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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-04-09-HPB-min.pdf Lexington Housing Partnership Board (HPB) Meeting Minutes for April 9, 2026 Attendees: Cindy Arens (Sustainable Lexington), Nanette Byrnes, Harriet Cohen (Clerk), Ravneet Grewal, Sandra Hackman (COA), Chris Herbert, Margaret Heitz, Vineeta Kumar (Select Board liaison), Paul Linton, Wendy Manz (Chair), Joyce Murphy, Michael J Schanbacher, Betsey Weiss (Vice-Chair) Absent: Linda Prosnitz (liaison), Russ Tanner (LexHAB), Melanie Thompson Guests: Matt Daggett, Melinda Walker The Housing Partnership Board (HPB) meeting was chaired by Wendy Manz and minutes were taken by Harriet Cohen. The meeting was held remotely via Zoom. 1. Call to Order: Housing Partnership Board Meeting Ms. Manz called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. The roll was called. 2. 10-minute presentation by each of the 4 Working Groups for the May SB Housing Policy meeting Ms. Manz reviewed the introduction she plans to give at the Select Board meeting and asked for comments on the introduction. Ms. Weiss chaired the “True 10% Affordable Housing” subcommittee. She reviewed the slide deck she is planning to present at the Select Board. The HPB discussed the presentation and provided feedback. Ms. Grewal chaired the “Smaller, more diverse, less expensive housing in Town” subcommittee. She reviewed the slide deck she is planning to present at the Select Board. The HPB discussed the presentation and provided feedback. Ms. Byrnes chaired the “Exploring Housing in the Center” subcommittee. She reviewed the slide deck she is planning to present at the Select Board. The HPB discussed the presentation and provided feedback. Ms. Manz chaired the “Communication, education and engagement of the community” subcommittee. She provided an overview of the information she is planning to present at the Select Board. Again, the HPB provided feedback. The HPB then discussed the format of the presentations for the Select Board. The plan is to send one presentation per group to the Select Board rather than one large presentation with all of the slides. Please send the final slide decks to Ms. Manz by Friday, April 17. The meeting is tentatively scheduled for the Select Board meeting on May 4. 3. Vote on Article 25- Surcharge on Specific Residential Development Town Meeting voted on Article 25 on Wednesday, April 8 (and approved it). Mr. Daggett said that at Town Meeting it was noted that the HPB did not take a position, but the statement submitted implied that the HPB did not support the Article and asked for clarification. Several HPB members expressed concern about the statement that had been read at Town Meeting. Their recollection was that the HPB recognized points about the surcharge that supported it and some points that did not. In the end, the HPB had not taken a position because the HPB felt it did not have sufficient information with which to take a position. These HPB members were disappointed that the statement as read indicated a lack of support. 4. Vote to sign-on to Affordable Housing Community Sign-On Letter Opposing Mass Save and ACP Cuts in Energy Affordability Bill Ms. Arens provided an overview of the letter. The proposed budget includes a $1B cut in Mass Save which will impact the next fiscal year. This will cost jobs, eliminate lower-cost, energy efficient heating systems for affordable housing and put at risk the construction of thousands of units of affordable housing. Ms. Weiss moved that we sign the letter; Ms. Hackman seconded the motion. The motion was approved unanimously. Upon a motion duly made and seconded, the HPB voted by roll call of 10-0-0 to approve the motion. 5. Liaison Reports- PB, COA, CPC, LexHAB, Sustainability, AHT Due to time limitations, this item was tabled for this meeting. 6. Review and approve minutes for March 18, 2026 Due to time limitations, this item was tabled for this meeting. 7. New Business Ms. Manz announced that she would step down as chair after the Select Board presentation and that Ms. Byrnes has agreed to be the next chair. 8. Set next meeting No meeting date was set. 9. HPB Adjournment Ms. Weiss moved adjournment. Ms. Manz seconded the motion. Upon a motion duly made and seconded, the HPB voted by roll call of 10-0-0 to approve the motion. The meeting adjourned at 8:32 pm.