HomeMy WebLinkAbout2025-12-01-AHTBT-min.pdf
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Affordable Housing Trust
Meeting Minutes of December 1, 2025 1:00 pm
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, Tiffany Payne
Staff present: Carol Kowalski, Assistant Town Manager for Development; Ragi Ramachandran,
Administrative Assistant; Elizabeth Rust, RHSO Director; Olivia Lawler, Zoning Administrator and
Jim Kelly, Building Commissioner/Zoning Enforcement Officer attended part of the meeting.
Ms. Tung chaired the hybrid meeting and called the meeting to order at 1:04 pm.
1. Approve Meeting Minutes
Ms. Tung requested a motion to approve the meeting minutes of 10/23/25 Open session,
10/23/25 Executive session, 11/6/25 Open session and 11/6/25 E xecutive session. Mr. Sandeen
moved. Mr. Erickson seconded. The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 4-0-0, by a roll call vote
(Payne – yes, Erickson – yes, Sandeen – yes, Tung – yes). Ms. Prosnitz abstained. Meeting minutes
approved.
2. Chair, Select Board, Board/Committee Liaison and RHSO/staff report
Ms. Tung attended the Housing Partnership Board meeting and reported on the Board’s work on
Lexington housing goals. Ms. Prosnitz could not attend the meeting. The HPB is considering a
funding request to support website development, however Ms. Tung clarified that the Trust
won’t be able to support this due to CPC rules and the Trust’s rules. Ms. Kowalski stated that
there is a Housing page and Housing Partnership Board page on the Town website. Mr. Sandeen
mentioned that HPB could work with Town Staff to add a web page within their existing HPB page
on Town website.
Mr. Erickson updated that LexHAB were planning to submit a preliminary application and Notice
of Funding Availability from EOHLC for potential ADU development. While preliminary funding
from the Trust is not required for the initial application, LexHAB will be looking for Trust funding
for the development costs and to show community support. LexHAB has toured 22 of their sites
and they are in the process of identifying the sites that are most promising for ADU development.
Ms. Payne stated that the Lexington Housing Authority will meet in December and she will share
the update after the meeting.
Mr. Sandeen reported that the Nexus Study report is scheduled to be presented to the Select
Board at the SB meeting on December 8, 2025. The study found that approximately 131
affordable housing units are needed to meet the future workforce needs of projected employees
of potential future commercial development, with a required subsidy of $45 million. The Select
Board will consider whether to implement a linkage fee and what level it should be set at.
Ms. Kowalski advised that they postpone the implementation of the linkage fee or phase it in
gradually given there was no growth anticipated in commercial development in the next 5-6
years. Ms. Tung stated that this item will be on the agenda for the next AHT meeting.
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Ms. Tung shared an update from attending the CHAPA 2025 Housing Summit on November 20,
2025. There were various State initiatives to promote housing development, including changes
to environmental standards, removing barriers for communities that are historically
underrepresented, maximizing housing while minimizing impact, and the possibility of creating
cultural districts to facilitate housing.
Ms. Tung shared details on upcoming MHP webinar series on December 3, December 10, and
December 17, 2025.
3. Lexington Woods
Ms. Tung stated that the second Zoning Board of Appeal meeting for the continued hearing of
Lowell Street affordable housing development was scheduled for Thursday, December 11, 2025,
at 7:00 pm.
4. Planning Board Proposed Articles
The Trustees reviewed the Planning Board’s possible 2026 Town Meeting Warrant articles. The
Trust considered whether to write a letter of support to Planning Board for the potential
amendments. They discussed Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) development and inclusionary
zoning policies.
Olivia Lawler, Zoning Administrator and Jim Kelly, Building Commissioner, addressed questions
on current administration of ADU regulations, and discussed the differences between Lexington's
current code and the State code, particularly regarding size measurements and parking
requirements.
Ms. Lawler and Mr. Kelly assured the Board that both the Lexington ADU option and the state
ADU option are available to applicants, and that they encourage applicants to the by-right state
option. Mr. Sandeen asked how the ADU standards affected historical districts. Ms. Tung asked
about modular ADUs, Mr. Kelly explained the process for modular ADU construction and
installation.
There was discussion on the Planning Board’s discussion to change the language for the
requirement of percentage of inclusionary housing in the MBTA multi-family developments to
round up rather than rounding down. The Trust decided to wait for the Planning Board's draft
proposals before making any comments to Planning Board.
5. Resident Support
The Trustees reviewed the revised rental assistance program and discussed the program design
and administration in detail.
There was discussion on whether to include an asset limit for eligibility. The Trust decided not to
implement such restrictions, to simplify the pilot program and reduce paperwork.
Mr. Erickson suggested adding flexibility for recipients facing unexpected circumstances, such as
medical bills. Ms. Rust explained that such issues are typically handled by Human Services outside
of the pilot program's scope. Ms. Prosnitz emphasized that the pilot program should primarily
address housing affordability, as it is a 6-month initiative focused on specific housing expenses.
The group agreed to continue with the current program structure while monitoring its
effectiveness closely.
The Trustees finalized the program design for the rental assistance pilot program. They agreed
on the following key points: no asset limit will be included as an eligibility requirement, changes
in income during the 6-month benefit period will not affect the benefit amount, and applicants
who receive certain benefits from Human Services will still be eligible for the program.
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They also discussed the need for reporting at 3 and 6-month marks, including data on household
sizes, income levels, award amounts, and the applicant’s ability to catch-up with some of their
past dues on bills.
The group decided to send the finalized program description and Ms. Tung’s notes on scope of
work to Town Staff for review and inclusion in obtaining bids.
Ms. Kowalski stated that she will work with Liz Mancini, Purchasing Director, to draft the Request
for Quotes (RFQ) incorporating the agreed-upon program design and scope of work for
administration of the pilot program.
After receiving and reviewing vendor responses for the RFQ, the Trust plans to schedule the
presentation of the finalized rental assistance program to the Select Board for approval , in
January 2026.
6. Any other business that may come before the Trustees which could not be anticipated
Ms. Tung stated that there will be a guest speaker, the Executive Director of the Asian Community
Development Corporation, at the next Trust meeting on December 17, 2025, to discuss private-
public collaborations to create housing.
7. Adjourn
Mr. Sandeen moved to adjourn the Affordable Housing Trust Meeting. Ms. Prosnitz seconded.
The Trustees voted in favor of the motion 5-0-0, by roll call vote (Erickson – yes, Payne – yes,
Sandeen – yes, Prosnitz – yes, Tung – yes)
The meeting adjourned at 3:34 pm.
List of documents reviewed
1. Inclusionary unit rounding calculation, neighboring communities spreadsheet
2. Program Design Proposal draft, Rental Assistance Program