Housing Headlines

TRURO --- Hearings for the 39-unit Cloverleaf affordable housing proposal continued this month, with a consultant saying the wasterwater treatment system will reduce nitrogen to half the state standard. Also discussed was accessibility, with the town asking that all units be accessible and developer Ted Malone's architect saying all would be except four second-floor units.Opponents said they are hesitant to speak out and seem anti-housing. "If the shoe fits, wear it," countered Kevin Grunwald, chair of the housing authority.

EASTON --- In a report to the select board, community planner Wayne Beitler said the town's affordable housing trust is moving ahead with its decision to use $80,000 for emergency rental assistance. Beitler said the nonprofit Metro West Collaborative will administer the program and that the funds will provide assistance for about 25 households for three months. Beitler said the program could be continued, noting that Town Meeting voters in June OK'd $500,000 for the trust, with $250,000 earmarked for COVID-related rental assistance.

Residents of Winn Companies properties in Lowell and Fitchburg talk about economic hard times and their landlord's decision to extend its eviction moratorium through the end of 2020. “That’s what’s good about this place — that they fight for you,” said Thomas Perez of Lowell, who is unemployed and has lived in one of the over 500 units Winn owns in Lowell. "We are committed to working with each household to create a realistic payment agreement that is sustainable and achievable," said CEO Gilbert Winn.

NEWTON --- A City Council committee is discussing new zoning that would allow multifamily construction on residential lots within a half mile of a train, subway or express bus stop. The areas being looked at encompass 18,720 residential lots, 13,433 of them single-family lots. This includes about 8,000 lots within a half-mile of the Green Line and Commuter Rail, 81 percent of which are zoned single-family, according to the city.

FRAMINGHAM --- The director of Downtown Framingham Inc. criticized the City Council for voting 10-1 in favor of instituting a nine month moratorium on approving multi-family development. Courtney Thaen said new construction of 876 downtown units since 2016 has revitalized the area and given scores of residents the opportunity to walk to work or take public transportation. Councils approved the measure so the city could measure the impact on infrastructure and services.

Besides total dollars ($918M) and numbers of people helped by the state's community development organizations in 2019, what's interesting in reading the MACDC's annual goals report is the number of CDCs that provided business assistance. For instance, 1,256 entrepreneurs received technical assistance from CDCs and the Community Economic Development Center in New Bedford provided small business technical assistance to 57 entrepreneurs.