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95 Lawrence Road

    FUNDED

    Wellfleet’s Lawrence Hill Project Wins State Support

    The plan to build 46 units next to the elementary school moves forward

    By

    WELLFLEET — The plan to build 46 affordable apartments at 95 Lawrence Road has cleared its last major hurdle. On Monday, the state Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC) announced that the Residences at Lawrence Hill will receive close to $24 million in subsidies and tax credits — the funding the project needs to finally break ground.

    According to Community Development Partnership CEO Jay Coburn, construction at Lawrence Hill could begin within nine months, and once shovels hit the ground, work on the project could take up to 20 months. That puts the likely completion date in the fall of 2026.

    According to Vitalia Shklovsky, senior project manager for the nonprofit Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH), the project will receive $8 million in grants and another $15 to $16 million in state and federal low-income housing tax credits. POAH is working with the local nonprofit Community Development Partnership (CDP) to develop and manage the project.

    Lawrence Hill is one of 26 affordable housing projects across the state chosen for support in this “mini-round” of funding, according to a Jan. 22 press release from the Healey-Driscoll administration. (Traditionally these housing funds are allocated once a year, but in each year since the American Rescue Plan Act, the state has added a second mini-round.)

    Last summer, EOHLC passed over the project, while developments at 3 Jerome Smith Road in Provincetown and 107 Main St. in Orleans both received funding from the state agency. Wellfleet is the only community on Cape Cod to receive funding in this round.

    “This announcement is exciting news for our project team and the whole community,” Shklovsky told the Independent. According to Coburn, CDP and POAH will meet with the select board in April to discuss next steps.

    Coburn said that in this round of funding the state made almost twice the number of that it made last year. He said this shows that the Healey-Driscoll administration has “aggressively worked with the legislature to increase funding levels for affordable housing.”

    According to the press release, the state has raised the low-income housing tax credit to $60 million annually — a $20-million increase from the previous year — as part of a $1-billion tax relief bill.

    With funding from EOHLC secured, Lawrence Hill has what it needs for the $30-million project, Coburn said. The town of Wellfleet has committed $1.85 million in Affordable Housing Trust and Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds, and Provincetown, Brewster, and Orleans are together chipping in another $145,000 in CPA money.

    The developers are waiting to hear about an award of $1 million in Barnstable County ARPA funds and $300,000 from the Barnstable County Home Consortium. Further grants from the Community Economic Development Assistance Corporation (CEDAC) and Mass. Clean Energy Center, along with a $5-million mortgage, will cushion the risk of cost overruns, Coburn said.

    The inflation that has caused Truro’s Cloverleaf affordable housing development, a project that received EOHLC funding in September 2022, to fall into a $7-million funding deficit is always in play, Coburn said.

    But he argued that Boston-based POAH, which operates nearly 13,000 affordable homes across the country, has “the expertise and resources to manage those fluctuations and risks.”

    Despite being passed over by the state during last summer’s annual rental funding round, Lawrence Hill has pretty well kept to its timeline. The town’s zoning board of appeals heard minimal opposition and signed off on a comprehensive permit for the project last year.

    Plans to construct a $4.6-million wastewater treatment facility to serve Lawrence Hill as well as the nearby police and fire stations and other houses received a $3-million MassWorks grant last fall, drastically cutting the amount the town would otherwise have requested from taxpayers.

    The development will include a three-story apartment building with 22 one- and two-bedroom units and a cluster of townhouses with 24 one-, two-, and three-bedroom units. Seventy-five percent of the units will be reserved for residents earning no more than 60 percent of area median income (AMI), and the rest will be restricted to those who earn between 60 and 80 percent of AMI.

    “This award represents years of hard work and commitment by the Wellfleet community to address its housing challenges,” Town Administrator Rich Waldo told the Independent. “The town recognizes the long list of families desperate for stable housing. The Residences at Lawrence Hill is going to benefit them and our community. It is a big step in the right direction.”

    HOUSING

    Wellfleet ZBA OKs Permit for 95 Lawrence Rd.

    Developers see 46 rental units completed by late 2024

    By

    WELLFLEET — The Zoning Board of Appeals signed off on a comprehensive permit on Sept. 22 for Long Pond Village, the 46-unit affordable housing development at 95 Lawrence Road that has been in the works for more than three years. The two nonprofit developers who are partnering to build and manage the project — Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and the Community Development Partnership (CDP) — can now move ahead with its financing.

    Plans for the site include a lower village building near the intersection with Long Pond Road, with 22 one- and two-bedroom flats, and an upper village across from the Wellfleet Elementary School, consisting of 24 one-, two-, and three-bedroom units in townhouses. The developers, working with a task force of local housing advocates and planners, applied for the permit under the state’s Chapter 40B, which allows for a streamlined approval process in communities where the subsidized affordable housing inventory is less than 10 percent of the total housing stock. The state currently lists Wellfleet at 2.5 percent.

    Previous efforts to build affordable housing in Wellfleet have gotten bogged down for years in lawsuits filed by abutters. So far, at least, there have been few objections to Long Pond Village.

    “This is the first time we’ve had one come before us that had no significant opposition,” said ZBA Chair Sharon Inger.

    The board received several letters of support for the development, including a petition signed by the owners of many local businesses. The Cape Cod Commission also sent a letter of support, stating that “the proposal preserved natural space and open space and that it was congruent with community heritage and therefore … consistent with regional planning goals.”

    As of Oct. 4, no appeals challenging the ZBA’s vote to approve the permit had been filed. The 20-day appeal window started officially on Sept. 30.

    The select board and the developers are now negotiating an agreement governing the use of land, which is owned by the town, said Town Counsel Carolyn Murray. The agreement will specify that 75 percent of the units will be reserved for those earning no more than 60 percent of area median income (AMI). “The remaining units will be ‘community rental units’ intended to accommodate a range of household incomes,” the proposed text of the agreement reads.

    All 46 units will count toward Wellfleet’s subsidized housing inventory, though 11 of them will not be specifically designated as affordable housing because they will be made available to renters earning more than 60 percent of AMI.

    The lower village building will have three stories, which required a waiver of the zoning bylaw’s height restriction. Inger said that the plan for 95 Lawrence Road was “a bit of a stretch for Wellfleet” because of the need for this and other zoning waivers. “But they made the case for why going up was preferable to cutting down more trees,” Inger said.

    Inger attributed the lack of opposition to the permit to the 95 Lawrence Road Task Force, which “was excellent in doing a lot of work to explain to people what it was and why we would need it.” She said the task force made listening to people’s concerns a priority and credited POAH with involving the neighbors in the logistics of the land agreement. “They met and did walk-throughs with the neighbors,” said Inger. “They tried very hard to answer everybody’s questions.”

    Mick Lynch, vice chair of the ZBA, raised questions during the Sept. 22 meeting about how vulnerable members of the community — and those intimidated by the required paperwork — would get assistance with applying to live at Long Pond Village. Elaine McIlroy, chair of the Wellfleet Housing Authority, cited POAH’s “incredible outreach program and reputation of working with the community.” She added that the CDP will be providing part-time housing specialist services.

    “As former chair of the 95 Lawrence Road Task Force, I just want to say how proud I am of Wellfleet, how I feel we are so lucky to have this partnership,” said McIlroy.

    Now that the comprehensive permit has been approved, the developers will begin applying for state funding. Cory Fellows of POAH said during the Sept. 22 meeting that they hope to have funding secured by next spring so that construction can be underway by late 2023. If this timeline pans out, the units could be complete and leases available starting in late 2024, he said.

    “This is exciting,” said Inger. “It’s a major step forward for Wellfleet because it’s so many units. We’ve been doing little tiny projects — but this one is amazing.”

    HOUSING

    Developers Seek 12 Zoning Waivers for 95 Lawrence Road

    One would allow Lower Village building to be 44 feet high

    By

    WELLFLEET — The developers of 46 units of affordable housing at 95 Lawrence Road, known as Long Pond Village, have requested 12 waivers from the town’s zoning regulations, which the zoning board of appeals will consider at a continuation of its public hearing on the development on Sept. 8.

    A rendering of the Lower Village building at 95 Lawrence Road.

    The requested waivers would relax rules limiting building height, intensity of use, and the number of allowable signs and would reduce the number of required parking spaces and the minimum size of those spaces. One waiver would allow the construction of a multiple-family dwelling in the Residential 1 zoning district where the development is located and where such uses are prohibited by the zoning bylaw.

    The nonprofit developers, Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and the Community Development Partnership (CDP), are seeking a comprehensive permit for the project under the state’s Chapter 40B, which enables local zoning boards to waive or relax some regulations in order to make the construction of affordable units more feasible. Such permits may be granted for projects in communities with less than the state’s minimum standard of 10 percent of total housing stock being affordable. Less than 3 percent of Wellfleet’s housing is considered affordable under the state’s rules.

    One of the requested waivers relates to the height of the proposed Lower Village building, which would occupy the site of the now abandoned Council on Aging building at the intersection of Long Pond and Lawrence roads. The zoning bylaw limits structures to two stories and a maximum height of 28 feet. The Lower Village plan calls for a three-story building that would be 44 feet high and contain 22 one- and two-bedroom apartments as well as a community room, laundry, and elevator.

    Another waiver would relax the intensity-of-use rules in the zoning bylaw, which would otherwise require a minimum of 390,000 square feet for a development containing 46 dwelling units. The available area at 95 Lawrence Road is about 261,000 square feet — approximately two-thirds of the space required in the bylaw.

    Landscape plan for Long Pond Village in Wellfleet.

    Two other requested waivers relate to parking: one would reduce the required size of parking spaces from 9 by 20 feet to 9 by 18 feet. The second would reduce the required number of spaces from 69 to 57.

    Two more waivers relate to signs. One would allow the installation of up to four free-standing illuminated signs no more than eight feet high and 12 square feet in area. A second waiver would allow up to eight directional signs no more than two square feet in area.

    One of the requested waivers would relax the bylaw’s regulations regarding driveways that are expected to accommodate more than 200 daily trips.

    Traffic Study: Little Effect

    The developers have also submitted to the ZBA the results of a traffic impact and access study carried out by Fort Hill Infrastructure of Hudson. The study concluded that the development “will have negligible impacts on traffic and should not impede the flow of traffic on nearby streets and intersections.”

    The traffic study included observations of the number of cars traveling through the intersections of Long Pond Road with Lawrence Road, Old Long Pond Road, and Main Street, and analysis of the likely effects of increased traffic from the 46 new housing units to be built at Long Pond Village. The study also looked at accident data for the intersection of Lawrence Road and Route 6.

    The study concluded that “the proposed development is anticipated to generate 47 vehicle trips during the morning peak hour and 29 vehicle trips during the evening peak hour. This amounts to less than one vehicle every minute under both peak hour conditions. For comparison, the proposed development will lead to a far lower number of vehicle trips comparatively to a commercial retail property.”

    The ZBA hopes to conclude its review of the comprehensive permit application on Sept. 22.

    AFFORDABLE HOUSING

    ZBA Kicks Off Review of ‘Long Pond Village’

    Solar panels and a design inspired by modernism in Wellfleet

    By

    WELLFLEET — The zoning board of appeals began its formal review of the long-planned 95 Lawrence Road affordable housing project on July 14.

    The three-story Lower Village has a common room, elevator, and 22 one- and two-bedroom units. Across the ballfield, there are 24 townhouses in seven buildings.

    For the first time, the developers, Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and the Community Development Partnership (CDP), presented an overview of the design. The renderings show a new neighborhood named Long Pond Village on six acres of town-owned land.

    The 46 apartments, all rental units, wrap around the ballfield across from the Wellfleet Elementary School. The ballfield will be open for use by schoolchildren, the public, and the residents of the development, said Jay Coburn, the CDP’s CEO.

    The neighborhood comprises two areas. The Lower Village is a single three-story building containing 22 apartments, all with one or two bedrooms. The building will have a common room, patio, elevator, and laundry. Designed for singles or couples, it will be close to Long Pond Road, where the dilapidated former council on aging building sits.

    Across the ballfield and up the hill is the Upper Village with seven buildings holding 24 townhouses. These are two- and three-bedroom units. The roofs have solar panels, and the design, said Coburn, is inspired by mid-century modern architecture.

    “Our team has crafted a proposal to build high-quality affordable housing for a range of incomes and household sizes,” Coburn told the ZBA. Another goal of the proposal he described is to ensure environmental sustainability, including being nearly net-zero in energy consumption. The mid-century modern look of the complex reflects a commitment “to create a community with a resilient and elegant design that draws on local building traditions,” he said.

    A rendering of an aerial view of Long Pond Village, proposed for 95 Lawrence Road, shows the Wellfleet Elementary School in the foreground. The design was formally presented to the zoning board of appeals on July 14. (Images courtesy Studio G Architects)

    Coburn called the 95 Lawrence Road project “a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a considerable number of affordable homes in Wellfleet.”

    The ZBA must decide if the 46-unit development qualifies for a comprehensive 40B permit, which will allow for streamlining of the permitting process and the possibility of requesting waivers of certain zoning restrictions that would otherwise make an affordable housing project impossible. The statute allowing a comprehensive permit is sometimes referred to as the “Anti-Snob Zoning Act.”

    One zoning waiver, for example, will address the fact that ordinarily multifamily housing is not allowed in the area. Other waivers pertain to lot size and building height.

    The ZBA will be meeting in the coming weeks to review project details in phases. Coburn will fully present the architectural and landscape design on July 21. Traffic will be discussed on Aug. 4. The septic and wastewater presentation will be Aug. 25.

    The zoning board anticipates it could be ready to decide on the permit on Sept. 8, said Chair Sharon Inger. But knowing that these approvals often take longer than expected, the board has also reserved Sept. 22.

    Coburn said that time is of the essence as developers need to queue up to receive federal tax credits that are awarded to affordable housing projects by the state Dept. of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). The DHCD needs preapplications in October and will be formally awarding tax credits during the “rental round” in January 2023.

    The Upper Village, which includes this community building, will be across the ballfield from the three-story Lower Village building.

    Usually, projects must wait for two years to receive the limited pool of aid. But, Coburn said, 2023 is different because of significant American Rescue Plan Act funds directed to affordable housing.

    “We think we have a good chance to get funded in the first year because of the need on the Cape and because there are more resources available,” he said.

    Coburn said the CDP and POAH went through a preapplication process with the ZBA starting in April and held a question-and-answer session with the public in June. These steps helped prepare the developers for issues that might be raised by town staff and the public.

    Using preapplication meetings worked for another developer, Pennrose, which got a comprehensive permit to construct 62 units of affordable housing in Orleans after only six weeks of meetings with the ZBA, Coburn said.

    In contrast, the Truro ZBA review of the 39-unit Cloverleaf project took 14 months. Then, after the proposal received a comprehensive permit in January 2021, Truro property owners sued the ZBA. The lawsuit was dismissed in February 2022, but it delayed the development for a year.

    Perhaps fearing that the Cloverleaf saga could be repeated in Wellfleet, someone at the July 14 meeting asked if there was any litigation facing this project. No legal challenge can be filed until the permit is issued, Inger said.

    The developers hope to begin construction at 95 Lawrence Road in the fall of 2023 and to finish in 2025.

    If these units are built, they will be available to people at three different income levels. Twenty-seven units will be reserved for those earning up to 60 percent of the area median income (AMI), which would be $45,660 for one person in 2022, and $58,740 for a three-person household.

    Eight of the units would be set aside for those earning up to 30 percent of AMI, which is $22,850 for one person and for three people would be $29,350.

    Eleven are reserved for those earning up to 120 percent of AMI, which for one person is $91,320 and for three is $117,480.

    “We are proposing a community that provides housing for a range of Wellfleet residents, from seniors and families living on very modest incomes to working families to empty-nesters struggling to downsize,” Coburn said.

    95 LAWRENCE ROAD

    Task Force Backs POAH-CDP Affordable Housing Bid

    Eastham-based Community Development Partnership is national nonprofit’s local partner

    By

    WELLFLEET — The task force charged with recommending the best developer to build and manage 46 units of affordable rental housing on Lawrence Road has selected a national nonprofit organization with plenty of experience that partnered with a local agency for the project.

    Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and the Community Development Partnership (CDP) submitted the $20.2-million proposal that earned the top rating from the task force in its vote on Monday. The members were impressed with the organization’s track record in building, financing, and managing large affordable housing developments. And they liked POAH’s decision to have a local partner that knows the needs of Outer Cape residents.

    The panel’s vote for POAH-CDP was 7-1. Kathleen Bacon, the lone dissenter, remained solidly behind a smaller for-profit bidder, Civico, giving that company the highest score that could be awarded in all six ranking categories. Civico had submitted a $14.6-million proposal that had few units reserved for the lowest-income households.

    The Community Builders, another large national nonprofit with a long and successful track record, had submitted a $19.3-million proposal for 46 units for tenants whose incomes ranged from 30 percent and below up to 80 percent of the area median (AMI).

    “Our entire team is incredibly grateful to be entrusted with this significant project for the town of Wellfleet,” said Jay Coburn, the CEO of Eastham-based CDP. Coburn said the POAH-CDP project offered the greatest range of affordability, from rentals to tenants making 30 percent or less of the AMI up to 11 unrestricted units that will go to households earning between 80 and 120 percent of the AMI.

    CDP has a “small ownership stake” in the project, Coburn said. His organization had worked on the plan and will help take the project through local permitting, financing, and the rent-out lottery. POAH will manage the site.

    “This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build a significant number of affordable homes in Wellfleet that address a broad range of local needs for both family and elderly residents,” wrote Julie Creamer, POAH’s senior vice president of acquisitions, in an email.

    The eight task force members had individually scored the three proposals in six categories that ranged from site layout and building design to energy efficiency, affordability plans, experience, and financing ability. Task force members worked with a rating system that allowed scores in each category ranging from “unacceptable” to “highly advantageous.”

    Each developer was also required to commit to shouldering 44 percent of the cost to build and operate a wastewater system that will serve not only the new housing but also surrounding municipal and residential properties, advancing the town’s watershed management plan and in turn helping it come into compliance with the Clean Water Act.

    POAH-CDP came out on top of the ratings with 41 “highly advantageous” marks. Their proposal got 11 “advantageous” and 4 “unacceptable” grades. Jan Plaue rated the building design unacceptable. The other three unacceptable grades were from Bacon in the categories of building design, site design, and financing. Bacon criticized the proposal for incorporating a real estate tax abatement from the town into its financial analysis.

    Earlier in the discussion, Laura Shufelt, an expert from the Mass Housing Partnership who has been working with the task force, told them an abatement of taxes “usually isn’t needed,” although a PILOT agreement (payment in lieu of taxes) is sometimes worked out.

    “I think there would be ways to fill the gap if the abatement isn’t given,” she said. “It wouldn’t be a make or break.”

    The POAH-CDP proposal calls for 24 townhouse units with two or three bedrooms housed in seven buildings in an area called “Upper Village” on the six-acre site. The remaining 22 units of one and two bedrooms are to be housed in a single building in the “Lower Village.”

    Some members initially balked at the single large building with 22 units. But task force member Jay Horowitz was one who thought the building size was not a problem. “The tallest building in town is right across the street,” he said, referring to the school.

    Chair Elaine McIlroy liked the proposed design for the large building and pointed out that all 22 units were on a single level. POAH left the largest buffer of treed areas between the project and the surrounding neighborhood, she said, and left the largest amount of undisturbed land.

    “The depth and breadth of POAH’s experience sold me, and their resources for the residents, which is critically important,” said member James Hood.

    Plaue said she had loved the little cottages the Civico plan featured, but the lack of a community building on the plan caused her to nix the proposal. There would be no place for residents to gather, she said.

    Bacon read a statement explaining her support for Civico. Since the company planned to finance with conventional mortgages rather than state and federal funding, “they won’t be waiting on funding rounds from HUD or low-income housing tax credits,” she said.

    “Civico could finish the project sooner rather than later,” said Bacon. “Their simple design made sense to me and there was no zoning relief needed. I call this the path of the least resistance.”

    Chair McIlroy will now write a report and a recommendation from the task force. Task force members will meet Nov. 16 to finalize the report and forward it to the select board for its Nov. 23 meeting.

    Editor’s note: Because of a fact-checking error, an earlier version of this article, published in print in the Nov. 11 edition, incorrectly identified Civico as a nonprofit organization. It is for-profit.

     

    HOUSING PLANS

    Truro and Wellfleet Will Fail to Meet Their Housing Goals

    Production of affordable units falls far short of stated targets

    By

    The two Outer Cape towns with the poorest records of creating affordable housing — Truro and Wellfleet — will both surely fail to meet upcoming deadlines in their existing housing production goals. Those goals, laid out in housing plans that are set to expire within the next two years, are based on state guidelines that are themselves clearly inadequate to meet the actual need for housing of local residents.

    Truro’s housing plan, issued in 2018, predicted that the town would produce 34 new affordable units by March 2023. In fact, as of December 2020, the number of those units in Truro had declined by two in the previous five years. The Cloverleaf project will potentially create 20 to 25 new affordable units, but it is mired in a court challenge, and there is no chance that construction could be completed in the next year and a half.

    Wellfleet’s 2017 housing plan called for the creation of 45 new affordable units by October 2022. As of last December, a total of four new units had been created. But the 95 Lawrence Road project, now in the planning stage, is expected to add as many as 46 new units within a few years, though certainly not by a year from now.

    Towns submit Chapter 40B housing production plans (HPPs) to the state to establish five-year goals for the creation of deed-restricted affordable housing. To be considered affordable by the state, housing must cost no more than 30 percent of a household’s income. Based on perceived need and total number of year-round units in a community, towns set production targets for households making below 80 percent of the area median income (AMI) and another target for those making between 80 and 120 percent of the AMI — sometimes called “workforce” or “community” housing.

    The Mass. Dept. of Housing and Community Development takes special interest in towns’ subsidized housing inventory (SHI), the number of deed-restricted affordable rental and home ownership units for those making 80 percent or less of AMI. Towns that increase their stock of SHI by 0.5 percent in a year can, for one year, deny developers comprehensive permits for 40B applications they deem inconsistent with local needs.

    Chapter 40B is a provision of state law — sometimes called the “anti-snob zoning law” — that allows developers to bypass some local zoning regulations if a certain percentage of units in a development are reserved as affordable. Towns that implement one-percent increases over one year can deny such permits for two years.

    A community can deny 40B comprehensive permits in perpetuity if it has reached the state’s overall goal of having 10 percent of its year-round units qualifying as SHI. Though HPPs are not mandatory, Eastham, Wellfleet, and Truro all have them.

    Eastham met the production goals in its last plan, which expired this year. Provincetown has another five years to reach its 10-year goal.

    Though most of the data from the 2020 census have not yet been released, Eastham’s most recent HPP shows that subsidized housing options are badly needed. It reported that, while median rent in Eastham nearly doubled from 2010 to 2019, median wages in rental households fell by roughly 15 percent between 2014 and 2019. The median renter in Eastham could afford to pay $955 per month in rent. A standard market-rate rent for a two-bedroom unit, the report found, was $1,900.

    Truro Falls Further Behind

    A community needs analysis conducted in Truro in 2015 identified a deficit of 62 year-round units for workers and seniors and predicted that another 96 to 116 units would be needed between 2015 and 2030. At the time of the study’s release, Truro had 27 SHI units.

    Truro’s 2018 HPP reported to the state that 34 new SHI-eligible units would become available by the plan’s expiration in March 2023. In addition, the plan predicted that 11 non-SHI-eligible accessory dwelling units (ADUs) would be ready by 2023.

    As of December 2020, though, Truro had just 25 total SHI units, a decline of two since the 2015 analysis.

    If the Cloverleaf project creates between 20 and 25 additional SHI units, Town Planner Barbara Carboni said, Truro’s SHI number would rise to 5.87 percent from 2.3 percent, where it currently sits.

    Future affordable housing in Truro could be sited at Town Hall Hill if the DPW relocates to a new building. The 2018 HPP lists the Town Hall Hill project as a priority for 2020 to 2023.

    Wellfleet Crawls Ahead

    Wellfleet’s October 2017 community needs assessment found that there were 34 SHI-eligible units in town and did not mention the existence of any non-SHI units for those making between 80 and 120 percent of AMI. The 2017 housing production plan called for an additional 45 SHI and 40 non-SHI units by the plan’s expiration in October 2022. In December 2020, the town had a total of 38 SHI units, according to the state’s website.

    The 95 Lawrence Road project should produce an additional 46 units, though the three competing proposals divide them up at different levels of affordability. A proposal from one developer, the Community Builders, projects completion of the project by the end of 2025, three years after the HPP’s expiration.

    Wellfleet’s HPP also lists the hiring of a part-time housing coordinator among its priorities for the years 2018-2019. According to the plan, the coordinator would, among other things, help research funding sources and communicate with residents about opportunities for housing and financial support. No coordinator has been hired.

    Provincetown Welcomes 40B

    Provincetown is the only Outer Cape community without an official housing production plan. Michelle Jarusiewicz, the community housing specialist, said the town has “never seen a need” to submit an HPP to the state because the rewards for complying are of no benefit. “We welcome 40B applications,” she said.

    Instead, the town puts out its own plan for creating housing which, similar to a state HPP, sets time-bound goals for producing a specific number of affordable units based on community need.

    Provincetown’s most recent Housing Playbook, published in 2016, set a goal of creating between 190 and 240 new affordable units in 10 years. That goal matched the need calculated in the town’s 2013 analysis.

    In February 2014, Provincetown had 184 SHI-eligible units and 16 non-SHI units, according to its Housing Action Plan. As of December 2020, those numbers had increased to 206 SHI-eligible and 59 non-SHI-eligible, an overall increase of 81 units.

    The number of SHI units makes up 9.71 percent of all year-round housing in town, based on a 2020 estimate of 2,122 year-round units. The planned affordable housing development at the former VFW property on Jerome Smith Road will yield a number of deed-restricted units, though a developer has not yet been chosen.

    The 2016 Housing Playbook notes that future sites for such housing could include the former community center at 46 Bradford St., the second floor of Fire Station #2, and the Coastal Acres Campground, among others. (See related story on page A1.)

    Eastham Exceeds Goal

    A side-by-side comparison of Eastham’s 2021 HPP and its previous plan, which was drafted in 2016 and expired this year, shows that the town met its primary production goals but pushed off some administrative ones. The 2016 plan called for a minimum of 65 new SHI-eligible units (50 rental and 15 home ownership) to increase stock by an average of 0.5 percent per year, with a higher “moving target” number of 242 based on total community need.

    Eastham exceeded its 2016 base goal, adding 69 net units, according to the latest plan; 65 of those units are in the Village at Nauset Green on Brackett Road. Eastham now has a total of 119 SHI units.

    Two zoning changes listed as priorities in 2016 were not made and have been written into the 2021-2026 plan. The first is inclusionary zoning, which requires that housing developers set aside a percentage of units as affordable (16.67 percent in Provincetown), or pay a certain sum into an affordable housing fund. Over one-third of Massachusetts communities have adopted inclusionary zoning. The planning board is responsible for introducing new zoning bylaws at town meeting. The 2021 plan says this change will happen in one to two years.

    Also not completed under the previous plan was a change in Eastham’s Open Space Residential Subdivision Development bylaw. The bylaw “promotes a ‘smarter’ and more compact type of development pattern” by giving the town the option to require that units in a development be built in a cluster rather than a traditional grid system, leaving a portion of the plot permanently protected open space. Though the town has not used the bylaw to date, the 2016 and 2021 plans recommend that the Residential Zoning Task Force adopt density bonuses (increasing the total number of potential units in a given development) for including affordable housing.

    Eastham’s recently approved 2021 HPP outlines similar production goals to its previous one: a minimum of 65 SHI-eligible units and a “moving target” number of 263 units. If the previous five years are indicative of the next five, the town will likely struggle to hit the higher mark. At a Sept. 27 select board meeting, however, Town Administrator Jacqui Beebe said reaching the number looked “doable” in her “back-of-the-napkin” calculations.

    95 LAWRENCE ROAD HOUSING

    Task Force, With Pencils Sharpened, Begins to Rate Proposals

    Three bidders’ financial strategies still to be judged

    By

    WELLFLEET — The committee charged with recommending the best developer for 46 affordable rental units to be built on Lawrence Road has started rating the three proposals submitted, and the front runner so far is a national nonprofit that has chosen to work with a local partner.

    The rating process is not yet complete, with references still being collected and financial analyses just begun. And the 95 Lawrence Road Task Force does not have to recommend that the select board award the project to the firm with the highest score.

    But in the initial run through, Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) racked up the largest number of “highly advantageous” grades — the top score task force members can award. POAH is partnering with the Community Development Partnership, an Eastham-based nonprofit.

    Another national nonprofit, the Community Builders, and the Hopedale-based for-profit Civico Development are also getting high marks.

    Once the task force’s scoring process is complete, the members will come to a consensus. They plan to present their recommendation to the select board on Oct. 26.

    Each of the eight task force members gave their preliminary scores at a meeting in September. Members can assign one of three grades in several categories: “Unacceptable,” if they feel the proposal failed to meet the criteria in the town’s request for proposals; “Advantageous,” if the developer met some or all of the RFP criteria; or “Highly Advantageous,” if the developer met or exceeded all the criteria.

    The categories for scoring that the task force has so far completed are developer experience and capacity, affordability, site design, building design, and infrastructure and green design. Additional ratings for financial feasibility, references, site visits, and interviews still await consideration.

    POAH-CDP

    The grades so far: 32 Highly Advantageous, 6 Advantageous, 2 Unacceptable.

    The proposal: A $20.2-million plan in which all 46 units would be rented to tenants earning 80 percent or less of the Area Median Income (AMI). The Upper Village area would include 24 townhouse units of two and three bedrooms in seven buildings. The Lower Village would feature a single three-story building with 22 one- and two-bedroom units.

    The ratings: All eight task force members graded the POAH-CDP partnership Highly Advantageous for experience and capacity and for affordability.

    “I think it is the perfect combination of what we had in mind,” Jan Plaue said of the nonprofits’ proposed mix of renters’ incomes. Eight units would be for households earning no more than 30 percent of the AMI; 27 units would be for tenants earning no more than 60 percent of the AMI; 11 units would be for tenants earning between 60 and 80 percent of AMI.

    The proposal also received Highly Advantageous ratings from all members for infrastructure and green energy. POAH had proposed meeting the “passive house” standard for energy efficiency. “They were the only ones who made clear what they were going to do,” said task force chair Elaine McIlroy.

    In the categories of site design and building design, the proposal got mixed reviews. Plaue gave POAH’s site design an Unacceptable, saying she didn’t like the plan because of the large building with 22 units. “It’s just not Wellfleet,” she said. “I think that’s the kind of trigger that will upset the neighbors.”

    Plaue also rated it Unacceptable for building design, for similar reasons.

    Most of the task force members were comfortable with the site design but debated features of the large building. Gary Sorkin questioned the height — 41 feet 7 inches — calling it “substantially beyond” the town’s 28-foot height limit in the residential district. Documents provided by POAH showed the ridge height of the nearby Wellfleet Police Station as 40 feet.

    Elaine McIlroy characterized the building design as “very handsome,” but added she was concerned about whether town boards would approve it.

    Harry Terkanian said that, given the town’s request for 46 units, developers had to “build up or build out.” He and one other task force member graded the POAH proposal Highly Advantageous for its building design.

    The Community Builders

    The grades so far: 20 Highly Advantageous, 15 Advantageous, 0 Unacceptable.

    (Note: task force member Kathleen Bacon’s five grades are not included in this total because she left the meeting before this developer’s proposal was evaluated.)

    The proposal: A $19.3-million plan with all 46 units for tenants at or below 80 percent of AMI. The project is divided into two areas. Schoolhouse Corner includes 15 apartments in four cottages and one larger building. Lawrence Green includes 31 apartments housed in 2½-story duplexes. Six units for tenants at about 30 percent of AMI, 27 at 60 percent of AMI, and 13 units up to 80 percent of AMI.

    The ratings: Like POAH, the Community Builders received high scores, predominantly Highly Advantageous, both for their experience and for the affordability mix they propose.

    Some elements of the site design elicited discussion. “I felt it was a long walk from the parking lot to the front doors, especially if you’re carrying groceries,” said Olga Kahn. McIlroy said she felt the design had no “oomph.” Task force members handed out a couple of Highly Advantageous votes amid a majority of Advantageous ones.

    Building design also drew a mixed response, although ratings converged on Advantageous with one Highly Advantageous. “I don’t like the look of it,” said Plaue. “I think it’s very boring.” James Hood agreed, saying the proposed structures were “massive and uninteresting.”

    Civico Development

    The grades so far: 10 Highly Advantageous, 29 Advantageous, 1 Unacceptable

    The proposal: Civico’s $14.6-million submission calls for 40 one- and two-bedroom units in 10 New England-style manor houses, and 6 three-bedroom units in individual cottages. Four units would be for tenants earning up to 30 percent of AMI; 29 for those earning up to 80 percent of AMI; and 13 for those earning up to 110 percent AMI.

    The ratings: Civico got all Advantageous grades for meeting most or all RFP requirements for experience. Highly Advantageous marks were missing because they were seen as having less experience than the other bidders. Harry Terkanian said his vote was based on the fact that Civico only listed projects in Lincoln and Reading, and the fact that the company is only six years old. Jay Horowitz called the company “a little light on top with just two or three guys.”

    The company also scored Advantageous for affordability. In the RFP, the Highly Advantageous rating was reserved for projects with 85 percent of the units at or below 80 percent of AMI. Civico proposes that just over 70 percent be reserved for those at or below 80 percent.

    “I was very unsatisfied with just four units under 30 percent AMI,” Plaue said.

    Civico earned Highly Advantageous ratings for infrastructure and green energy, with seven of the eight members giving top scores in that category.

    The firm received mostly Advantageous ratings for site design, with Kahn commenting that the layout and design of the buildings were too similar and thus “boring.” The project also lacked a community building, members said. Lack of space for an onsite manager and lack of laundry hookups and storage rooms were also discussed. Bacon and Plaue saw things differently, rating the project Highly Advantageous for site design.

    There is still time for members to change their ratings. “I expect at our next meeting some will change,” McIlroy said in an email. As of press time on Tuesday, Oct. 5, the group’s next meeting date had not yet been set.

    “The general picture as it stands now is that POAH has the most Highly Advantageous ratings, followed by the Community Builders, and then Civico, but all three have a healthy number of Advantageous ratings, too,” McIlroy explained.

    “Minds are open and pencils are sharpened as we complete our due diligence and more discussion takes place,” she said.

    AFFORDABLE HOUSING

    95 Lawrence Road Task Force Is Set to Tally the Scores

    The group plans to reach consensus on a developer by October

    By

    WELLFLEET — With all the presentations done and many questions asked and answered, the task force charged with recommending the best developer to build 46 units of affordable rental housing on Lawrence Road is ready to rate the proposals.

    The group is now meeting three times a week in hopes of reaching a decision sometime in October.

    All three groups that submitted proposals for the six-acre tract met the town’s basic requirements for experience in affordable housing development, for the inclusion of a range of affordability levels, and for plans for the extensive use of energy-efficiency measures.

    Now, the 95 Lawrence Road Task Force will look closely at the elements of the proposals that differentiate them from one another. The plans for the land, the size of the buildings, the square footage of the individual units, and even smaller items, like availability of storage space, will be taken into consideration.

    Last Friday, the Community Builders, Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) and the Community Development Partnership, and Civico presented their visions for building the new neighborhood across from the Wellfleet Elementary School. They also introduced their development teams, made up of engineers, architects, and landscape specialists.

    At the Friday session, some worries were quickly put to rest. For example, the task force members had discussed a lack of adequate parking in two of the three proposals, but they came away relieved after the discussions with developers. “The takeaway I had was ‘It’s no problem; we’ll add spaces,’ ” said task force member Gary Sorkin during Monday’s meeting to formalize the group’s evaluation process.

    The task force had also been concerned about whether all three developers would commit to shouldering 44 percent of the cost to build and operate a wastewater system, as required by the town’s specifications. All three confirmed their commitments on Friday. The same was true of a guarantee of air conditioning, with all three using electric systems capable of providing heat and air conditioning, with individual thermostats for each unit.

    Each task force member will now individually evaluate the three developers and their proposals on their experience and capacity to do the project, affordability plans, their site design including plans for landscaping and lighting, pedestrian connections, and traffic flow, infrastructure and energy efficiency, and building design.

    The proposals will be scored in each category as unacceptable, advantageous (that is, acceptable), and highly advantageous. Task force members will then discuss their individual ratings and come to a consensus on who should be chosen to build the project.

    Projected costs range from $14.6 million, as submitted by Civico, to $20.2 million, submitted by Preservation of Affordable Housing. The Community Builders estimated its project cost at $19.3 million. The task force is seeking help from a consultant to evaluate the financial strategies each developer plans to pursue in order to pay for the work.

    But task force member Harry Terkanian said he’d yet to get a commitment from a consultant who could do that job. If the committee can’t get the financial review done, that could conceivably delay the project. Assistant Town Administrator Rebecca Slick suggested the committee “cast a wider net,” since there is no requirement to have a Cape-based consultant handle the job. She said she would reach out to regional planning agencies for possible candidates.

    References on the developers have yet to be checked. Committee members hope to get that done this week.

    Meanwhile, task force member Kathleen Bacon said that one priority she’ll have in her consideration of each proposal will be the abutters and how the plans fit into the surrounding area.

    The Community Builders and POAH included plans for larger buildings that would require height variances from the town. During their presentations, both developers said the aim of their denser layouts of units was to preserve green space on the site and maintain deep buffers from neighbors.

    Civico’s proposal, in contrast, features smaller buildings spread out over the site, which would meet height requirements but result in less green space. The committee will have to balance the size and mass of the buildings with preservation of green space, said task force chair Elaine McIlroy.

    Looking at POAH’s plan for a 41-foot-high building that would house 22 units, Bacon thought it took “a lot of creative license,” based on what the town asked for in its request for proposals.

    The Community Builders had some 2½-story buildings, which would likely be 40 feet high, said task force member Jan Plaue. Those also would require a height variance from the town.

    Terkanian said the town’s requirement for 46 units created a situation where developers could “either go out or up to achieve the density.”

    Curt Felix, chair of the Wellfleet Clean Water Advisory Committee, told the task force he is willing to meet with project abutters, since one of their primary concerns has been over the potential impact of wastewater on the area.

    “We want to make sure we hear all their questions and that they are answered as fully as possible,” said McIlroy.

    The town plans to install a sewer system and treatment plant to handle wastewater from the development, the police and fire stations, and the school. Treated water will go into a leaching field installed under the ballfield. Because the system will treat waste from the three town buildings as well as the development, it should lower overall nitrogen loading in the area, Felix said.

    95 lawrence road

    Initial Reviews Completed, Task Force Readies Its Questions

    Three would-be housing developers will be asked for details on Friday

    By

    WELLFLEET — The three developers who have submitted affordable housing proposals for six acres at 95 Lawrence Road should be ready to be grilled on Friday by members of a committee charged with choosing the best plan to recommend to the select board.

    The 95 Lawrence Road Task Force will seek some specifics from each of the three on parking, traffic circulation, the availability of storage space and laundry facilities, and the proposed design and layout — and that’s just for starters.

    The task force will also look for a solid commitment from each developer to pitch in 44 percent of the cost of a major wastewater system. Two out of three mentioned support for the system in their proposals, but none committed specifically to the 44 percent the town’s request for proposals asked for.

    Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH), the Community Builders, and Civico are the three developers who have submitted their visions for a complex of 46 units on the property across from the Wellfleet Elementary School.

    At their Sept. 1 meeting, task force members gave their initial thoughts on proposals from Civico and the Community Builders. The panel had previously reviewed POAH’s plan.

    Civico drew praise for its design, which calls for 16 buildings clustered around the ballfield on the site, with pocket parks and other greenery. The mix includes 10 two-story New England-style homes housing 40 units, and six three-bedroom cottages.

    While Civico is fairly young compared to the other two bidders, Kathleen Bacon said she liked the way “they think outside the box.” She is a former member of the select board.

    “They talk about the ‘missing middle,’ and here we have a developer who is proposing to look at that,” Bacon said.

    Civico focused on workforce housing in its $14.6-million proposal, for those who earn between 80 and 110 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI). The developer envisioned the units being rented to young professionals, seniors, and lower-wage workers and families who live on the Cape year-round. They propose that all but four units be priced for those earning 80 percent or more of AMI.

    Task force members noted that this was not what the request for proposals asked for. The RFP asked that bidders place a priority on creating housing for people earning 80 percent of AMI or less.

    One concern voiced by task force chair Elaine McIlroy is the proximity of one of the buildings to the property line. This appears to be due to Civico’s layout, which uses a large portion of the site. The other two applicants massed their buildings more tightly, preserving a larger buffer surrounding the buildings.

    Civico was the only one of the three that met the town’s height requirement for its buildings and the required 1.5 parking spaces per unit.

    Members called parking a high priority. “I talked to people and they said it divides neighbors and drives people crazy if there isn’t enough parking,” said Jan Plaue. “I don’t think even 1.5 spaces is enough.”

    Among the task force’s concerns was Civico’s apparent lack of storage space, either within the units or in a community building, which was not on the plans. There also appeared to be no office space for an onsite manager.

    The Community Builders’ strength was its long and successful track record in building affordable projects. The group’s proposal calls for all 46 units to be rented to people earning at or below 80 percent of AMI. Based on the RFP, that feature will be scored by the committee as “highly advantageous.”

    The design would blend historic with modern elements, divided into two areas clustered around the ballfield. The Schoolhouse Corner portion would include 15 apartments housed in four cottages and one larger building. The Lawrence Green section would have 31 apartments, housed in 2½-story duplexes and would feature a community building.

    Task force members were not enthusiastic about the proposed building design and how tightly units were clustered, particularly in the Lawrence Green portion.

    “I don’t know if it fits Wellfleet,” said Bacon. While the buildings reflected New England style, it was their size that concerned members.

    Jay Horowitz agreed the scale was “pretty large,” but was likely a “result of preserving much of the property by crowding it together.”

    Bacon was also unhappy with the proposed landscaping. “They want to bring in boulders and large stones,” she said. “You know that the glacier didn’t leave that there. The landscape elements are incongruous with the site.”

    The plan for 1.1 parking spaces per unit, which would require a variance, drew concern as well, as did the need for a variance from the town’s height requirement.

    On Friday, the public can watch Zoom presentations from POAH at 10 a.m., the Community Builders at 11:15, and Civico at 12:30 p.m. The session will also be recorded and available on YouTube.

    Later this month, task force members will individually rate each project in six categories. While according to the RFP they could, theoretically, reject all the bids, they will be working to come to a consensus and choose the project developer.

     

    AFFORDABLE HOUSING

    Task Force on Tight Schedule to Pick Developer

    Wellfleet group must rate ‘what’s on paper’ for 95 Lawrence Road project

    By

    WELLFLEET — The task force charged with reviewing the three proposals for the largest affordable housing development in the town’s history must limit its decision-making to what each would-be developer submitted on paper as its vision for the six-acre site. That advice came as a bit of a surprise to its members.

    “You’re scoring on what they present, not what you hope they will do,” Laura Shufelt told the 95 Lawrence Road Task Force when it kicked off its review on Aug. 26. Shufelt, the director of community assistance for the Mass. Housing Partnership, has been advising the task force for the last three years. “Don’t look at ‘Gee, I love this if they only did X,’ ” she said. “Look at what’s proposed.”

    Task force chair Elaine McIlroy had asked about “wiggle room,” as all three developers had said in their proposals that they looked forward to talking with the town.

    Shufelt said there may be “tweaks,” but they would happen only after a developer was chosen and plans were beyond the conceptual stage.

    Over the next month, the task force will score each proposal on an established list of criteria, ranging from the developer’s experience to design to traffic flow to financial feasibility.

    The time frame is tight. The committee was hoping to make its recommendation to the select board by the end of September. But it’s been tough finding a firm to assess the financial viability of the proposals.

    Task force member Harry Terkanian requested quotes from four firms, but three of the four immediately declined because of the short time allowed for the review.

    Of the three submissions to build affordable housing on Lawrence Road, two came from large nonprofits: Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH), with a $20.2-million plan; and the Community Builders, with a $19.3-million package. Both already have a presence on Cape Cod. The third proposal, for a $14.6-million project, was submitted by Civico Development, a for-profit real estate development firm based in Hopedale with experience in construction of affordable housing.

    All three call for 46 rental units, as required by the town, but each presented a different vision in terms of design and layout, along with differences in the mix of affordability. One of the town’s prerequisites is that the developer must agree to share the cost of installing and operating a sewer system.

    After rating each proposal, the task force will forward its recommendation to the select board, which will make the final decision. The ratings aren’t everything: the winning proposal won’t necessarily be the one with the highest score. It will be the proposal “that best meets the needs of the community,” according to the town’s request for proposals.

    Last week’s task force session started with a preliminary discussion of POAH’s submission. The other two proposals were slated for review on Wednesday, Sept 1.

    On Monday, members were scheduled to visit Canal Bluffs, POAH’s project in Bourne, Noquochoke Village, the Community Builders’ project in Westport, and Lake Street Terrace, the Community Builders’ development in Chatham.

    Some members of the group also plan to travel to Oriole Landing, a Civico project in Lincoln.

    On Friday, Sept. 10, the public can watch Zoom presentations from the developers. POAH is scheduled at 10 a.m., the Community Builders at 11:30, and Civico at 12:30 p.m.

    During last Thursday’s discussion of POAH, the task force raised some questions the nonprofit can expect to hear on Sept. 10. Parking was one concern. POAH’s plan has 1.3 spaces per unit, while town zoning sets the minimum at 1.5. Asked whether that was something the developer could change, Shufelt said no. POAH would look for a waiver from the town.

    “Parking spaces are ugly looking on a plan, but they are key to having visitors and family,” said task force member Jan Plaue.

    McIlroy hoped for some clarification of POAH’s plan to build with “passive house” energy standards, which produce air-tight buildings, in addition to installing solar panels. She said she wants to know more about the issue of air exchange.

    POAH’s plan to put 22 smaller units in a single three-story building with an elevator also raised concerns. “I thought we were pretty specific that we would prefer a building that didn’t have an elevator and met our height requirement,” said member Kathleen Bacon.

    Gary Sorkin said POAH likely saw the elevator as a plus for accessibility.

    Sorkin and McIlroy had recently attended a meeting on the project organized by some abutters. “There was really some incredible support and some honest questions,” McIlroy reported.

    The biggest concerns were about water, said Sorkin — both drinking water and wastewater.

    No matter which developer is chosen, a pipeline will provide water to the development and a sewering network and treatment system will take care of wastewater.

    Shufelt told the Independent the task force has worked hard to be transparent. “They have been very public about it,” she said. “They’ve had community meetings, educational forums, and updates as things progressed.”

    AFFORDABLE HOUSING

    Lawrence Road Project Attracts Three Bids

    They range from $14.6 million to $20.2 million

    By

    WELLFLEET — Three organizations have submitted proposals to build affordable housing at 95 Lawrence Road, with price tags ranging from $14.6 million to $20.2 million. Two are familiar names on the Cape; the third is a Massachusetts company looking to make inroads here.

    The submissions will now be reviewed by the 95 Lawrence Road Task Force. All three propose to build 46 units, the maximum the town allowed, with varying levels of affordability.

    The site is six acres of town-owned land across from the elementary school. The complex, along with some municipal buildings nearby, will be served by its own sewer system, with the cost shared by the town and the developer.

    The Community Builders

    This Boston nonprofit proposed a $19.3 million “residential community nestled within a forested area.”

    The design would blend historic with modern elements, divided into two areas clustered around the elementary school ballfield. The Schoolhouse Corner portion would be a small neighborhood of 15 apartments housed in four cottages and one larger building. The Lawrence Green section would have 31 apartments, housed in 2½-story duplexes, with a shared green and amenities like a community building.

    The proposal calls for eight studios, 20 one-bedroom, 13 two-bedroom, and 5 three-bedroom units.

    The Community Builders built and manages the 50-unit Province Landing in Provincetown.

    POAH with the CDP

    Preservation of Affordable Housing is a large nonprofit that has partnered with the Eastham-based Community Development Partnership on a $20.2 million proposal called Long Pond Village, where all units would be affordable. CDP will be involved from permitting up to renting the units, according to CEO Jay Coburn. The project will then be owned and managed by POAH.

    POAH and CDP describe their building design as reflecting a “mid-century modern house” flavor. The project features the “family-oriented” Upper Village, which wraps around the ballfield and includes 24 townhouse units of two and three bedrooms, housed in seven buildings. The Lower Village, which fronts Lawrence and Long Pond roads and is envisioned to serve seniors and smaller households, consists of a single elevator building with 22 one- and two-bedroom apartments, a community living room, patio, garden area, and laundry.

    Building will be done predominantly on areas of the site that have already been disturbed, so woods and buffers will remain. Solar panels on the buildings are anticipated to generate enough power to support the development.

    POAH has owned and operated affordable housing on Cape Cod since 2009, when it completed the first phase of Canal Bluffs in Bourne. Its latest project is Brewster Woods, a 30-unit affordable housing complex on Brewster Housing Authority land.

    Civico Development

    Civico, a Hopedale-based for-profit real estate development firm with experience in building affordable projects, submitted a housing proposal aimed at the “missing middle,” according to Taylor Bearden, Civico’s project manager.

    “We took the approach of workforce housing,” he said. The $14.6-million proposal calls for 46 apartments. Forty of those would be one- and two-bedroom units housed in 10 two-story New England-style homes. The six three-bedroom units will be housed in individual cottages. Architectural design is being handled by Union Studio Architecture, a Rhode Island firm with extensive experience on the Cape.

    The 16 buildings will be clustered around the ballfield on the site, with pocket parks and other greenery as part of the design. Decentralized solar arrays are planned to offset energy costs.

    Civico is the one bidder that said it would seek a third party to handle management.

    WELLFLEET TOWN MEETING

    Wastewater, Safety Needs Are Adding Up

    Alternative septic system plans may not satisfy state

    By

    WELLFLEET — Voters at the June 26 annual town meeting must prepare for a 53-article warrant that includes $3.3 million in Proposition 2½ overrides and debt exclusions. If all of the spending articles on the warrant are approved with those overrides and exclusions, the annual tax bill on a property of median value would increase by an estimated $173.

    The largest debt exclusion is Article 19, requesting $1.9 million for a wastewater treatment system for a potential 46-unit affordable housing complex at 95 Lawrence Road. The wastewater system for the yet-to-be-designed-or-approved development would reduce nitrogen from effluent more effectively than a traditional Title 5 system and is like the one that was approved for the Truro affordable housing development called the Cloverleaf, said Curt Felix, chair of the comprehensive wastewater management planning committee. By adding the elementary school and the fire and police stations, as well as a small number of homes to that system, it would further reduce nitrogen loading in groundwater, Felix said.

    The town meeting begins at 10 a.m., outdoors at the Wellfleet Elementary School playing field, where the last annual meeting was held in September. The annual town election follows on Wednesday, June 30.

    Among the technical terms voters will be faced with is the “debt exclusion,” which authorizes borrowing so that the town can levy taxes above the 2.5 percent legal limit, but only for the life of the loan. A Proposition 2½ override, of which there will be just one on the warrant, to hire two more firefighters, permanently raises the levy limit beyond the 2.5 percent cap.

    The three wastewater-related debt exclusion questions on the warrant come after 10 years of Wellfleet’s attempting to develop a comprehensive wastewater plan to bring the town into compliance with a court-ordered mandate. Every town on Cape Cod is under this court order, and several have had their plans approved by the state Dept. of Environmental Protection, including Orleans, Provincetown, Falmouth, Chatham, and Harwich, said Andrew Gottlieb, executive director of the Association to Preserve Cape Cod.

    Wellfleet’s plan, however, is not approved. State officials say that the town’s plan to use lots of alternative treatment systems is not good enough because it lacks a “plan B,” that is, sewering the town if the alternative systems don’t improve water quality enough.

    Gottlieb said Wellfleet voters need to know that, by approving the articles on the warrant, they are not necessarily protecting themselves from further legal action from the Conservation Law Foundation or from having to build a town sewer system anyway.

    Gottlieb noted that Felix is enthusiastic about alternative treatments, but “when people are more passionate about the technology than meeting the water quality goal, you’ve lost your way as an advocate,” Gottlieb said.

    But, Felix said, each of the wastewater articles on the warrant will reduce nitrogen going into the Wellfleet Harbor watershed.

    Article 19 asks for $250,000, which would give anyone who must replace or build a new septic system $12,500 to make that system an enhanced or “innovative alternative” system, which increases nitrogen removal.

    Article 20 asks for $50,000 for an engineering and hydrogeological assessment of a permeable reactive barrier along Commercial Street. This technology would use filters to remove nitrogen and other pollutants from groundwater. Commercial Street wraps around Duck Creek, which is among the most impaired water bodies in town. The wastewater committee will seek grants to repay the costs for the system, Felix said.

    Wellfleet’s overall plan can “meet the goal with alternatives that will provide a faster approach that’s one-fifth less costly than sewers,” Felix said.

    John Cumbler, also a member of the comprehensive wastewater management planning committee, said the alternative systems could work. And the one at 95 Lawrence Road is important, because it provides treatment for an affordable housing development.

    But, Cumbler added, the short-term goal of saving money may not solve the problem and could ultimately cost the town even more.

    “I don’t think Curt is wrong, but I do think we have to be very careful,” Cumbler said.

    Two New Firefighters

    If Article 9, asking for $168,000 for two new firefighters, looks familiar, it’s because this is the fourth time that Wellfleet Fire Chief Rich Pauley has asked to increase his staff. Each time voters have approved the appropriations. One firefighter costs the town about $80,000, Pauley said. In the last six years, the fire department’s roster has gone from nine full-time staff to 16 full-time staff. The loss of “call” or part-time firefighters who answer the bell in emergencies has made it necessary to get each shift covered with full-time people, Pauley said.

    Only three of the current fire dept. staff live in town — including Pauley — and most others live south of Orleans, the chief said.

    Each ambulance run to Cape Cod Hospital occupies a minimum of two staff for three hours, and currently two shifts have only two full-time people, Pauley said. Each shift should really have four people, though five is ideal, Pauley said.

    Eastham, which has 4,901 year-round residents compared to Wellfleet’s 3,617, has five per shift, Pauley said. Truro operates with back-up from the nonprofit Lower Cape Ambulance service, which the town pays through a contract. Pauley said he doesn’t think a regional model such as Lower Cape Ambulance is workable, at least not without a serious discussion about how to fairly divide the financial burden.

    “Everyone has to bring the exact same resources to the table,” he said.

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