TRURO — Two houses rolled down Route 6 on Feb. 22 and were successfully delivered to their new location on a town-owned lot at 25 South Highland Road.
The moves, which got underway on Feb. 21, are part of the town’s Cottage Housing Relocation and Upgrades Project, led by Truro Dept. of Public Works Director Jarrod Cabral. They have been in the works since 2022.
Crews from New Hampshire-based Geddes Building Movers worked with the DPW, the Mass. Dept. of Transportation, private contractors, and utility companies to move the houses.
One house, a studio moved from 127 South Pamet Road, was given to the town in December 2023 by Tom and Kathleen Dennis as part of a swap after another house the Dennises owned at 133 South Pamet was threatened by erosion and moved to the lot where this cottage stood. That move was allowed by the zoning board of appeals on condition that the studio be moved.
The second house that was moved last week was a cottage deemed to be one of the most salvageable from among eight that have for years stood uninhabited on the Walsh property, now owned by the town.
The town plans to have the two houses renovated and ready to serve as seasonal and transitional housing for town staff beginning as soon as this summer, though Cabral did not want to name a date.
Lifeguards and new full-time town employees who need temporary accommodations while searching for permanent housing are those most likely to be among the first renters, according to Cabral, who told the Independent in an email that the houses would be put to use “as soon as possible.”
The transport on Feb. 21 and 22 was scheduled to start at 6:45 a.m. and last about three hours each day. For the Ballston house on Feb. 22, however, it took about two hours to move just one mile of the 2.7-mile journey from the intersection of North Pamet Road and Route 6 to 25 South Highland Road.
Traffic was backed up behind the convoy on Route 6 until midday.
Unexpected complications moving Verizon cables out of the way were one reason for the delay, according to Truro Deputy Police Chief Thomas Powers, who was tasked with helping both the convoy and normal traffic proceed smoothly.
Utility workers had to temporarily relocate power and telecommunications cables to allow passage of the two houses without interrupting service, said Ben Bryant, vice president of R.W. Bryant Contracting, which had a crew and three bucket trucks onsite. This was done at each set of telephone poles where cables crossed the route, mostly by lifting the wires over the houses. But that didn’t always work, it turned out.
“Verizon is the lowest attachment on the pole — if you’re the lowest, you’re going to have to move the most,” said Bryant. “Because of the limitation on the cable length, sometimes you can’t lift it up high enough.” In those cases, cables had to be brought all the way down to the ground.
Cabral added by email that the Verizon contingent was two hours late to the transport operation that day.
Town Manager Darrin Tangeman said that the rental opportunity will be available to all town staff. He said year-round rental options at the properties are also under consideration. The rents to be charged have not been determined. Tangeman told the Independent that the town will develop a business plan for these properties in the next 60 to 90 days.
Meanwhile, the town has posted an invitation for contractors to submit construction bids for upgrades on the houses, which need new foundations, septic systems, and other work. The deadline for bids is March 13. The Truro Select Board allocated $433,824 from the Truro Affordable Housing Trust Fund and $900,000 from the Underutilized Properties Grant at its Sept. 12, 2022 meeting for the transport and renovation of the two houses.
