Leary Property Community Housing Task Force 2011-05-25-LEARY-rpt (FINAL)

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LEARY PROPERTY COMMUNITY HOUSING TASK FORCE FINAL REPORT MAY 25, 2011 PROCESS SUMMARY TIMELINE Acquisition of the Leary property and planning for its use has been an evolving discussion.The size of the housing parcel was debated and finally settled at the time of the purchase, as land acquired with Community Preservation Act funds must be legally deed restricted for its intended purpose as permitted by the statute. The potential number of units on the parcel has been discussed by the Selectmen,the Community Preservation Committee, the Housing Partnership, and others. While preferences and estimates have varied, the Town,through its various agencies, has consistently indicated that it wanted economical production of housing to meet the demonstrated need. The instruction to the Leary Land Task Force contained no limitation on the number of units it might propose. Prior to the establishment of the Task Force various boards and committees discussed the size of the parcel to be reserved for affordable housing as well as the number of units to be constructed. Much has been made of comments made on March 19, 2009, where the abutters feel that the Town promised only a unit or two to the neighbors. The context in which this statement was made however, underscores the evolving nature of the project, where the size of the community housing lot,the number of units, etc, were all in constant flux. On the very same night,the CPC was stating the importance of the four-unit acquisition proposal. A week before, on March 5,the CPC had discussed not one but THREE iterations of a four unit plan. Ultimately they deferred on the number of units as they recognized that they had not been charged with this task, but the point relevant to this discussion is that the project was not conceived of in a straight linear fashion, but was a dynamic one. When the Task Force was established in July of 2010 the charge was, "To recommend to the Selectmen a plan for developing community housing on the Leary property at 116 Vine Street, and to determine whether the existing structure can be saved." There was no preconception as to the number of units that could be accommodated nor was the fate of the farm house determined. Appendix 6 summarizes discussions of other boards and committees prior to the establishment of the Task Force. 11