The Board of Selectmen did two things last night related to affordable housing.
First the selectmen heard a report from the Senior Housing Study Committee about its seeking to have the town donate the nine acre Hinkley land next to The Center for the purpose of building 5-6 moderately priced ranch houses per acre there. About half of the Hinkley land is wetlands, so that could amount to about 25 homes. The committee said it would put its slides online.
Second, the selectmen hired the Community Opportunities Group as our consultant to assist the town with planning and executing the town’s affordable housing strategy. We hired the Community Opportunities Group for its $38,000 bid amount. Community Opportunities Group submitted the only response to the town’s RFP, with a not to exceed $40,000 limit. Community Opportunities Group assisted the town in preparation of the Housing Production Plan that we approved last fall, and Assistant Town Administrator, Kristine Trierweiler, stated that she was more than satisfied with its past work for the town. Click this link to see its proposal – 20170117-community-opportunities-group-inc-proposal
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I reposted this in the Concerned Citizens of Medfield FaceBook group and got this comment below that I was hoping you could answer:
Errin Chapin Does moderately priced count towards affordable? If not, why can’t the homes be affordable?
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I reposted this in the Concerned Citizens of Medfield FaceBook group and got this comment below that I was hoping you could answer:
Errin Chapin Does moderately priced count towards affordable? If not, why can’t the homes be affordable?
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The price points can be whatever the town wants them to be, and if the town wanted they could all be made as affordable housing that would count as SHI’s. Selectman Marcucci posited making the Hinkley land project a LIP, which is a form of friendly 40B, in which case 20-25%, I think it is, of the units must be affordable and the rest can be market rate. The Village at Medfield on Dale Street (ownership) was a LIP, as is the current Borrelli project on North Street (rental). That Sr. Housing Study Committee’s stated goal was to assist seniors who want ownership, single floor living, but have too much in assets and/or income to qualify for affordable housing.
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hi Pete,
I assume the Senior housing will be an age 55 and over community?
abby
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All discussions have been about “housing for Medfield seniors,” but no one has ever defined it to me. I do not know what age they are thinking. From my time working with Lasell Village I learned that people do not want to move to that sort of housing until they are into their seventy’s or more likely their eighty’s. There is a time for everything in our lives, and many things do not happen until their time has come. I am just guessing that it is people in their seventy’s and eighty’s who would want that sort of housing enough over their existing homes to get them to move.
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As we move forward, I would really like to see “senior housing” defined.
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