PROVINCETOWN — A hotly-contested inclusionary housing project at 22 and 22R Nelson Ave. in Provincetown is currently for sale. After securing permits to build 12 townhouse-style condominiums on two adjacent parcels, developer Tom Tannariello has listed the properties and their accompanying permits for $1.45 million.
The parcels, totaling .58 acres, are currently under contract, and the permits are valid as long as construction begins before January 2026. Two of the 12 units will be affordable-ownership homes.
Another inclusionary project that Tannariello brought to the planning board in January has been permanently withdrawn, however.
The .68-acre lot at 8 Willow Drive has a 2,274-square-foot single-family house built in 1965. Tannariello proposed adding six units in four new buildings, leaving the single-family house in place. Under the inclusionary bylaw, one of those six new units would have been an affordable-ownership home.
That proposal was opposed not only by abutters but also by planning board members. Chair Dana Masterpolo told Tannariello she did not see any way the project could be adjusted to win her support, and he withdrew his proposal before it came to a vote.
That property is also now for sale.
22 and 22R Nelson Ave.
The listing for Nelson Avenue calls it an “extraordinary pre-approved building opportunity.”
Town Manager Alex Morse, who was a vocal supporter of the project, was happy to hear that the property was under contract. “I’m looking forward to seeing that parcel developed to make more housing available in our community,” said Morse in an email.
Tannariello’s permits for this project were hard-won. He filed the plan in December 2021, and the permits were ultimately granted in January 2023. Fifty-one letters were submitted, most of them in opposition. Residents also voiced their opposition during the hearings.
Verbal sparring extended into letters to the editor in the Independent. Morse himself wrote a strongly worded opinion piece published on Aug. 3, 2022, criticizing the planning board for discussing a possible scaling down of the project.
“This would not be the first time the planning board has responded to abutter complaints by reducing the number of units requested in an inclusionary project,” Morse wrote. “It makes no sense for the town to invest in drafting regulations to incentivize the creation of inclusionary housing if the planning board won’t embrace projects that fully comply with our zoning bylaws.”
He went on to say that there are few developable properties left in Provincetown. “If the planning board continues to let opportunities for housing slip by based on NIMBY sentiments, then the town will not be able to meet its housing goals,” Morse wrote.
The town’s housing council endorsed the project, and that panel’s vice chair, Austin Miller — now a select board member —urged its approval.
Neighbors had a multitude of concerns including density, traffic, parking, stormwater runoff, and effects on wildlife.
Tannariello’s decision to sell the property now that it is permitted is not unusual.
“In my years of experience in Massachusetts, I’ve found that it is not uncommon for owners of vacant property to obtain permits for potential future development, typically in order to make a property more marketable for resale,” said Town Planner Thaddeus Soulé.
Tannariello bought the property for $1.045 million in January 2019. He declined to speak to the Independent for this article.
8 Willow Drive
Tannariello purchased 8 Willow Drive in July 2021 for $1,165,000 and submitted his proposal for six new units alongside the existing house in January. Once again, he submitted his application for permitting under the town’s inclusionary bylaw, meaning one of the six new units would be deed-restricted to affordable ownership.
This time, it wasn’t just abutters who were opposed to the plan.
Planning board members said that clearcutting the property, widening the driveway, and installing two septic systems could contribute to the destruction of the dune. The parcel is almost entirely within the high elevation protection district.
Masterpolo stated her unwavering opposition to the project. Tannariello withdrew the proposal without prejudice in late February, leaving the door open for future resubmission.
He put the property up for sale in mid-June, however. It is now divided into two lots: one with the existing house on it and the other one vacant. The lot with the house is listed at $1,795,000. The vacant lot is listed at $749,000. If purchased together, the list price is $2,295,000.
