Poll: Resident Study Committee for Medfield's Affordable Housing Issue?

At the Feb. 21 Board of Selectmen meeting, chairman Osler Peterson suggested to his colleagues the town appoint a resident study committee to take a closer look into Chapter 40B and what the town can be doing to address its affordable housing need.

Peterson's suggestion came as a result of the buzz the has created throughout the community – bringing awareness to the issues towns face with Chapter 40B.

The 96-unit apartment complex, proposed to be 100 percent affordable, is targeting industrial zoned land in the town, which has many residents like Richard DeSorgher, .

"My concern lies with the fact that the 40B proposal is on industrial land," DeSorgher said in response to the Medfield Patch poll question: 'What about 40B and the West Street proposal are you most concerned about?' "It is on one of the last remaining pieces of industrial zoned land in town. Medfield's tax base is almost entirely based on the residential home owner. The town needs to expand our tax base so it is not just on us, the homeowner. Small clean industries, like , are a win/win for the town. This 40B project takes away the industrial land and potential tax relief and instead will add to our taxes through increase in school and town service budgets. 40B is state law but selectmen should be actively reviewing the pro/cons of buying the land with the hope it can be sold at a future date to small clean industry, forming a committee to study the issue and report their finding at town meeting, preparing an article to be ready for town meeting in the event the citizens want to go the route of purchasing the land, and forming a committee to be actively trying to get small clean industry to build on that land. If not, we may be penny wise and pound foolish and see our taxes skyrocket after the project is completed."

Other residents have been vocal at public meetings regarding their concern with the affect 40B projects like the one proposed on West Street will have on the town.

State Representative Denis Garlick's "State-of-the-State" address at the Medfield Town House on Feb. 1 was and what options the town has with proposals like the one on West Street. Residents have also attended the Feb. 7 and Feb. 21 Board of Selectmen meetings to discuss the town's affordable housing dilemma.

Town Counsel Mark Cerel informed approximately 30 residents at the Feb. 7 meeting the town has "" in terms of opposing a proposed 40B development, like the one on West Street. To reach a wider audience and provide a more appropriate forum for discussion on 40B, the Board of Selectmen agreed to hold a public information meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 28 to discuss Chapter 40B and the West Street proposal at length. Cerel led the discussion and reiterated and ellaborated on what he said at the Feb. 7 BOS meeting to

Medfield is currently at about 4.4 percent of the 10 percent needed for affordable housing in town and even with the approval and completion of the 96-unit complex on West Street, the town will still be well below its required percentage and remain vulnerable to future projects being developed in unwanted parts of town.

As for the town creating a study committee to better prepare the town for future developments, selectmen Mark Fisher and Ann Thompson opted for more time to think about Peterson's proposal and whether or not it is necessary. The selectmen are expected to discuss this possibility further at their next meeting on March 6.

So Medfield, we want to know ...

Today's question: Should Medfield appoint a resident study committee to look into what the town should be doing about its affordable housing dilemma? Why or why not?