[Music] all right I think we can go and get started here um so I'll go ahead and call the Halifax finance committee meeting to order uh it is 6:02 pm today is Monday April 22nd uh this meeting is being uh recorded by area 58 in attendance from the Halifax finance committee is Cheryl Zer Burke Michael Bennett Frank Johnston Jim Walters Bill Smith and myself Todd Dary absent is uh EJ Brian um so first order of business on the agenda for tonight was the um the approval of the meeting minutes from our last session which was um April 8th Monday April 8th uh has everybody had a chance to review those any additional I know Jim um caught an update there so good catch Jim anyone else have any changes or concerns with the agenda I mean sorry the minutes look good no fine all right hearing none I guess would somebody like to make a motion then to approve the meeting the meeting minutes from Monday April 8th so Mo second thank you Cheryl thank you Michael uh roll call vote Frank yes on the April 8th uh minutes thank you Frank Jim yes on the minutes B yes Michael Yes Cheryl yes and I am a yes as well motion carries seven to zero uh all right so next up on the agenda was um Todd 6 Z 6 Z sorry 6 Z yeah thank you for the correction Frank apologize 60 is the correct count um next on the agenda was um the review of the Town article so we just had this as a placeholder Cody I don't know has anything developed here I guess where we're in position to no no I don't have anything no no updates okay that's fine so we'll just keep this on the agenda for the next couple weeks until we can kind of nail down those last ones I think it was uh seven n and 15 I think were the three open ones just for us to on the only one that actually there has been an update on was the community preservation act article which is number uh nine so the uh the Selectmen did uh voted to do uh a one present a 1.5% um sirch charge so we were holding off on that because the number the percentage was up in the air they voted 1.5 um I can't what I can do um I should have already sent this so I apologize but what I can do prior to the next meeting is provide you with the financial uh breakdown of what the what the impact would be so we have a we put together a chart of you know what that 1.5% would look like to the average uh homeowner to you know a home valued at X and then the total amount for the town with the exemption so I apologize for not sending that out but I will do that prior to the next meeting okay all right yeah that's fine and then um I guess in regards to Article 15 were we going to try to see if we can get the school back in I guess to discuss the HVAC there and are they available next week do you know or or have we I haven't heard back from them yet as in regards to their availability um hopeful they are I was really hopeful that they would also would have met with the elementary school committee to you know I know that you guys voted the number but I was hopeful that they would have gone through and voted a budget you know so so they could also go over their line item budget with you so I was trying to that into one but I don't I do not believe they've done that yet and then I was also waiting to see if they would have a figure if any um for the special town meeting but I had emailed them a couple of times um and I have not heard back on that yet so we'll try to have them in next week and whatever they can present um they can present but I was trying to tie it all in with all of that information so you could get um as much information as possible no that would be great yeah and there's there's not much time left right so that's next week week and then the sixth I guess right is the last two opportunities so yeah um okay all right and then so the last so might as well just hit on the last one which is the article seven there so for the solar pilot agreement I guess any update as to like how that's coming along just yeah um as far as I know I had didn't get a chance to catch up with our sessor today but I do not believe there's been any new um new uh any contract in place for that so what it's looking like is that we will probably skip over that article this year um and what will happen is is we will rather than um have a pilot we will tax them like we would you know any other property so which there won't be an impact necessarily on Revenue um it just goes kind of from one pot to another we had initially planned it being under a pilot where it doesn't look like that's going to happen this year we will just tax it and it'll go under the tax levy for this year okay is that going to change the budget anyway because we changed that right in the budget for this year to have it yeah that so that sheet is just our internal you know sheet we utilize for our Revenue estimates and then we you know we obviously use that for what we can expend yeah um so bottom line will not change no sure yeah okay we budgeted conservatively with the pilot estimate um recognizing that there was a chance that it may end up being taxed just under the under the levy um so we wanted to make sure we were going to covered so the number you we used was a conservative number where we will be covered either way okay all right makes sense anybody have any questions on or any other points on any of that any of those articles no okay all right awesome all right well thank you for the update there Cody appreciate that uh so then just moving along in the agenda the next item on the list was the uh fincom vote on the reappointments of Michael uh and Cheryl so both of them are up for their uh their terms due to expire at the end of this uh fiscal year so uh the purpose of the vote is just the um you know to um you know um give Assurance I guess that the the committee is um you know stands behind them as for reappointment and so I would uh represent the the fincom vote uh in the session I guess as part part of the reappointment which is due to occur I think what is it 30 days after the town meeting I believe right Cody is that yeah so I have a note on the calendar to um have it on the selectman's meeting the first meeting of May to put that group together again okay awesome uh so obviously Michael and Cheryl will staying here I guess so um so it just be the four of us I guess here taking a vote I guess would would somebody like to make a motion to recommend the reappointment uh I guess we can maybe do them individually uh so recommend the reappointment of Michael to the finc con thank you Bill thank you Jim uh roll call vote Frank yes for Michael Bennett Bill yes Jim yes and I am a yes as well motion carries I vote too don't I actually yeah you can vote too sorry Cheryl yeah I vote Yes as well motion carries motion carry 5 Z for Michael uh and then same for Cheryl would somebody like to make a motion to uh recommend the reappointment of Cheryl to the fincom so moved thank you Michael thank you Bill uh roll call vote Frank yes for Cheryl Jim yes Bill yes Michael yes and I am a yes as well uh motion carries 5 to zero thank you thank you yeah thank you both for uh all of your service to the fincom definitely appreciated um all right so then moving along next up was the reserve fund transfer request I haven't seen anything come across Sandy right is nothing do are we expecting any any fortunately we are um so we had approved um or town meeting approved a few years ago funding to replace the roof at the highway Barn so we bid that out um going back almost a year and then weather kind of hit so it delayed the project in the fall we had a contract in place for them to start in the spring they've started this spring they ripped the roof off um I guess in ripping the roof roof off they found that most of the plywood underneath is rotted uh and not up to code so they cannot put um just they can't just reapply the metal roof so we need to actually RE reply wood basically the whole roof um that is is a significant cost we're trying to work with the contractor kind of there's some other beh the scen issues but um we definitely anticipate a reserve fund transfer coming forward once we have a figure of what is actually going to cost us uh to do that is is this the same roof that we repaired a couple months back no this is no this is um we we didn't this was to we're replacing the whole roof so time understand that but we did we did a transfer to do a repair for Department that was the water department roof water department okay okay so couple questions I guess Cody do we when do we expect the the full figure in and is there any ballpark estimate at this point in time um I can tell you you know part of the issue is is the contractor doing the work has given us a figure that is just not um yeah we just we can't agree to it because it doesn't it's just way too much so we're trying to you know either negotiate a price that makes sense you know we had a we had an independent price estimator through an engineering firm give us you know an estimate with prevailing wage and stuff so we're trying to get as close to that as we can we're not even close to that in the meantime the issue is is the you know the roof is it's taken off the only thing there is just the plywood so times of the essence oh sure yeah somewhere in the range of 30 to 50,000 it's all the can we get another that's where we want to be or that's the current bid uh that's where I I anticipated being on the lower side of that that's where we want to be is on the low side of that and we get another quote from another roofing contractor blue top that for now and um take a look at somebody else yeah we're working through those things you know part part of it is we we have a contract in place and there's um yeah can't get into it too much there may be some so but um yeah we so as soon as I have a figure I'll bring it to you but I just want to make you aware that something will be coming just a matter of when and how much [Music] okay any other questions from anyone on that before we move on no okay all right so then just moving along here next up was the committee on updates I was I don't know if there's anything to share I guess cherl or Jim Frank material updates we we haven't we haven't met on the zoning byw committee review I think there's some work being done by the town attorney and Ed um and that's kind of what's up on the next meeting okay all right sounds good and any movement on sy's replacement or anything have we started that process and interviewing and yep so we um we've almost concluded the process uh we met uh as a team uh last month I think actually in March right charl to start screening the applications we narrowed it down to um a few applicants that we brought in for a very lengthy interview 40 50 questions uh hour and a half two hours and um got a really good idea of the candidates we have a tentative offer of employment out to um one of the candidates right now and I'm hopeful to hear back tomorrow cool awesome is it a um person that's worked within municipalities before it is not it is not and just out of curiosity too did we did was Sandy involved in the interview process just to give her a take or anything like that no okay [Music] all right yeah no that sounds like uh some good progress in the works there so thank you for that update um if real quick the candidate accepts the offer they'll be able to work on Sandy for several weeks hopefully that's the goal um yeah that's the goal and then you know we we kind of figured that we weren't going to find somebody with IAL experience or you know if they did have Municipal experience they weren't going to have a ton uh just recognizing Municipal Finance right now if you if you go on the MMA Mass Municipal Association look at the job board like there's tons of Municipal finance jobs open so um it's it's difficult to attract someone who has Municipal Finance experience to a smaller Community um so we put a plan in place where Sandy and I have discussed you know she's willing to come back after the uh start of the fiscal year maybe once a week or once every two weeks you know to come in and help train somebody and then also we we've we've worked with um Eric kinf he is a u Municipal accounting uh consultant he provides services literally he's probably provided services to almost all towns in the state at one point or another so um I spoke with him a few weeks ago and the goal is to kind of have him on standby so if things come up um just to just to be a sounding board for questions on how to do do things if needed uh so I think between those two things hopefully a couple weeks of overlap I think we'll be in a good good position Eric's very good yeah he is very good all right anything from anyone else in that topic no okay all right so then uh moving along here and the agenda was uh next up was correspondence so I haven't received anything I know if anyone has received anything no okay uh as may arise any other I I have a question I have a question so I'm I'm curious uh as to the conversation with the selectman regarding the arpa funds and a chipper versus fire department gear was was that was that conversation held at the board of Selectmen meeting um and what were the what was the uh no we haven't had that conversation yet Jim So the plan is to bring that before the the board at their May 7th meeting but they voted on the town articles last meeting right well separate yeah ARA doesn't go to town meeting so yeah so that we're the the priority was just to try to get through the town meeting stuff and then um we're gonna meet May 7th we're gonna that we'll bring the ARA stuff forward um and then you know make sure make sure to pass along the the concerns that the finance committee expressed okay all right um anything else from anyone no okay all right so next up was public participation I don't see anyone online so I think we're good there uh so next meeting planning so I think we should plan obviously to meet uh next Monday the 29th hopefully nail down some of those uh last remaining articles and potentially the reserve fund transfer anyone have any concerns with meeting next Monday 6m no everyone's available yeah yes okay awesome all right so um I guess so we plan for that um I guess then uh that brings us to theend end of the agenda would somebody like to make a motion to adjourn so moved thank you Cheryl roll call vote Frank yes to adjourn please Jim yes Bill yes Cheryl yes Michael yes and I am a yes as well motion carries uh 6 to zero meeting is adjourned at 6:19 p.m. good night good night everybody thank you [Music]