeting, as recommended by the Finance and Capital Expenditure Committees.
“We have chipped away at this backlog over the past couple of years. It’s a real credit to the department heads for being willing to close out articles,” she said at Monday’s Select Board meeting. “We continue to work with departments around challenges, asking for what we need and spending what we have.”
Capital article balances can be carried forward automatically for two years. The total balances for unspent allocations approved in fiscal years 2021 and 2022 are $1,552,331.10.
Among the unexpended balances more than two years old — detailed in a memo from Finance Director David Castellarin — approved by the board for continuation are:
- $50,000 for a sand and salt storage shed, approved for fiscal year 2016. That amount will be expended as the project enters the design phase.
- $12,000 for land-taking in support of ongoing Middlesex Turnpike widening, voted for fiscal year 2017. The balance is remaining open for any unforeseen additions.
- $26,000 for theater equipment in the high school’s Buckley Auditorium, approved by town meeting in 2018. That work was delayed by the exigencies of the pandemic.
- $53,000 for pumping station software, voted for fiscal year 2019.
- $71,600 to continue public address system improvements in the middle and high schools, first authorized in 2019.
- $40,000 for a zoning bylaw and diagnostic and consulting services, approved for fiscal 2020. The memo said these funds are being redirected to an analysis of “racial equity and other social issues that may be raised in the current climate, and how the language of the zoning bylaw may be adjusted to address these issues.”
The Select Board also noted that $56,362.10 in pre-2020 capital balances are being closed. These range from $3 remaining from the Fire Department’s automatic chest compression tools to $10,000 each for town museum and energy assessment feasibility studies, both of which were completed under budget.
Correction, 08/03/2022: $56,362.10 in pre-2020 capital balances has been closed, not $556,362.10 as originally indicated. The Citizen regrets the error.
Mike Rosenberg can be reached at [email protected], or 781-983-1763
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