PEMBROKE, MA - Pembroke voters rejected both proposals for the affordable housing portion of the town's first round of Community Preservation Act funding Tuesday night, but quickly accepted the other five projects, mainly historical building renovations. The Community Preservation Committee had unanimously recommended approval of $35,000 to install automatic door operators for Housing Authority units and community buildings at the MacDonald Way and Kilcommons Drive elderly developments. The committee had voted 3 to 2 to fund a $20,000 affordable housing consultant.
Special Town Meeting voters rejected funding for the door operators by a vote of 62 for, 66 against and for the consultant by a vote of 20 for, 110 against. Resident Bob DeMarzo said he felt the projects did not meet the CPA goal of "preserving our community." He and others said they envisioned the funding, which comes from a 1 percent property tax surcharge plus a state match of about 65 percent, would be used for historical buildings and land preservation. "This is why I was against the Community Preservation Act to begin with," said Vince Cogliano, a former selectman. "Don't look at this as a pot of gold. It's not. It's your and my tax money."
The Advisory Committee had recommended indefinite postponement of the Housing Authority project and "unfavorable action" for the affordable housing consultant. Housing Authority Board member Joe Mulkern said the automatic openers were necessary to make the buildings handicapped-accessible and to help elderly residents who struggled with the heavy doors. "The elderly people need it," he said.
Affordable Housing Committee member Hilary Wilson said the consultant would be hired on a contract basis and help maintain the town's affordable housing stock, about 58 units of which are owner-occupied. Several properties have been sold, resold and refinanced without notifying the town, Wilson said. Currently, there is no agency charged with tracking these properties, he said.
Affordable Housing Committee member Brian VanRiper said the town faces a unique situation in being one of the first area communities to meet its affordable housing goal and that the town should use the 10 percent of CPA funding allotted for affordable housing projects to devise a housing plan for when new goals are set after the 2010 census.
"We need professional services to help us along the way, and that's what this $20,000 is about," VanRiper said. "This is an important first step in maintaining the affordable housing that we have achieved in this community and hope to have moving forward." DeMarzo said he wasn't sure a consultant could track the transfer of homes. "What we need is legislation to put more teeth in affordable housing law," he said. "That's the solution, not spending more money on it." Community Preservation Committee member Paul Dwyer said after the meeting that the 10 percent minimum allotted for affordable housing would be reserved for future projects.
After rejecting the first two projects, voters quickly approved the other five, which include: $2,600 for signs for the Bay Circuit Trail; $27,000 for a hydrologic study of Furnace Pond; $23,000 to complete renovations to Bethel Chapel; $30,000 to renovate the Friends Meeting House; and $33,450 to renovate the Adah Hall House.
Source: PembrokeExpress.com