From Anna Mae O’Shea Brooke –

From Anna Mae O’Shea Brooke –

Facilities Director, Amy Colleran, shared in advance of the Medfield Energy Committee meeting this evening that the schools are replacing all lights in all school buildings to effect an annual $123,000 estimated energy savings. The cost to do the swap is 100% paid for by Eversource grants.
This is the projected savings for the Medfield High School, our biggest building.

Savings at the Blake Middle School are about $25,000/year, $15,000 at Memorial and Wheelock, and $13,000 at Dale Street.
Comments Off on LED lights in all schools
Posted in Buildings, Energy Committee, Green
I just responded to a great comment from Nic Scalfarotto, and since my general sense is that such comments and my replies are not likely seem by many, and sense Nic raised a big issue, I thought I would post both his comment and my reply here so more can see them.
Nic, I added a little more on as well.
========================================================
Nic Scalfarotto
Accepting that developing differential tax rates would not provide benefit to home owners because there is a small industrial base, a plan to address the lack of such a base needs to be developed and communicated to residents.
==============================================================
As a new selectman, my first search was for businesses that wanted to locate in town, and when that did not seem a likely result, I have turned to having a town policy of building housing that is revenue positive to the town.
We know that people want to live in town, but mainly not build businesses here. The can make tax money and reduce our current residents’ taxes by building the kind of housing that is more profitable, such as Old Village Square (42 units paying over $600K/year in taxes, with one school child the last time I heard) or the two Larkin brothers projects (Glover Place off North Street and Chapel Hill on Hospital Road, again, both with few school children).
See the analysis that Kathy McCabe, the consultant to the Medfield State Hospital Master Planning Committee, did of the potential taxes to the town from leasing the lot 3 land the town owns on Ice House Road to build 42 units of senior housing versus leasing to a commercial facility, and the town netted either more than double or more that triple the taxes from the residential use over the sports complex, depending on whether the housing was either 100% or 25% affordable, respectively. Those results were summarized in Steve Nolan’s 1/2/2018 memo to the Board of Selectmen available here –20180102-SN-Memo to MSHMPC re HinkleyIce House Road v2 – final sent to BoS and inserted below as well.
I think that many of the friendly 40B projects that we are currently allowing in order to be in safe harbor, will be revenue positive. Statistically, we are told that we will likely average about 1.5 school children per in single family houses, while we will likely average 0.15 school children per unit in multifamily housing. So multifamily housing may well be revenue positive for the town, even if not age restricted.
Additionally, the town is already mainly single family homes, so we really do not need any more single family homes options, while we do not have a sufficient variety of other housing opportunities for residents, especially for seniors. Current proposals in the pipeline will assist at filling in that gap:
8 units on North Street (two developments)
36 units on Dale Street
16 units on Adams Street, age restricted
42 units at the Rosebay, age restricted
56 units (from memory) at The Legion site
However, such diversification of the tax base can only accomplish so much with respect to reducing our individual tax bills. The other issue with which we need to deal is the town’s willing to spend, witness our vote at the last annual town meeting (ATM) to increase our tax bills by about 10%, over the objections of the Board of Selectmen and the Warrant Committee.
===============================================





Email from neighbor = “Our main concern is the scale of the project is massive in relation to the neighborhood.”
Sarah Raposa email back = The Planning Board will be requesting that the ZBA include architectural and design review as part of the the ZBA’s technical review process in order to find ways to reduce the height and bulk of the building.
Sarah
Sarah Raposa, AICP
Town Planner
459 Main Street
Medfield, MA 02052
(508) 906-3027
sraposa@medfield.net
Comments Off on Rosebay follow up #2
Posted in Affordable housing / 40B, Buildings, Development, Downtown, Zoning

I have been asked enough about the status of the Rosebay project that I thought I would share what I know. Rosebay is the private development proposal for 45 units of senior affordable housing on Medfield Housing Authority land that is directly adjacent to Tilden Village on Pound Street. Rosebay would be all seniors, all rental, and all affordable. The developer is Brian McMillin of NewGate Housing LLC of Westwood, who was selected by the Medfield Housing Authority. Brian McMillin previously worked for Gatehouse, at the time Gatehouse built The Parc in Medfield.
In general, the Board of Selectmen have been pushing to have more affordable housing, especially for seniors, so conceptually I support the Rosebay project.
The town’s active and effective Affordable Housing Trust has been meeting with the Rosebay developer and I understand that the Affordable Housing Trust has been advancing the Rosebay project as part of the town’s solution to our affordable housing needs. I also believe that the Affordable Housing Trust even provided some monies for fees to that developer to advance the project.
The Town of Medfield is in a good spot at the moment with respect to unfriendly 40B proposals because we are currently in a safe harbor, meaning that:
I believe that we have about another year and a half of safe harbor remaining, but we also have several irons in the fire that could extend that time frame.
So as long as we remain in that safe harbor, the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Medfield can turn down any 40B that it does not like on the basis that we are in that safe harbor, and the developer cannot end run the town by appealing for state approval to the Housing Appeals Committee (HAC) at the DHCD for an approval. The HAC routinely approves any developer’s 40B developments turned down by towns, but the HAC will not overturn a ZBA denial based on our being in a safe harbor, while we continue to be in that safe harbor.
The Board of Selectmen will soon send a letter to Department of Housing and Community Development opining about the suitability of the Rosebay project in general, and we would welcome citizen input as part of our formulation of that letter.
The project is not looking to be a Local Initiative Project (LIP), which is a town endorsed 40B. The need for that town endorsement of a LIP gives the Board of Selectmen a high level of control over any LIP. The Board of Selectmen therefore does not have that same high level of input and control over Rosebay that we would have if it were a LIP.
In this instance the Zoning Board of Appeals will be the main town entity that will deal with the nuts and bolts issues of the Rosebay project, and that will seek to ameliorate the proposed project and its impacts on both the neighbors and the town. The ZBA has even greater than usual control over the Rosebay proposal, because of the fact that we are in a 40B safe harbor, and any ZBA denial should be supported by the HAC.
I am trusting the Zoning Board of Appeals to see that the details are worked out as well as they can be so as to minimize the impacts and effects of the project on the neighbors.
Today I got this email follow up, below, from the developer that the Medfield Housing Authority selected for the proposed project on Medfield Housing Authority land next to Tilden Village. I also met with the Legion and its developers this week about their plans, and the issue of how their timing fits in to the town’s safe harbor needs, so I asked Brain McMillin about the timing of his plan, and he reported “it’s not out of the question that it could take until 2022 or 2023 until these units are ready to be leased up.” –

I should probably point out that The Rosebay at Medfield is not public housing, so it is technically not an expansion of Tilden Village. It will be a privately-owned development located on land leased from the Medfield Housing Authority under a long-term ground lease.
Although it will not be public housing like Tilden Village, all of the units in the proposed development would still be affordable and age-restricted (62+) to meet the Housing Authority’s requirements. For the Town of Medfield, all 45 of the proposed units would count toward its Chapter 40B Subsidized Housing Inventory and further goals stated under its Housing Production Plan.
The basic structure we have proposed is fairly common and has been used around the country for privately-owned developments built on housing authority land. We are aware, however, that that it may require some explanation and we plan to provide that detail during our Comprehensive Permit hearing before the Zoning Board.
Regards,
Brian J. McMillin | NewGate Housing LLC
Comments Off on The Rosebay at Medfield
Posted in Affordable housing / 40B, Buildings, Development, Downtown, Seniors

The permitting for the proposed LCB assisted living facility behind the Clark Tavern on Main Street with the Zoning Board of Appeals and the Planning Board is starting up again with a Zoning Board of Appeals hearing on 5/23 at 7PM at the Blake Middle School auditorium. In advance of that ZBA hearing Town Planner, Sarah Raposa circulated the most recent peer review by the town’s engineering consultants, BETA Engineering, dated 4/19/2016, which gives a summary of where things stand.
20160419-BETA-Medfield Senior Living Peer Review (002)
Also, I believe that there are still two outstanding and as yet unresolved apeals by LCB of the wetlands determination issues by the Town of Medfield Conservation Commission. I understand those appeals are pending with the state DEP and at the Norfolk Superior Court. The ConCom determined that Vine Brook is a “perennial stream” (i.e. it flows year round) and as a result that building setbacks are subject to the 200′ Rivers Act requirements. I believe that LCB takes the position that Vine Brook is only “intermittent,” and that therefore the Rivers Act setback do not control.
Below is Sarah’s transmission email to town department heads –
===============================================================
LCB is coming back from continuance-hiatus next Wednesday night (5/23) with the ZBA. I wanted to refresh your memories on the project and where Beta is at with the reviews. The application and plans may be viewed here: Dropbox Link
Attached is the most recent civil and traffic engineering review from Beta.
For some departments, your predecessors submitted comments on the project. Previously submitted comments are HERE. You may wish to update departmental comments, if so, please provide written comments by next Wednesday at 10 am.
Looking closely, I don’t having anything from the Fire Department (though I know Chief Kingsbury reviewed the plan).
I did not include the COA and School Dept. in 2015 but feel free to submit if you have any comments for the ZBA.
I do have several documents from the Historical Commission that I didn’t attach here but are online. I know you’ll be at the meeting on Wednesday to submit comments in person.
All are welcome to the public hearing session: Wednesday, May 23, 2017 at 7:00 pm at the Blake Middle School Auditorium.
Thank you,
Sarah
Sarah Raposa, AICP
Town Planner
459 Main Street
Medfield, MA 02052
(508) 906-3027
sraposa@medfield.net
Comments Off on LCB restart
Posted in Buildings, Business, Development, Downtown, Permitting, Planning, Zoning

TOWN OF MEDFIELD
Medfield Public Schools
459MainStreet
MEDFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS 02052
Director of Facilities
Gerard McCarty, Director
508-906-3068
MEMORANDUM
TO: Michael Sullivan
FROM: Jerry McCarty
DATE: November 2, 2017
RE: Dwight Derby House Funds
The Dwight Derby House Historical Committee has approximately $10,000 in funds for repairs for the Dwight Derby House (DDH). The two projects that the Committee want to address are the Gutters and the sump pump/drainage.
This memo is to address the sump pump/drainage issue. The DDH incurs an excessive amount of ground water during the wet season. If not addressed, ground water rises to a level that impacts the basement crawl space heating system which is suspended from the floor above.. Currently, the DDH has a sump pit on the west side of the house which discharged into the sewer line, which is not permitted. To address the excessive ground water, and correct a discharge violation, my office is installing a new exterior discharge and drainage bed system on the east side of the property. The materials cost will come out of the above mentioned fund.
In an effort to save cost, I propose using some of the fund to pay DPW employees overtime to perform this machine work in digging trenches and installing stone (estimated cost of labor is $1000). This effort will be cheaper than having to bid and outsource this work. With the good fall weather, the DPW has been concentrating its effort on doing road projects in preparation for winter. By doing the DDH work on overtime hours, this project will not tie up men or machine work of the DPW to do its core function of road preparation, and will be cheaper bidding and outsourcing work.
Please let me know how I should proceed with this project.
After listening to the last planning board hearings on the Medfield Children’s Center petition for site plan approval of its proposed new child care facility at 75 High Street, I concluded that the planning board will approve that petition, with the conditions discussed last night. The planning board closed the hearing last night, will next await any Board of Health action, and then the planning board will formally vote on the petition for site plan approval at its 12/4/17 meeting.
It is my understanding that the zoning compliance issues will need to be decided by the Building Commissioner, or the Zoning Board of Appeals if he defers to the issues to the ZBA. It is my understanding that the lot does not have the minimum width required of lots, that the parking will not comply with the bylaw requirements, and additionally the lot is subject to a 1975 variance that limits any use to one single family home.
The Medfield Children’s Center currently operates child care facilities in both the Baptist Church and Episcopal Church in the downtown, and I believe the churches are looking to reclaim their spaces. The Medfield Children’s Center looking to consolidate its operations in one location.
This was the crowd at the start of the hour long hearing before the planning board last night –

20171106 202104
Comments Off on MCC at PB
Posted in Buildings, Children, Development, Permitting, Planning
The table below about Public Safety Building costs was shared this week, first by a Gilbane Construction employee with Mike Quinlan, chair of the Building Committee, then to Mike Sullivan, and then to the Board of Selectmen.
To me it is reassuring to see both that the cost of our Public Safety Building was relatively low, but also that our size comports with what other towns are deciding to build, which reaffirms the appropriateness of the recommendations of the Building Committee about the size of a building that was needed. Congratulations and thanks are again in order to the Building Committee for successfully steering the town through that project!
I have had many meetings in both conference rooms that are available for public use in the Public Safety Building, and can attest to both their quality and utility.

This was the accompanying email from Mike Sullivan that makes our low cost per sq. ft. even more remarkable –
FYI. This came in this morning from Mike Quinlan. Confirms what we’ve been hearing about what a good price (relatively) we got on out public safety building. Especially since our project included construction of the Dale St. School parking lot, repair of the Adams Street basketball/tennis court, and installation of solar panels. Even better, we still have over $500K left in out accounts. Mike S
Comments Off on Public Safety Building was a bargain
Posted in Buildings, Financial, Fire Department, Police Department