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The
Community Preservation Act in Royalston What is the Community Preservation Act? The Community Preservation Act (CPA), adopted by the Legislature in 2000, is a local option state law that gives communities the opportunity to preserve historic properties and locations, protect open space, create and renovate affordable housing, and develop new outdoor recreational facilities. Under the CPA, the state provides an annual guaranteed state match to funds raised locally for these purposes. Where do the local CPA funds come from? From a 1-3% surcharge on local property taxes - we recommend 3%. In Royalston, as in most towns that have accepted the CPA, the first $100,000 of assessed value of residential real property would be exempt from the surcharge (click here to see how much you would contribute each year towards the local CPA fund). The 3% CPA surcharge in 2007 would have been only $28, or 54¢ per week, less than the cost of one cup of coffee at the South Royalston Country Store! Where do the state matching funds come from? From fees collected on transactions conducted at the Registries of Deeds all across the state, but CPA matching funds are sent back only to those towns that have adopted the CPA. This year, the state was able to match each participating community's locally raised CPA funds at a rate of 100%, and the 127 communities with CPA , most of them east of Route 495, were the ones that benefitted. How much could the CPA raise for Royalston? Based on FY07 tax figures and with the first $100,000 of assessed residential property value and low-income and low- and moderate-income senior homeowners exempt from the surcharge, town residents would raise $17,000 locally with the CPA surcharge. State matching funds would be received each year on top of this amount. In FY08, the CPA state match rate is expected to be between 60 to 70%, or over $11,000! So the total amount we could spend would be over $28,000. The funds raised can be saved from year to year and also can be used as the local match for other state-funded programs. What can Royalston do with this money? In developing the Royalston Open Space and Recreation Plan, residents identified their top priority as maintaining the rural and historical character of the town. We can use CPA funds to do just that - preserving and renovating our historic buildings and commons, increasing recreational opportunities for everyone, preserving our working forests and farms, creating affordable housing, and protecting our valuable open space. Who decides how the CPA fund is spent? We decide! The CPA requires that 10 percent of the monies raised and matched locally each year for CPA be set aside or spent on historic preservation, 10 percent on community housing, and 10 percent on open space protection. The remainder can be spent on any of those purposes, or on developing new outdoor recreational facilities. Locally, a CPA Committee appointed by the Selectboard with representation from the local Conservation Commission, Planning Board, Historic Commission, Park and Recreation Commission, and Housing Authority administers the local CPA fund and makes recommendations for how the funds should be spent, but all CPA spending recommendations must be approved by voters at our Annual Town Meeting.
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 The natural and recreational resources of Royalston |
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