Posted by Ed on June 18, 2007, 7:45 pm The Zoning Board of Appeals was given the freedom to reject or The plan's certification expired in April. "It leaves us high and dry, we are now vulnerable to any developer O'Donnell added that the town has not heard anything from the state DHCD officials did not return calls last week seeking comment. The state's Chapter 40B affordable-housing law allows developers to Although there were several projects in the works at the time, none According to the latest listing by the DHCD, Billerica's affordable- "The state takes projects off the list if they are approved but not Kennedy said the town could gain a one-year recertification from the He added that no developers have come forward with plans, but there Since 2001, Billerica has approved or built more than 1,000 new Kennedy said that the town needs to gain more concessions from "The ZBA has been able to negotiate some mitigation in the past, Earlier this year, Tewksbury officials negotiated a $2.1 million "As a town, we really need to do a better job with working with "The problem is with the 40B law itself," said ZBA Chairman Doris In addition to looking at future projects, town officials have Earlier this year, the committee released a report alleging that The committee, a group of volunteers with no professional auditing Dresser expressed anger when the report was released, stating that Earlier this month, selectmen referred a second project, developer Once the housing complex was finished, it was sold again for $80 At least one selectman would prefer that the audit committee's "I applaud their willingness to volunteer, but this is a very O'Donnell added that it is important to make sure the developers are Doris is Right! Mike needs to look into how we can get our hands on some of the The only ones here being dragged through the mud are the taxpayers The citizens aduiting these projects must continue to, because the Can you spell Special Interests, G-R-E-E-D
24.34.144.49
Official: 40B plan has town vulnerable
By Jennifer Amy Myers, jmyers@lowellsun.com
Article Last Updated: 06/18/2007 11:31:27 AM EDT
BILLERICA -- Two years ago, the state Department of Housing and
Community Development approved the town's Affordable Housing
Productivity Plan, giving Billerica officials some control over
Chapter 40B developments.
change proposals that meet the plan without fear of having their
decisions overturned by the state's Housing Appeals Committee.
who wants to come in," said Selectman James O'Donnell.
regarding its status, and he will ask that the item be put on
tonight's selectmen agenda for discussion.
circumvent local zoning regulations in exchange for making 25
percent of the units in their development affordable by state
standards in communities where the affordable-housing inventory is
less than 10 percent of the total housing units.
When the plan was approved in April 2005, Billerica's affordable-
housing stock stood at just 3.22 percent, one of the lowest in the
region.
have been submitted.
housing stock stands at 4.9 percent, but Town Planner Peter Kennedy
says that number is a little misleading.
built," he said. "Our number is more like six-percent, now that
Princeton Properties (156 apartments) are being built."
state by approving 98 affordable-housing units.
is talk of a monstrous project on Rangeway Road that could bring 400-
600 housing units into town.
housing units, with more than 600 of them affordable, and has been
struggling to absorb the strain on town services and infrastructure
that comes with rapid growth.
developers in exchange for approving large-scale developments.
such as roadway improvements at Lexington Road and Boston Road, but
given the responsibilities the ZBA has, mitigation is secondary," he
said, adding that there has been some talk, but no action on putting
together a mitigation team, similar to what Tewksbury has done.
package of capital improvements with Hanover Co., the developer of
the 364-unit Lodge at Ames Pond.
developers to get the type of developments we want," said O'Donnell.
Pearson. "It makes it impossible for the town to meet the goals
while keeping up with infrastructure. The more we do, the more we
have to do."
referred two projects to the town's 40B Financial Compliance and
Audit Committee. The committee, formed by a fall 2005 Town Meeting
vote, is charged with auditing financial compliance on all past
present and future projects built under Chapter 40B.
developer Steve Dresser inflated reported costs and collected $2.7
million in profits over what is allowed under state law in the sale
of 44 townhouses at Salisbury Hill Estates on Salem Road.
or construction expertise, reviewed paperwork but did not conduct
interviews.
it was not based on facts and that it was tarnishing his
professional reputation.
David Veo's 324-unit Villas at Old Concord, to the committee.
Selectmen Chairman Michael Rosa said that documents show that the
9.6 acres of land were purchased by Veo for $1 million in 2002 and
then sold for $5.4 million.
million.
report be vetted by town counsel before being released to the
public.
complex law, and as far as I know, none of the people on this
committee have any expertise," O'Donnell said. "I don't want to see
any facts come out that aren't truthful, opening us up to the
possibility of a lawsuit when a developer's reputation gets dragged
through the mud."
staying within the guidelines of the law, but the state, not the
town, should be conducting these financial compliance audits.
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Watchout Rangeway Road!
profits and use it to purchase existing vacant apartments and
purchase them to use towards our afforadable housing numbers.
of the Merrimack Valley and the State House needs to be told enough
is enough!
state regulations have not done their job!
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