CONWAY — A proposed 12-residence senior housing project on privately owned land at 201 Maple St. has been “paused” to allow residents a chance to share thoughts and to research “critical questions.”
At Monday night’s Selectboard meeting, Housing Committee Chairwoman Pixie Holbrook asked the three-member board to table a revised Intent to Purchase for the five-acre property, valued around $250,000, until a few details can be smoothed out.
Essentially, an Intent to Purchase is a nonbinding real estate contract that usually accompanies a down payment. Its intent is to minimize confusion and help buyers obtain funding. In this case, the Selectboard voted on and signed an initial Intent to Purchase document and put forward a $1,000 down payment at another board meeting in January.
As outlined by members of the Housing Committee at that meeting, the proposed project would be designed for minimal environmental impact. A few residences would be built in a preserved, converted barn, the rest built on the footprint of an existing house. The project would cover all three acceptable uses of Community Preservation Act money, which are historic preservation, land preservation, and affordable housing. Community Preservation Act money require a town vote to use.
Most recently, the purchase agreement document was revised by the property’s owners with one added contingency amendment to the six already outlined in the agreement. Among those previous six contingencies, the intended property purchase must pass a town vote, receive appraisal, be approved by the Community Preservation Committee, and pass a percolation test.
The additional amendment asks the Selectboard to agree to pay for percolation tests, avoid garden areas, and restore soil after construction has been completed.
If the contingencies aren’t met, the down payment will be reimbursed.
“This is a new domain for us,” Holbrook said before asking the board put off signing the amended document, noting the project’s scale and questions raised by neighbors abutting the property. Holbrook added, “we need a little more time to get these answers succinct. We ask that you not sign it at this time.”
Of note, she continued, purchasing property for a senior housing project as opposed to building on town-owned land, is “new terrain, in a new stage.”
Speaking to Holbrook’s concerns, Selectman Robert Baker highlighted that there’s not much useable land in Conway, even less usable town-owned land.
Holbrook, who’s been laboring to bring affordable senior housing into town for more than a decade, noted, “we seem to have exhausted all (town-owned property) options and have now started to consider non-town owned property. With that, comes a new set of questions and concerns about purchasing, who, how and more? For instance, how does a town suddenly purchase a parcel if it were to come on the market, competing with other potential buyers?”
Moving forward, she said the housing committee intends to “slow this process down somewhat, while we set up a more thorough and inclusive avenue for communication, and do the research for answers to critical questions.”
Before the subject was tabled Tuesday, a few residents raised concerns about the proposed project, of note, citing potential water and sewage problems. Over the past few weeks, the project has been met with heated contention by some neighbors and abutters to the property.
Holbrook noted the Housing Committee intended to communicate with abutters after they had more information on the property. However, news broke before then, and Holbrook said neighbors were surprised.
Over the past 11 years, Holbook said the town has held three town meetings to allocate money for consultants, created a conceptual site plan, conducted two town-wide surveys, tested for wetlands on another parcel, and contributed news articles about intentions to bring senior housing into town.
Regardless of where the affordable senior housing eventually goes, Holbrook added, “Of 1,900 residents, Conway has 700 residents over 55 years of age. We look forward to the day when Conway can be identified as ‘senior-friendly,’ offering the option for our residents to age-in-place in the town they love. Our seniors have supported ballfields, swimming pools and our school budget for many years. It’s time for seniors to enjoy the generosity of their neighbors.”
Holbrook said the Housing Committee is working to put up information about the project on the town’s website.