York Town News
Selectmen hear innovative affordable housing plan
By Jennifer L. Saunders
YORK - The Board of Selectmen got their first look at a plan that just might help the town's need for affordable housing while meeting the mandates of the state's growth law.
Town Planner Steve Burns presented the draft growth ordinance amendment to the board at its meeting on Monday, June 11.
"The state's been after this for a long time," Burns said, referring to the goal of 10 percent of all new housing being affordable, which is also included in the town's Comprehensive Plan. "This hasn't been a big thing for York. We haven't built a lot of affordable housing."
Burns suggested a plan where the required increase in annual growth permits under state law would have a new management process. In his proposal, 96 permits per year would be allotted for market-rate housing, with an additional 14 reserved for affordable housing to total the 110 permits allowed under the state's revision of York's ordinance.
On top of the 110, he explained, York is required to provide 10 percent - 11 additional permits - for affordable housing for a total of 121 per year. In Burns' plan, 14 affordable permits would be set aside upfront, and builders who chose to pull a permit for an affordable house would then be able to get a second permit for a market-rate house, up to a total of 14 per year.
While that total number of 124 would be slightly over the state mandate of at least 121 units per year, Burns said his hope was to streamline the affordable housing part by making it a one-for-one system.
"This would say we're serious about affordable housing," Burns said, adding builders or developers or individual property owners could use the permit for a market-rate house to "offset the cost for affordable housing."
The selectmen questioned whether individuals or developers would build affordable units merely to get market-rate permits.
"Either way, it doesn't matter what the motivation is," Burns said, as long as the affordable housing is being built. "The market's a very efficient tool. Let's use it. Let's get serious about some affordable housing."
Selectmen Chairman Mike Estes pointed out that the affordable house must be built first in order for a developer to build a market-rate home.
Selectman Ted Little said one issue to explore would be how to manage the plan after the affordable units are built.
"You don't want a millionaire building a $200,000 house and turning around and selling it" for twice as much a few years later, he said.
And, Burns noted, "Those last 14 don't go out the door if no one's willing to build affordable."
Town Manager Rob Yandow noted there would be a rollover provision so that affordable permits, and their counterpart market-rate permits, could be bundled in a future year to allow for larger scale projects, such as those built by the York Housing Authority.
Vice Chairman Dave Marshall pointed out that the proposal was brand new to the board as of Monday evening, and suggested the selectmen take time to review it and discuss it in more detail at their next meeting.
"I give you credit," Marshall said. "This is innovative."
Later in the meeting, Little was appointed as the board's second member on the town's Affordable/Workforce Housing Committee. The appointment of additional community members to the committee has been postponed to allow time for others to apply.
In other business, the board voted unanimously to ratify the firefighter, police and dispatch contracts. The board also discussed several committee appointments, but decided to wait until its next meeting, scheduled for June 25, to take action.
