[Adopted 4-4-2002 ATM by Art. 26]
[Amended 11-5-2018 RTM by Art. 17]
There shall be a permanent Building Committee consisting of nine members who shall be residents of the Town, and who shall be appointed by the Town Council for a term of three years each. The terms of such members shall be staggered so that three members shall be appointed each year. To the extent possible, the Town Councilors shall appoint six members who have experience in architecture, engineering, public/commercial building construction, law and/or finance. The Town Councilors shall appoint the original members of the Committee as follows: three members for one year, three members for two years and three members for three years. Upon expiration of a term, future appointments shall be for three years. The Permanent Building Committee shall, at its first meeting each year after the Town Councilors have exercised their power of appointment, organize by choosing a Chairperson, who shall conduct the meetings of the said Committee, and a Secretary, who shall cause the minutes of such meetings to be kept. Terms expire on December 31 of each year. A member may hold his or her seat after his or her term expires until a successor is appointed. If a member vacates his or her seat before the expiration of his or her term, the Town Councilors shall appoint a replacement to complete the unexpired term.
It shall be the responsibility of the Permanent Building Committee to oversee all projects for design, construction, reconstruction, renovation, alteration or enlargement of any building owned by the Town, or undertaken on land owned or leased by the Town, with an expected project and/or construction value of $100,000 or more. The Permanent Building Committee shall have the sole authority to procure engineering and architectural services, to award bids for construction, to enter into contracts on behalf of the Town with respect to matters within its authority and to administer such contracts in accordance with applicable law. Whenever land acquisition is or may be necessary for any project within its authority, the Permanent Building Committee shall study such proposed acquisition and report to Town Meeting thereon. Town Meeting may expand or limit the powers and responsibilities of the Permanent Building Committee with respect to specific projects.
[Amended 4-29-2019 ATM by Art. 24]
Whenever the Town undertakes a building project that comes within the jurisdiction of the Permanent Building Committee, an advisory committee shall be appointed for the purpose of advising the Permanent Building Committee concerning such project. The advisory committee shall prepare and make presentations to the Permanent Building Committee concerning such matters as the advisory committee deems appropriate which are relevant to the building project in connection with which such advisory committee was created, including, without limitation, the development of program needs, preparation and review of feasibility studies, assessment of conditions, evaluation of bids and proposals, negotiation and administration of contracts, and evaluation of contractors. Each advisory committee shall be appointed by the applicable user agency, as that term is defined herein, and shall consist of not more than 25 persons. Whenever the Permanent Building Committee lists a particular building project on its meeting agenda, it shall invite the advisory committee that was created in connection with that project to attend such meeting, and may also invite such other public bodies as it may deem appropriate, including the Board of Health and the Commission on Disability Issues. "User agency," as used herein with respect to any particular building project, shall mean an elected or appointed multiple member body, including without limitation the Town Council, School Committee, Board of Library Trustees, Recreation Commission, and Conservation Commission, having permanent responsibility for such building.
[Amended 5-15-2023 ATM by Art. 16]
The Committee shall develop and publish procedures describing its activities, including but not limited to a detailed designer selection process. Except as the laws of the Commonwealth may require otherwise, the Chairperson of the Committee, or his or her designated representative, shall upon completion of a project: (1) provide the Town Building Inspector, User Agency and the Town's Building Manager with a complete and final set of drawings and specifications of the finished structure as built, and all other contract documents, and shall relinquish to the User Agency and said Building Manager all papers guaranteeing the building or any feature thereof, materials used therein, or work done thereon, and (2) relinquish the remaining papers of the Committee to the Town Clerk for the purpose of maintaining detailed records, including an inventory indicating what papers, materials and records were deposited with the Building Manager. Subject to the approval of the Town Clerk and the requirements of MGL Chapter 66, any portions of the material that have no substantial value may be destroyed. The Committee shall submit a report of all its activities for publication in the Town's Annual Report and shall render progress and completion reports as appropriate to the Annual Town Meeting.
Except as otherwise provided by vote of the Town Meeting, the Permanent Building Committee shall assume the responsibility for any project currently under consideration or being constructed at the time of the adoption of this bylaw.