One Lanesborough Town Meeting Vote Moves Carousel Forward
Voters were presented a warrant with 17 articles to vote on at Tuesday's annual town meeting. |
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — One vote can make a difference.
At the annual town meeting Tuesday, one voter was the difference in authorizing the Selectmen to bond up to $500,000 to help build a home for the Berkshire Carousel at Laston Park. The carousel needed a two-thirds majority vote to allow the town to take out the bond on the carousel organization's behalf. Had one more voter been swayed against it, the Laston Park dreams would have been gone.
The plan is for the bond to match a state grant to construct a building to house the carousel as well as concessions and a cafe. Promising to pay off the potential bond, Berkshire Carousel officials pitched their case, saying they would be responsible for the bond. The officials said even the horses themselves could be put up for collateral.
For more than an hour, voters debated the long-term stability of the non-profit and the effect the building would have on the area. In the end, they approved authorizing the Selectmen to bond the money by an 80-39 majority.
"At the end of the day, the town is going to own this building," said Mark Siegars, an attorney helping the carousel group in finding a location. "The carousel will occupy and manage the building as well as paying the bond."
Siegars said the plan rests on receiving the state grant but the nonprofit cannot use money they borrow as a match. The town would have to borrow the money to use as a match. In a separate agreement, they would pay the town back, while the bond agreement would place all liability for payments on the carousel, he said.
"The carousel is not asking the town of Lanesborough for money," Siegars said.
However, many residents feared the carousel won't survive in that location — leaving the town with an empty building they would need to maintain. They also questioned the the proposed site because the land is privately owned and not zoned for commercial use.
According to Selectman William Prendergast, the board was told that the land would be donated to the town but that the owner, D. Condron Construction, later withdrew the offer. Initially, Condron was expected to manage the concession in exchange for the property.
The property issue will have to be addressed later, but before the carousel is issued the the bond, Prendergast said.
"We hung our hats on the land being donated," Prendergast said.
The Berkshire Carousel consists of 40 hand-crafted horses carved by hundreds of volunteers but the group has struggled to find a permanent home over the past seven years.
"The city of Pittsfield was the first choice," Berkshire Carousel Executive Director Maria Caccaviello said on Tuesday.
The Pittsfield Common was the leading location but Caccaviello said there were "too many strings attached," such as the nonprofit being unable to hold birthday parties or charge for tickets. The Berkshire Mall, where the horses are being carved, had donated a storefront and the group then looked to stay there but the lease was too expensive. Laston Park is the latest idea but there are still a lot more steps left to take before that can be its home.
In other business Tuesday, voters approved a $9.5 million budget with ease. The budget is about $9,000 short of the levy limit, according to Finance Committee Chairman Bill Stevens. The budget includes $2.5 million for Mount Greylock Regional High School, which passed without a single comment despite being controversial in recent years, and $2.5 million for Lanesborough Elementary School.
Finance Committee Chairman Bill Stevens said town did not have to raise the budget up to the levy limit. |
Voters also approved creating a trust fund with a start of $10,000 to cover future retiree health insurance liabilities. In the 30-year projective look, the town will be responsible for some $11 million in health insurance costs. While towns have been paying those costs as they arrive, in 2008 municipalities and businesses were encouraged to account for them.
"The accounting world wants both governments and businesses to be aware of it," Town Administrator Paul Sieloff said.
Sieloff hopes to continually add to the fund to protect the town for those liabilities.
Voters also approved using a portion of a Prospect Street property for a solar array. The land was purchased by the town for $220,000 for a senior center but no funds had become available for construction. A town energy committee identified it as the most viable spot for a one-megawatt solar array.
Initially, the committee eyed a larger array there but the most recent plan only uses a portion of the land and keeps another piece available for the senior center.
Multiple capital projects also received the OK including $35,000 to replace the back roof on Town Hall; $180,000 to purchase a new dump truck; $50,000 for a new forestry pickup truck for the Fire Department and $35,000 for a new fire chief vehicle.
A final article to allocate $25,000 to start the process of bringing the preschool program back to the school for 2014 was delayed. The preschool program was eliminated in the school's budget this year but a group of residents are trying to keep it. The group is looking to fund capital improvements and revamp the program in order to bring it back for subsequent years.
However, Selectman Robert Barton said the group has decided to wait until it has cost estimates, which the school will be asked to fund.
Tags: berkshire carousel, town meeting 2013,
