Cape Cod Commission urges zoning changes, preapproved plans, land trust and land bank to expand year‑round housing

The Cape Cod Commission on Feb. 12 presented a regional housing strategy that recommends changing local zoning, offering preapproved construction plans, and creating a community land trust and a regional housing land bank to increase year‑round and permanently affordable housing across the 15 towns on Cape Cod.

Commission staff said the report highlights factors that make the Cape’s housing market distinct, including a predominance of single‑family housing, high seasonal housing shares and rapid price growth. Christy Sanatore, executive director of the Cape Cod Commission, summarized the findings, saying, “80% of the housing across The Cape is single family homes. We have about 36% of our housing stock is seasonal. A household must earn about $210,000 annually to be able to affordably purchase the median price single family home that we have here on The Cape.” She added that between 2019 and 2022 the median single‑family sales price rose about 60% while household income rose about 7.5%.

Why it matters: Commission staff said those factors combine to reduce year‑round supply, drive use of housing as short‑term rentals, and push the region’s affordability problems beyond what typical municipal zoning and permitting processes can address.

Staff presented several near‑term and longer‑term recommendations. They highlighted (1) revising local zoning to allow more multifamily housing in appropriate locations, (2) developing a set of 12–15 preapproved, construction‑ready building plans (ADUs, cottages, duplexes, small multifamily) to speed permitting and reduce design costs, (3) establishing a permanent regional housing services office, and (4) forming a community land trust paired with a regional housing land bank to acquire, hold and redevelop property for permanently affordable and attainable housing.

Erin (staff member) described the zoning work and the preapproved plans project, saying staff contracted with several design firms (Flintlock Lab; a firm identified in the transcript as Chromebook Urbanists and Architects; and Union Studio) to produce 12 construction plans that will include checklists and guidance for towns. Chloe (staff member) described the land trust/land bank proposal, explaining the two entities would have different missions: the land trust would hold land in perpetuity to preserve affordability and typically focus on smaller projects of 2–20 units; the land bank would acquire and hold land for shorter periods to clear title, remediate and prepare sites for larger developments with nonprofit partners.

Commissioners asked for clarity about roles, leadership and long‑term capacity. Commissioner Forrest said the county should clarify “who’s responsible for what” and offered to help convene elected leaders and towns to move the recommendations forward. Commissioners also pressed staff on implementation capacity and whether the commission would retain a lead role or serve as a convener while community stakeholders and nonprofit developers provide leadership.

Staff said several communities have already asked for technical assistance: Sandwich and a jurisdiction identified as "East Ham" in the transcript asked for district local technical assistance to advance zoning changes and incorporate preapproved plans. Staff said the preapproved plans project would be complete within weeks and that they will pursue grant funding for regional services and for cybersecurity or systems work that was described in the county budget discussion.

The presentation also included direction to explore financial incentives to convert seasonal units to year‑round housing and a continued review of housing potential on Joint Base Cape Cod in coordination with MAS Development.

Ending: Staff said the final report and associated materials will be posted on the commission website, and asked for commissioners’ feedback as they move from strategy to implementation. Commissioners indicated support for sustained engagement and assistance in convening municipal and nonprofit partners.