Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Housing Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Affordable Trust debates appraisal requirement blocking $150,000 CPC release, weighs buy-downs and preservation steps
Summary
The trust discussed releasing $150,000 in CPC funds tied to adding two portable units at an affordable housing project; town counsel requested an appraisal (possibly of the deed restriction), appraisers and housing agencies said the request is unusual, and staff will return with clarifications. Housing coordinator Maggie reported an April 10 open house, preservation options for eight expiring units and plans to refine CPC application guidance.
The Dennis Affordable Trust spent substantial time on a request to release $150,000 in Community Preservation Committee (CPC) funds intended to support two additional portable units at a housing project on leased land.
Committee discussion centered on a town-counsel opinion that the trust should obtain an appraisal tied to the request. Trust members and staff said the opinion’s language was vague about what must be appraised — whether it is the construction cost, market value of units on leased land, or the monetary value of a deed restriction — and that securing an appropriate commercial appraisal is proving difficult. One member said appraisers they contacted reported they had “never heard of anything like this” for valuing a deed restriction in this context; estimated appraisal fees cited in the meeting ranged from $3,000 to $5,000.
The trust’s goal is to determine the value of a buy-down or other mechanism that would make more units affordable while protecting the town’s interests. A member described the proposal as effectively a two-for-one arrangement with the developer: adding two portable units in exchange for the $150,000 contribution. Staff said their calculations show the subsidy per unit could be recouped within a decade under certain assumptions, but that uncertainty about measuring the deed-restriction value and the need for a commercial appraisal have delayed a final request to the select board for fund release.
Housing coordinator Maggie reported an April 10 open house for two planned affordable condominium units (phase 1), priced in the $186,000–$199,000 range and including one local-preference unit. She said phase 2 will add duplexes behind the existing building. Maggie also said the trust is considering using its buy-down program to preserve eight units whose deed restrictions are expiring; she reported outreach to the property owners and to housing partners about extending restrictions and using funding for modest repairs.
Trust members discussed clarifying the trust’s CPC application materials and suggested creating a small subcommittee to draft clearer guidelines that separate allowable CPA activities (development, preservation, assistance). They also discussed timing: the CPC expression of interest and full application deadlines and the trust’s plan to vote on a formal CPC request at its April meeting for a May 2 submission.
No formal vote on fund release was taken; the trust asked staff to follow up with town counsel to clarify the appraisal requirement, to continue searching for suitable appraisers and to return with clearer numbers for the trust to present to the select board and CPC.
