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In addition to the three under construction, there are
currently three other 40B projects pending in Sherborn. There is also a 4th
project that is not a 40B but is closely related to one of the 40B’s. In fact,
the total of 4 projects should really be discussed as two pairs of projects
since two of the 40B’s are also closely related.
The Pines Residences/Apple Hill Estates
The first pair of projects to be discussed are the pair of
40B’s. They are called the Pines Residences and Apple Hill Estates. They are
located at 41 North Main Street and 31 Hunting Lane respectively. The Pines
Residences is a 60-unit apartment building with 15 affordable units (again, all
60 units would count toward the Town’s SHI percentage). It is proposed as a
mostly 3-story building but with a partial 4
th story. Apple Hill
Estates is proposed to add 27 units to the existing single-family home on a
17-acre parcel. It should be noted that Town Boards
have
unanimously opposed these projects.
The Pines Residences and Apple Hill Estates are separate
projects on abutting sites and under the same ownership (Barsky Estate Realty
Trust). One is a rental and one is a homeownership project. They are further linked
through a shared water supply and a shared wastewater treatment plant. The site
is bisected by the MBTA railroad tracks (which provide only freight service).
The projects do not technically abut because, in addition to
the railroad tracks, there are two other parcels of land between them under the
same ownership. However, one of these parcels is the site of the proposed wells
that would be the water supply for the projects. The other parcel would not be
part of the development except that the water lines from the wells would pass
through it to serve Apple Hill Estates.Sewer lines from The Pines Residences
would also cross this parcel.
As noted above, Apple Hill Estates would consist of 27 additional
units bringing the total to 28 since there is an existing single-family home on
the parcel. There would be 12 duplex buildings (24 units) plus a triplex. Seven
of the units would be required to be affordable. The road serving the
development would extend from Hunting Lane then loop back on itself. A wastewater
treatment plant would be located along the road and the leaching field would be
located at the far end of the parcel. The site plan can be viewed
here:
The Pines Residences consists of 60 apartments in a single 3 to 4-story single building. The
building would be set back 60 feet from both North Main Street and Hunting Lane
except for a 45-foot setback at one corner where Hunting Land bends to the
south. The primary access would be off North Main Street where there is an
existing small curb cut serving the existing cottage on the property. An
emergency-only access from Hunting Lane is also proposed. The parking is mostly
to the rear of the building with a few spaces on the side.
The project site now includes the parcel that extends to
Powderhouse Lane, though neither vehicular nor pedestrian access is proposed to
connect with Powderhouse Lane. It should also be noted that the historic
Whitney-Paul Tavern is on a separate parcel, and is not a part of this project.
STATUS: These projects are both awaiting a determination
by MassHousing as to whether it warrants a Project Eligibility Letter
Meadowbrook Commons/Coolidge Crossing
These projects have been in the works for a few years. They
originally started out as two adjacent 40B projects. In a manner somewhat similar
to the Pines Residences and Apple Hill Estates, one was ownership and one was a
rental. They were each about 88 units, and they would share a water supply and
a wastewater treatment facility. The original developer was Trask Development.
Upon Town negotiation, Trask agreed to instead propose an age-restricted
development under the EA (Elderly -Affordable) multi-family development provision
on one of the sites and reduce its unit count to 67.
Trask then prepared a Preliminary Development Plan (PDP) for
67 age-restricted units of which 60 would be market rate and 7 (10%) would be
affordable. A special Town Meeting was held on December 5, 2017 to approve the
PDP and change the zoning of the parcel to EA. In one of the largest attendances
at Town Meeting in years, the project was overwhelmingly approved with 86% in
favor.
The approval was due, in large part, to the understanding
that the adjacent 40B apartment project would share infrastructure and be
developed at the same time, which would provide 88 units to the Subsidized
Housing Inventory and bring Sherborn close to or above 10% (depending on the
timetable of the other 40B projects under construction). With a 10% target of
148 units, the 93 total units provided by these two projects along with the 34
existing and 23 under construction would bring the total to 150. At a minimum,
it would provide two years of safe harbor.
One downside of the projects was that the apartment building
would be a huge 3 to 4 story L-shaped structure far out of scale with Sherborn’s
character. In reviewing the application for its 40B Project Eligibility Letter,
Mass Housing Partnership recognized this inconsistency and asked the developer
to consider design changes to soften the aesthetic impact on the town. While
the developer agreed to consider this, several months passed with little to no
communication from the developer.
Finally, the Town was contacted by representatives of Pulte
Homes of New England. They indicated that they would likely be taking over the
project, but that they only developed ownership projects, not rentals. They stated
that they would try to find another developer to assume responsibility for the
rental project. The Town emphasized to Pulte that the apartment building was a
key component of the project, and later an apartment developer was identified by Pulte.
As Pulte considered the projects, some changes were made.
The affordable units in Meadowbrook Commons were scattered throughout the
project in accordance with DHCD requirements. More importantly, negotiations
were initiated with the City of Framingham to supply water to both projects,
and with the Town of Natick to provide sewer service. This would mean that the onsite
wastewater treatment plant and the wells would be eliminated, providing a
little more flexibility on the design of the building and site.
Another major benefit of the water being supplied by
Framingham is that it would eliminate additional stress on the existing wells
in the neighborhood. It would also avoid any impact on the plume of
contamination from the General Chemical site in Framingham that could
potentially be drawn toward Sherborn if there was a major water withdrawal as a
result of the projects. In September 2019 the Sherborn Select Board agreed to
allow soli borings along Kendall Avenue and Coolidge Street to help determine whether
installing a water line along that route would be financially feasible.
No agreements have yet been made on the water and sewer
services from abutting communities. Intermunicipal Agreements would need to be
approved before any such service could be available. In any case, the concept
at this point is that none of the municipalities would own the infrastructure
for that service. It would be owned and maintained by the condominium
association of Meadowbrook Commons and the management of Coolidge Crossing.
STATUS: The projects are proceeding together though they
have different permitting tracks. Meadowbrook Commons needs to apply to the
Planning Board for a special permit while Coolidge Crossing needs to apply for
a 40B Project Eligibility Letter (PEL) from DHCD. The Coolidge Crossing
developers would like to develop it as a Local Initiative Project (LIP), or
friendly 40B, which means they would need a vote of support from the Select
Board prior to applying to DHCD. Both developers are currently scheduled to
appear before the Select Board on April 9 to provide more details on the projects
and to discuss the LIP. Assuming a PEL is issued, Coolidge Crossing would then
need to apply to the ZBA for a comprehensive permit.
Epilogue: I have received inquiries about potential
40B projects for other parcels in Town, but so far they have not advanced.
