[HISTORY: Adopted 8-5-1996 by the Board of Selectmen of
the Town of Somers, effective 8-25-1996. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Budget and finance — See Ch. 7.
A.
The Town of Somers shall establish a Special Project
Committee (hereinafter "Committee") under powers granted to the Board
of Selectmen in Chapter V of the Town Charter, §§ 5-1
and 5-22, which shall receive direction from and report to the Board
of Selectmen regarding needs for capital expenditures for public building
or capital improvement projects in the Town of Somers.
B.
The Board of Selectmen shall submit to the Board of
Finance, in accordance with Town of Somers Charter Chapter VI, §§ 6-4
and 6-7, at such time and in such manner as the Board of Finance may
require, a request for funds to be expended for specific stated capital
projects.
C.
Upon approval of the appropriation requested of the
Board of Finance by the Board of Selectmen, the Committee shall have
the authority to enter into contracts for any services and to purchase
or contract to purchase any supplies, materials, equipment and other
commodities required to complete the capital project or projects funded
in the Town budget.
D.
The Town Treasurer shall maintain a complete and accurate
accounting of expenditures for each capital project and shall report
as to the status of the account for each capital project to the Board
of Selectmen monthly, or more frequently upon request of the Board
of Selectmen.
E.
Upon completion of each capital project, the Treasurer
shall submit a final accounting to the Board of Selectmen of all moneys
expended for each capital project and any surplus that may remain
in the budget for each project. Any surplus remaining from each capital
project shall be designated for the Town's general fund.
F.
Notwithstanding anything in this chapter to the contrary, the Board
of Selectmen may form temporary Special Building Committees to oversee
the construction of specific public buildings. Upon the formation
of a Special Building Committee, that Committee, and not the Special
Project Committee, shall exercise the powers described in this chapter.
[Added 4-14-2004, effective 5-7-2004]
As used in this chapter, the following definitions
shall apply:
The expenditure of an aggregate sum in excess of $10,000
for any one public building project.
The construction, purchasing, leasing, extension, replacement,
furnishing, equipping or major alteration to any building owned by
the Town of Somers, including but not limited to school buildings,
fire houses, police buildings, libraries, garages, outbuildings and
the Town Hall, including the improvement of the site of an existing
building but shall not include the cost of a site.
The building of a new building or repairing of an existing
building, and all aspects of planning involved with the work, including
but not limited to architectural and engineering drawings and plans;
for purposes of defining the scope of each capital project, construction
shall not include drawings, plans or other studies or documents completed
prior to the Committee recommending the capital project to the Board
of Finance and approval and appropriation of the capital project.
The addition to an existing building or remaining portion
of an existing building or the erection of a new structure or group
of structures on the same site, for a specific use as a public building,
for existing buildings damaged by fire, flood or other natural catastrophe.
A capital improvement of an existing public building, which
alteration bears a total cost greater than $10,000.
The erection of a new structure or group of structures on
the same or another site to replace a public building totally destroyed
by fire, flood or other natural catastrophe.
A.
Membership of the permanent Special Project Committee
shall consist of the following:
(1)
The Committee shall consist of seven members who shall
be residents and legal voters of the Town of Somers, each of whom,
following initial terms of appointment, shall serve for a term of
two years, and who shall be appointed by the Board of Selectmen in
the following manner, with the following initial terms of appointment:
(a)
One member shall be a member of the Board of Selectmen,
as designated by a majority of the Board of Selectmen. Initial term:
two years from date of appointment, and then two years thereafter.
(b)
One member shall be a member of the Board of Finance,
as designated by a majority of the Board of Finance. Initial term:
three years from date of appointment, and then two years thereafter.
(c)
One member shall be a member of the Board of Education,
as recommended by a majority of the Board of Education. Initial term:
one year from date of appointment, and then two years thereafter.
(d)
One member skilled in the profession of building and
construction shall be appointed by a majority of the Board of Selectmen.
Initial term: two years from date of appointment, and then two years
thereafter.
(e)
Three members shall be designated at large and appointed
by a majority of the Board of Selectmen. Initial terms:
(2)
Initial terms of one, two or three years are intended
to be approximate and shall be calculated to begin at the time of
appointment and end on a date following the election of the Board
of Selectmen or, in years when Selectmen are not elected, at the same
time of year.
B.
In the event that any board as above stated, within
30 days of receiving a written request from the Board of Selectmen,
fails to designate personnel to serve on the Committee, then a majority
of the Board of Selectmen shall name the personnel from the appropriate
board.
C.
No member of the Committee whose membership derives
from membership on the Board of Selectmen, Board of Finance or Board
of Education shall remain a member of the Committee beyond the time
she or he is a member of said appropriate board.
A.
It is the express intent of this chapter that the
Committee herein created shall not be responsible for the care, maintenance
or operation of any public buildings, lands, apparatus or other such
public property but rather shall address only capital expenditures
for public building projects. Where a conflict arises as to the definitions
of "care," "maintenance" or "operation," there shall be a conclusive
presumption that if the needed expenditure for any project or cause
shall exceed $10,000, it is not care, maintenance or operation, and
if the needed expenditure for any project or cause is $10,000 or less,
it is conclusively presumed to be care, maintenance or operation.
B.
Said Committee shall not have the authority, without
prior approval of both the Town Treasurer and the Board of Selectmen,
to transfer any unexpended sum within its budget from one project
to another project.
C.
The Board of Selectmen may remove any member for cause
and may fill any vacancy to complete any unexpired term in accordance
with Town Charter Chapter V, §§ 5-1, 5-2, 5-4, 5-22
and 5-23.
