Truro’s Housing Plan
To the editor:
Thank you for your recent focus on housing production on the Outer Cape, including “Truro and Wellfleet Will Fail to Meet Their Housing Goals” (Oct. 7, page A5) and “Wellfleet Casts Net for More Land to Buy” (Oct. 14, front page).
Unreported in either article is the fact that in a letter dated June 30, 2021 the Dept. of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) certified that Truro is in compliance with its 2018 Housing Production Plan (HPP) — that is, that the town had achieved the housing production goal set in that plan.
The town’s achievement was based on permitting the Cloverleaf project under General Laws Chapter 40B. After Cloverleaf was approved, DHCD added the project’s 39 units to the town’s Subsidized Housing Inventory (SHI), bringing the town’s current SHI to 5.87 percent of its total housing stock. DHCD then certified the town as in compliance with its HPP, as the targeted number of “housing units affordable to low and moderate income households and eligible for inclusion on the Subsidized Housing Inventory (SHI) have been produced during one calendar year … in accordance with the approved HPP and DHCD’s c. 40B Guidelines.”
Without question, Truro can and must do more to address crisis-level housing needs. At the same time, the town’s modest success in permitting the Cloverleaf project and meeting its Housing Production Plan goal — as recognized by DHCD — warrants recognition. The town looks forward to the Independent’s continuing coverage of this crucial issue.
Barbara Carboni
Wellfleet
The writer, a lawyer, is Truro’s town planner and land use counsel.
Infuriated in Wellfleet
To the editor:
After reading “STM Is Put Off as Town Can’t Set Tax Rate” in last week’s Independent, I was left thinking that the town of Wellfleet has now morphed into a cross between Fantasy Island and The Dukes of Hazzard.
What’s so infuriating is that Wellfleet taxpayers have been paying for the grossly incompetent administration of this town for years, evidenced by the town not being able to set a tax rate, send out tax bills, or pay its own bills.
Good luck to interim Town Administrator Charles Sumner and those working with him as they continue to try to straighten out the town’s nightmarish accounts and fiscal condition.
Mike Rice
Wellfleet
RTE Is ‘Not Innocuous’
To the editor:
Your Oct. 28 Letter, “A Silver Lining,” refers to the Truro Part-Time Resident Taxpayers Association’s “volley against the innocuous residential tax exemption.” This mischaracterizes both TPRTA and the RTE.
Our goal for more than two decades has been to express the views of all of our members. A recent survey of part-timers who responded in large numbers made clear their firm opposition to the RTE. Less than 16 percent believe it merits continuation.
The RTE is not innocuous. It is divisive, corrosive, obscures actual tax comparisons over time, and hides the impact of town budgets and finances, enabled by the unfair promise of discriminatory tax relief.
Every Outer Cape town that has adopted the RTE is divided over it. In Truro, part-timers themselves expressed the views you disdain; TPRTA advocates for their views on their behalf, as affirmed by nearly 99 percent of respondents. If our sister organization in Wellfleet chooses not to do this, it is their community choice. But having one of your investors co-write a self-congratulating letter at TPRTA’s expense cannot and should not be given any consideration.
Truro’s part-timers believe in an equitable basis for providing tax relief for those who need it, just as we support needs-based affordable housing in Truro. We do not mind carrying a disproportionate burden of taxes to fund town services and capital projects, provided that we are treated fairly and respectfully, and are recognized as both the overwhelming source of taxes and fees and also a driver of the local economy as clients, volunteers, and donors.
TPRTA has always and will continue to present the opinions of all part-timers, including views which may not be popular. They trust us and rely upon us to accurately reflect their views. That is what democracy demands to function properly.
Anthony Garrett
Truro and Montville, N.J.
The writer is president of the Truro Part-Time Resident Taxpayers Association.
For the Love of Dogs
To the editor:
The Provincetown Animal Welfare Committee has heard reports of dogs not under “voice and sight control” in some of the town’s designated off-leash areas: all of the town beaches, Foss Woods, Whistle Path, and the abandoned railroad right-of-way off Snail Road. Dogs have been observed running with abandon on crowded beaches, disturbing people with children, and chasing vulnerable wildlife.
I have mixed feelings about this issue. I was the original proponent of a town meeting article passed years ago providing dogs with open spaces to run free. It would be unfortunate to curtail these off-leash areas because of the misbehavior of a few.
Not everyone is keen on relying on the dog park for exercise. The space in dog parks is limited, and many owners choose to be alone with their dogs on the beach or in the woods.
The current regulations have mostly worked, but a small number of dog owners do not act responsibly. Their behavior affects us all. Compounding this, our dog population has increased in the past few years. Oversight has been compromised because our police are short-staffed and our local animal control officer is out with an injury.
We all love our dogs, especially in Provincetown. Maybe we can be more observant and considerate of others when out with our dogs. We can all continue to enjoy Provincetown’s open spaces with mutual cooperation and the understanding that not everyone is comfortable with dogs off leash, especially when they are clearly not under voice and sight control.
Last week’s column by Dennis Minsky, “Dog on a Beach,” was, as usual, beautifully written and reflected my own sentiments about animals, both wild and domestic. I have met Dennis’s dog. She is a good dog indeed who, no question, returns his love as she stays faithfully by his side.
Elizabeth Brooke
Provincetown
The writer is a member of the Provincetown Animal Welfare Committee and president of the Friends of Cape Wildlife.
———————————-
Letters to the Editor
Send letters of up to 300 words to [email protected]. Letters must be signed with the writer’s name, home address, and a phone number where we can reach you for verification and editing. The deadline is Monday at noon for each week’s edition.
