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LUNENBURG -- Residents will be asked at Tuesday's
special Town Meeting to create the Tri-Town smart growth
district -- a move that could bring the town $1 million
from the state and potentially shield Lunenburg from
unwanted development projects.
The district would allow any developer to build up to
204 multi-family residences on the 10-acre Tri-Town
Drive-in site -- far more than permitted by existing
law.
The Tri-Town district would be created through state
law Chapter 40R, which encourages communities to adopt
high-density affordable housing under the principle of
"smart growth."
The Massachusetts Housing Opportunity Corp. of North
Andover and Tri-Town owner David Fedeli have proposed
building 204 apartment units at the site.
Chapter 40R also provides state money as an incentive
to towns that help create smart growth developments. If
built, the Tri-Town project would bring $962,000 to
Lunenburg.
MHOC representatives have promised an additional
$38,000 for area improvements.
But for some town officials, the more important
incentive lies in the project's ability to shield the
town from developments built under state law Chapter
40B.
The state dictates that cities and towns ensure 10
percent of their housing stock meets affordability
guidelines.
Chapter 40B lets developers circumvent local zoning
laws in communities that haven't reached the 10 percent
mark, as long as 25 percent of the units they build are
affordable.
"By approving these units, we make a giant step
towards our affordable housing (quota)," Selectman Dan
Cronin said last week of the Tri-Town project.
Only 25 percent of the development's units would be
affordable. But if the project remains all-rental, every
unit will be counted toward the town's 10 percent quota,
according to a state Department of Housing and Community
Development spokesperson.
The town now has 67 affordable units and needs about
310 more to reach the 10 percent mark, according to
Planning Board members.
Many town officials have emphasized the importance of
reaching the 10 percent threshold as quickly as
possible. It is the only way to prevent unwanted
projects from bypassing local laws, they say.
Not a clear solution
The proposed Tri-Town district won't necessarily
provide the answer town officials seek.
Chapter 40R doesn't allow communities to demand only
rental units be built within smart growth districts.
Therefore, the zoning amendment to be presented at
Town Meeting would allow for both rental and condominium
developments.
All Chapter 40R projects must contain 25 percent
affordable housing.
But if a developer chooses to sell off some or all of
the units, only that 25 percent would be counted toward
the town's 10 percent affordable housing quota.
"A 40R district must provide for a diversity of
housing type," explained Donald Schmidt, the Smart
Growth Zoning Program director at the DHCD.
Chapter 40R does not address specifically increasing
communities' affordable housing stock, he said. It seeks
instead to create a variety of housing.
"How units are counted isn't what 40R is interested
in," Schmidt said.
The project's proponents say they are committed to an
all-rental project.
Fedeli has stated he will not proceed with the
development if it is not rent-based.
However, state subsidies will be needed to create an
all-rental project, according to MHOC's attorney, Mark
Bobrowski.
"You're building something, but you're not selling
it," he said. "You need to borrow a huge amount of money
and then you get it back in dribs and drabs. It has to
have subsidy."
MHOC cannot apply for these subsidies until the
district is approved. Bobrowski estimated the developers
would know by next spring whether they can get the
money.
"Right now, we're committed to applying for the
subsidies," he said.
If MHOC's project does not succeed, a different
development could be proposed for the already-created
district, Selectman Tom Alonzo noted last week.
"If we pass this overlay district, something else can
go in there," he said.
It is therefore important for voters to weigh
approving the district separately from the merits of
MHOC's project, Alonzo said.
Residents should approve the Tri-Town district
without hesitation, Planning Board Chairman Lynn Sallee
said.
"I am very confident that this is the best way to
move for the town," he said. "The questions that have
been raised are very, very minor."
MHOC will begin the approval process with the
Planning Board this summer, if the district is approved
by residents at the special Town Meeting, Bobrowski
said. | 
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