Committee endorses release of low-income deed restriction on 64 Village Drive unit and refers wording to solicitor

The Marlborough City Urban Affairs and Housing Committee voted May 27 to endorse the release of a low-income deed restriction on Unit 4 at 64 Village Drive and referred the matter to the solicitor to draft legal language for the full council agenda.

The order was introduced as a communication from Attorney Aldo Cipriano on behalf of Mark Evangelista requesting the release of the deed restriction. The chair noted a prior Urban Affairs report from May 6, 2024, that had recommended endorsing the concept and referring the matter to the legal department for appropriate drafting.

Councilor Doucette, who said she is "a big advocate of affordable housing," explained that the site cannot practically support required affordable housing under the existing rules and that the current owner is unable to sell the unit while the restriction remains in place. "They're going to benefit, but I don't think there's anything we can really do about this," she said, urging the committee to move the item forward. Councilor Viteri said constituents in her ward supported moving forward.

The committee moved and seconded a motion to endorse the release of the affordable-housing restriction and to refer the solicitor to prepare proper language; the motion passed by voice vote (reported as 4 yes). The solicitor is expected to prepare language for the June 8 agenda or place the item on the June 22 agenda if additional drafting is necessary.

Next steps: the solicitor will draft the order in legal form for council consideration; there was no immediate amendment to the deed language at the committee level.