Housing Commission Minutes of August 28, 2007
Members Present: BJ Scheff, Rayna Caplan, Renel Fredriksen, Pam Gallup, George Georges
Others Present: Earl Midgley (Building Commissioner), Anita Scheipers (Assistant Town Administrator), Avram Kalisky
Call to Order: 7:10 AM
Minutes: The Board read and approved minutes for the August 14 meeting.
Business:
LIP Regulatory Agreement
The draft version of the regulatory agreement was presented and discussed. One proposed change relates to several clauses which refer to what happens if a tenant's income exceeds 140% of Maximum Income. We wish to remove the references to moving tenants to other units,a s we do not have enough housing stock for this to be feasible. BJ will discuss the necessary changes with Town Counsel.
Sunnyside Utility Allowances
Renel had prepared sheets with the HUD utility allowances for the three units. The allowances were calculated using the HUD Utility Model, the Heating Degree Database for Bedford, and local utility expenditures. The utility allowances for 2007-2008 were approved as follows:
? 1 Bedroom $129
? 2 Bedroom $155
? 3 Bedroom $182
Grounds at Sunnyside Lane
Mowing, plowing, and shoveling costs associated with the new Sunnyside Lane units will be charged to the Housing Commission revolving account. Charges will be portioned according to the land area.
Although the DPW has no concerns about their ability to plow, they will not be able to handle the shoveling. After some discussion about this and other maintenance issues, it was agreed that the Commission would look into using a professional management firm to take care of this. George will work with Earl to create a list of items that would be covered by this, and then put the request out to bid.
Sunnyside Budget Issues
Anita Scheipers informed us that we are out of money. In addition to the Sunnyside building budget, all funds from the revolving account are depleted. The contractual obligations to Pope Industries have not yet been fully paid. We still owe them approximately $21,000 for the retainage. This amount will fall due 45 days after the first occupancy permit is issued.
Anita informed us that Earl will be sitting with Veronica Phillips, Assistant Finance Director & Assistant Town Accountant, to reconcile their accounts. At the moment, the two accounts do not agree on exactly how large the shortfall is. As we are now over budget and have no remaining funds, we have frozen all spending, effective immediately.
Options for covering the outstanding costs were discussed and include
? Asking the Lincoln Foundation for an additional contribution
? Asking the Lincoln Foundation for a loan, until the revolving account builds up
? Requesting a Reserve Fund transfer from the Finance Committee
Independent of acquiring funds to cover the shortfall, the Commission needs to understand where the Sunnyside building went over budget. George and Renel will work with Earl and Veronica to understand the cost overruns.
Community Preservation Committee
The CPC has asked us to give them our funding proposal requests for CPA funds for next year. This is due in mid-September. BJ received the request, and will forward the information to Rayna. Options discussed include hiring a consultant to identify possible properties in Lincoln which could be converted to affordable housing.
Lincoln Woods
Avram Kalisky wishes to update us on the status of Lincoln Woods. He distributed copies of a proposal he has made concerning the future of Lincoln Woods. As we were short on time, he has been invited to return at a future date to make a presentation.
Adjournment: Housing Commission adjourned at 9:20 AM.
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