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Resident urges swapping or statute change to allow housing on Article 97 parkland at 19 Dolly Street
Summary
Cleon Turner told the Dennis Affordable Trust the 8.8-acre parcel at 19 Dolly Street was bought for park purposes in 1985 but is unused and could meet a critical housing need; he outlined the Article 97 conversion options (swap or paying 110% to the land bank), cited an $1.8 million appraisal estimate and said he has select-board support and has discussed options with state staff.
Cleon Turner, introduced to the trust by the chair, urged the Dennis Affordable Trust to pursue converting an 8.8-acre parcel at 19 Dolly Street from a park designation under Article 97 of the Massachusetts Constitution to affordable housing.
Turner told the trust the land was purchased at the 1985 town meeting “for the purposes of creating a park,” but that no park was ever developed on the parcel. He said a neighboring 22-acre park is used for recreation and that “it makes sense” to consider housing on the smaller, adjacent parcel to support the town’s affordable-housing goals. Turner said he compiled an inventory of town land and provided it to town staff to identify possible swap candidates.
Turner described the legal pathways for converting Article 97 land. “One way is to swap an equivalent piece of land; another is to have the town appraise the parcel and contribute 110% of the appraisal value to the land bank,” he said, adding an appraisal figure he had seen of about $1,800,000 (which he estimated would require roughly $2,000,000 to deposit at 110% of value). He noted the process is cumbersome by design: any change requires town-meeting approval and ultimately legislative and gubernatorial sign-off.
A committee member noted that the swap land need not be contiguous but must be equivalent in character; Turner agreed and said that conservation or swampy parcels would not qualify as comparable replacements. Turner also said he had discussed the idea with Representative Julian Cyr’s office and that the select board had voiced support for pursuing options to make a conversion feasible.
Trust members asked about the likely political path. Turner said one potential route would be to amend the statutory language in Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 3, Section 5A (the statute that implements Article 97 procedures) or to seek a home-rule petition that asks the legislature to grant Dennis an exception; he said the governor’s office is the practical place to start conversations because of the administration’s emphasis on affordable housing.
Members and Turner acknowledged significant obstacles: the requirement for unanimous approval from the park and conservation commissions for a swap in some procedural paths, the political sensitivity of changing land bought for open space and practical questions about where to find equivalent land or the funds needed to make the 110% payment to the land bank. The trust recorded this as a topic worth continued work; Turner said he would pursue legislative contacts and follow up with staff and select-board allies.
The trust did not take formal action on the item; members said they want to review Turner’s inventory of town land and consider next steps, including legal and conservation reviews and outreach to potential swap partners. The trust moved on to other agenda items.
