Select Board directs staff to advance Wait Drive municipal housing plan; OPM to be engaged

The Select Board on Sept. 10 endorsed staff recommendations to proceed with a phased approach to develop municipal employee housing on town‑owned parcels on Wait Drive, authorizing the housing department to hire an owner’s project manager and to procure modular construction bids ahead of Town Meeting. Municipal Housing Director Christie Ferrantello summarized 18 months of internal planning, an employee housing survey with 260 responses, and a parcel evaluation that identified three town lots on Wait Drive as the preferred site. Ferrantello said the proposed approach is to reconfigure the three parcels into five lots and to build two dwellings per lot (a mix of single‑family homes, duplexes and ADU‑style units), producing roughly 25–35 bedrooms across the site. The department’s preferred procurement strategy is phased: bidders would submit a base bid for one lot and priced alternates for additional lots so the town can present a specific, bid‑backed lot construction figure to voters. Key points: - Local need: The housing department reported 43 municipal units under management and roughly 30 municipal employees on a wait list at any time; survey results showed most staff seek 1–2 bedroom units, many require pet‑friendly housing, and 52% of surveyed employees said housing could determine whether they remain employed by the town. - Cost context: A 2024 rough estimate for construction was roughly $3.5–4.0 million per lot; Ferrantello said precise costs require an OPM and bid process. As an alternative, purchasing existing homes would compete with the local market and was estimated at roughly $14.9M–$18.2M to secure 15 comparable units based on 2024 transactions. Board action and consensus: After discussion about public outreach and parking constraints, the board agreed staff should retain an OPM using previously appropriated funds, release an RFP this winter and seek bids so a firm base bid can be presented at Town Meeting. Members agreed the proposal should be scoped to municipal employees and that public outreach be stepped up to address voter concerns about previous citizen votes. Why it matters: Ferrantello framed the project as essential to recruitment and retention for municipal services; she said vacancy counts (45 vacancies as of Aug. 1) and reported staff turnover link directly to housing availability. Next steps: Hire an OPM, prepare procurement documents, solicit bids with alternates, conduct enhanced public outreach, and return with a bid‑backed request for a single lot on the 2026 Town Meeting warrant for voter consideration.