AMHERST — The Town Council has approved a financing plan for a new $97.5 million Amherst elementary school that will reduce the increased property tax burden on homeowners and tenants, while preserving a plan for undertaking three other capital building projects.

After nearly four hours of discussion, councilors agreed Monday to pull $5 million from the $9.3 million in the capital reserves account to offset some of the costs related to the project, which is subject to a Proposition 2½ debt-exclusion vote on May 2.

Their action, in a 12-1 vote, also directs Town Manager Paul Bockelman, at his request, to identify another $5 million in alternative funding for the project by the end of November.

For council President Lynn Griesemer, the vote was an opportunity to send a message to taxpayers and renters — both of whom will be burdened by property tax increases should the project be approved — that their interests are being looked after, while also protecting the town’s bond rating and keeping a plan intact for a new South Amherst fire station, a new Department of Public Works headquarters, and a renovated and expanded Jones Library to be done within the town’s spending limits.

“The reality is we’d like to give some more relief to this without jeopardizing the other projects, and we’d like to have time to do that,” Griesemer said.

Only At-Large Councilor Ellisha Walker, who sought to add another $5 million reserves to pay for the project, objected in the final vote, noting that the important decision by the Town Council came without helping its “deeply burdened” constituents who are already struggling.

Finance Director Sean Mangano presented statistics showing that for an average home assessed at $446,953, successful passage of the debt-exclusion override would increase the average property tax bill by $496.12, while using $5 million in reserves would drop this to $451.42. Applying $10 million in reserves would reduce this further, to a $406.73 annual increase.

The borrowing authorization spells out how the $5 million in reserves will be replenished and includes an addendum that “requests that the Town Manager develop options to reduce the impact of the debt exclusion on residents by developing a financing plan that identifies an additional $5 million of alternative funding to be presented to the Town Council by November 30, 2023.”

In a March 30 memo, Bockelman explained that the plan would preserve nearly half of the town’s reserve capital, which is at around $9.3 million, with the reserves that are used returning in energy rebates included in the federal Inflation Reduction Act.

“Such a plan will be developed to preserve the strong financial position and management of the Town, maintain focus on the four building projects, and provide additional relief to residents,” Bockelman wrote.

He noted that permanent financing for the school would not begin until 2028, meaning there will be five fiscal years to undertake other actions to reduce the financial impact on residents, including securing financial support from community partners, identifying and developing programs to aid renters and taxpayers, applying for and obtaining additional Inflation Reduction Act tax credit payments for all eligible projects, allocating end-of-year surpluses, expanding the property tax base, advocating for legislative action, and making adaptations to the “four building” project plan.

Mangano said while the goal is identifying $5 million in alternative funding by the Nov. 30 deadline, the hope is to exceed that.

The final vote came about four hours after the evening began with a public hearing, followed by a Finance Committee recommendation. The Finance Committee’s five councilors, aside from Walker, and its three resident members, supported the plan enacted by councilors.

In putting forward her request to use an additional $5 million in reserves, Walker said there was intentional confusion and “another obstacle put in my way.”

“All I’m trying to do here is help our residents by reducing the overall (cost) by $10 million,” Walker said. “That is my goal.”

Walker’s motion initially only got support from Distirct 3 Councilor Jennifer Taub and District 4 Councilor Pamela Rooney, with District 3 Councilor Dorothy Pam abstaining.

Once that was rejected, Walker proposed amendments that would require Bockelman to dip into reserves if he couldn’t guarantee the alternative funding. Those too were defeated.

District 1 Councilor Cathy Schoen, who made the initial ask for the $5 million in reserves that will be reimbursed, said that while she is sympathetic to taxpayers, the town has future buildings, as well as roads and sidewalks, to take care of.

District 1 Councilor Michele Miller wondered if one way to bring in new revenue and cut expenses would be to unload or develop deteriorating properties, like the former South East Street school building that has been vacant for several years.

Following the vote, the Amherst Forward political action committee issued a statement appreciating the vote and the responsible fiscal stewardship the council demonstrated.

“Put simply, our community cannot afford to wait any longer for this project,” said Amherst Forward President Katherine Appy. “We are also grateful for the majority vote last night to safeguard the funds that our taxpayers have contributed for other long-awaited, critical public projects.”

Those who offered public comments at the meeting included Peter Demling, an elected member of the Amherst School Committee, who asked councilors to make their final vote unanimous. “It would be in the spirit of what this project has been doing for years now,” Demling said.

Differing opinions were also offered on whether it was appropriate to deplete the capital reserves account.

Jeff Lee of South East Street said town officials should prioritize getting the school project passed and that the added tax burden should be reduced as much as possible to help ensure a successful vote next month. “I think they’re going to be hurt by this,” Lee said.

Clare Betrand of Bay Road, though, said councilors should stick to the plan. “I’d like to encourage you to not rob from future projects,” Bertrand said.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.]]>