Select Board Discusses Outcomes of Annual and Special Town Meetings, Sets Schedule for Strategic Goals Setting Process and Town Manager Review

ANDOVER, MA – The Andover Select Board met on Monday, May 6 at the Andover Public School Administrative Offices. As the meeting was the Board’s first since the Annual and Special Town Meetings on April 29^th and 30^th, much of the meeting was spent recapping and discussing actions taken by Town Meeting. In particular, the Board discuss Town Meeting’s adoption of the amendment to increase the FY2025 School Department operating budget by $1.875 million, which produced an unbalanced budget. Beyond Town Meeting-related matters, the Select Board also voted to set a timeline for the adoption of strategic goals and objectives for the next fiscal year, and for the annual review of the Town Manager. 

Review of Key Warrant Articles
Town Manager Andrew Flanagan provided a recap of certain key actions taken by Town Meeting last week, including adoption of a new Town Seal, approval of an amended article to authorize General Fund borrowing for capital projects, and the creation of the Multifamily Overlay District to comply with the state’s MBTA Communities Zoning Law.

According to Flanagan, the Town has begun the process of transitioning to the new Town Seal approved by Town Meeting. The new Town Seal has already been changed on letterhead, various documents, agendas and in digital uses. The new seal was, in fact, integrated into the design of the presentation Flanagan made to the Select Board. The Town Manager expects that the seal will be changed on Town vehicles in the coming weeks. The transition to the new seal on uniforms will take place gradually.

Flanagan highlighted a notable change to Article 24, which authorized General Fund borrowing for certain capital projects. A line item within the article, FAC-5, was adjusted by the Town from $600,000 to $250,000. This reduction was to account for the removal of funding for an accessible kayak launch on the Shawsheen River at Nason’s Landing. The project, which Town Meeting authorized funding for the study of in 2023, was removed from the article out of an abundance of caution because lead was detected at the site during soil testing conducted in April. The Town is continuing to assess the extent of contamination at the site and if remediation will be required. The Town remains committed to building an accessible kayak launch on the Shawsheen River.

Another article discussed during Monday’s meeting was Article 1 from the Special Town Meeting, which authorized a Zoning Bylaw amendment creating a new zoning district, referred to as the Multifamily Overlay District, or MOD. The creation of the district achieves compliance with the state’s MBTA Communities zoning law, which required Andover and other communities served by the MBTA to create a zoning district in which multifamily housing is permitted by right. Andover’s compliance is subject to review and approval by the Attorney General’s Office.

FY2025 Operating Budget
The Select Board dedicated much of the meeting to discussing the FY2025 budget and the consequences of Town Meeting’s approval of an amendment that increased funding for Andover Public Schools by $1.875 million. As a result of this amendment, the budget is not balanced, meaning that appropriations exceed available revenues.

Town Manager Andrew Flanagan stated that the budget must be balanced by the time that the tax rate is set next fall, and laid out several options by which a balanced budget might be achieved, including authorizing additional revenues, or reducing Town Department budgets. Either approach would require approval by Town Meeting, thus a Special Town Meeting is likely to take place in the coming months.

Strategies to address the unbalanced budget will be further assessed by the Select Board, Finance Committee, and School Committee during a Tri-Board meeting scheduled for Wednesday, May 8 at 7:30 PM at Memorial Hall Library. Members of the Select Board suggested that, at a future date, a community forum regarding the budget may be valuable to gather public input on various strategies.

Flanagan also provided an analysis on the impacts of using free cash to address the deficit produced by the $1.875 million amendment. The use of free cash was widely suggested by residents during Town Meeting as a strategy to fund the budget increase. Free Cash is an operating reserve that is typically used for one-time expenses or capital expenditures. The Department of Revenue recommends that these funds not be used for salaries or recurring operating expenses.

The Town will begin FY2025 with a free cash balance of approximately $14.9 million. About $2 million in free cash is dedicated to capital spending each year, consistent with the long-term financial plan. The Town Manager’s analysis model assumed that the $1.875 million operating deficit would increase by 3.75 percent annually. Additionally, Andover Public Schools projects that it will encounter a further deficit of $1.75 million beginning in FY26, also assumed to increase by 3.75 each year under the model. If both deficits are funded using free cash, the free cash fund balance would be depleted to about $1 million by the end of FY2027, and would be in a deficit of over $2 million by the end of FY2028.

As demonstrated by this model, the use of free cash does not provide a viable solution to addressing current and anticipated deficits within the Andover Public Schools budget.  

Strategic Goals and Town Manager Review Process
The Select Board considered a proposed timeline for the annual process of setting strategic goals and objectives and the review of the Town Manager.

Under the timeline approved by the Board, a Goals Workshop will be will be held on June 17^th, during which the Board will review progress towards goals for the current fiscal year, and consider new goals for FY2025. The Town Manager will produce an updated document reflecting the Board’s priorities by June 26^th. The strategic goals and objectives for FY2025 will be reviewed and considered for adoption by the Board during their meeting on July 22^nd. 

Strategic goals and objectives for the current fiscal year can be viewed online. 

The Board’s annual performance review of the Town Manager will take place concurrently. Completed review surveys will be submitted by members of the Board to the HR Director by July 12^th. 

Other Notes

The full meeting can be viewed online through AndoverTV. The Board is scheduled to meet next in a joint session with the Finance Committee and School Committee on May 8, 2024.