Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-11-06-AHTBT-min.pdf Page 1 of 3 Affordable Housing Trust Meeting Minutes of November 6, 2025 10:00 am Hybrid meeting on Zoom and attended in-person in the Select Board Meeting Room, Town Office Building Affordable Housing Trust Board Members present: Elaine Tung, Chair; Linda Prosnitz, William Erickson, Mark Sandeen Absent: Tiffany Payne Staff present: Elizabeth Rust, RHSO Director; Ragi Ramachandran, Administrative Assistant Ms. Tung chaired the hybrid meeting and called the meeting to order at 10:04 am. 1. Approve Meeting Minutes Ms. Tung requested a motion to approve the Open session and Executive session minutes of 10/8/25 AHT meeting. Mr. Sandeen moved. Ms. Prosnitz seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 4-0-0, by a roll call vote (Erickson – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Sandeen – yes, Tung – yes). Meeting minutes approved. 2. Chair, Select Board, Board/Committee Liaison and RHSO/staff report Mr. Erickson reported on LexHAB’s fundraising plans and progress with ADU work for 26 Douglas Road. LexHAB plans to apply to NOAH (Neighborhood of Affordable Housing) for funding assistance to support ADU development. They were considering resources to supplement the loss of SNAP benefits. Ms. Prosnitz reported that Housing Parnership Board approved support letters for Lowell Street development and AHT’s FY27 CPC application. Ms. Tung reported that she was invited by Caileen Foley, Executive Director of the Lexington Housing Authority to attend the next LHA meeting with Ms. Payne where LHA will be discussing development options for two of its sites. Ms. Rust stated that the Town has received resale fee from the closing of 2 Judges Road property. RHSO is working on the contract for the buyer for 38 Edgewood Road. RHSO is working on a standard aggregation for different lottery agents working in Lexington , to enable more systematic reporting of the lottery applicants in the future. Ms. Tung encouraged donations to Lexington Food Pantry, which is seeking funding and volunteers due to increased demand and reduced SNAP benefits. Ms. Tung shared details on CHAPA 2025 Housing Summit on November 20, 2025, and encouraged anyone interested to register and attend the event. The registration fee of $275 per person would be paid by the Trust. 3. Lowell Street Parcel 68-44 The Trustees reviewed Planning Staff's recommendations in their memo for a 25% local preference for Lowell Street development. After discussion, the Trustees decided to recommend no local preference for this project. Page 2 of 3 Mr. Erickson pointed out the parking space description error on page 4 of Staff memo. Ms. Tung will inform Town Staff. The Trustees reviewed AHT’s draft Memo to Zoning Board of Appeals. There was discussion and Trustees shared their comments. Ms. Tung will incorporate the proposed changes into the memo and submit the document to Zoning Board of Appeals on November 6, 2025. Ms. Tung will present a verbal statement at the ZBA hearing on November 13, 2025, highlighting the Trust’s and the Town’s outreach for the Lowell Street development, based on expansive community input and objectives. 4. CPC Application The Trustees reviewed the draft CPC application presentation. Ms. Tung recited the narrative she had prepared to accompany the slides. The Trustees had a discussion and shared their comments. Ms. Tung agreed to revise the slides and narrative as proposed in the meeting and to submit the final version to Thomas Case, CPC staff before the CPC meeting that afternoon. 5. Strategic Plan Ms. Tung stated that the Select Board approved Affordable Housing Trust’s FY26 goals on Oct ober 17, 2025. One of the Trust’s goals is to develop a strategic plan for long-term success. The Trustees reviewed AHT Goals and Strategies document. Mr. Sandeen suggested that the Trust develop a strategic plan framework. There was emphasis on the need to increase affordable housing opportunities and preserve existing units. Mr. Sandeen stated the importance of understanding current housing gaps and accessing external funding sources beyond CPC funds. The group reviewed a post dated September 18, 2025, on Town of Arlington’s website regarding securing funding for affordable housing and the Arlington AHT’s Action Plan. Both highlighted the significance of community engagement and stakeholder involvement in successful housing initiatives. The Trust acknowledged that they should focus on creating more housing, providing financial support, and securing funding, as key goals for the next five years. The group decided to explore best practices from other municipalities such as Arlington. Ms. Rust encouraged the Trust to think about the process of coming up with a strategic plan, identifying the stakeholders, and scope relative to housing as it pertains to the Trust. The Trustees discussed the community engagement process. Mr. Sandeen will connect with Arlington officials to learn about their strategic plan process and best practices. Ms. Tung mentioned that she and Ms. Prosnitz were meeting with Pulte Homes next week regarding 475 Bedford Street development. Executive Session Ms. Tung moved to go into Executive session under Exemption 6 to consider the purchase or lease of real property regarding the MBTA Multi-Family Development Buy-downs. The Affordable Housing Trust Chair stated that, in her opinion, an open session would ha ve a detrimental effect on the negotiating position of the Town and Affordable Housing Trust. Ms. Tung stated that the Trust will not reconvene in the open session after the Executive session. Ms. Erickson seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 4-0-0, by a roll call vote (Erickson – yes, Sandeen – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Tung – yes). Page 3 of 3 The Trust exited the open session at 11:44 am. List of documents reviewed 1. AHT Memorandum to Zoning Board of Appeals, Parcel 68-44 2. AHT draft presentation to CPC 3. Unified AHT Housing Goals and Strategies 4. Arlington Article on securing funding for Affordable Housing 5. Arlington AHT Action Plan