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BREWSTER VISION ADVISORY GROUP
SUMMARY PAPER
LOCAL ECONOMY
OCTOBER 2017
I.Background
The Brewster Vision workshops defined a sustainable local economy as one that builds on
Brewster’s natural and human assets, addresses the needs of small businesses, and provides
year round employment for Brewster’s young families. Specifically, the workshops participants
wanted to see:
•A greater focus on building a “green economy” based on the Town’s natural beauty and
resources;
•An economy that fosters the growth of small business that are compatible with the
Town’s character; and,
•Growth of a more sustainable year-round economy that encourages small businesses
and better supports Brewster’s workforce.
Regional Economy
Based on our region’s unique resources, demographic mix, and economic drivers and
challenges, the Cape Cod Commission defines economic development as public policies and
investments that create an environment in which individuals and businesses may prosper over
the long-term without depleting or destroying natural and built assets that make Cape Cod a
desirable place to live and work. This more formal, regional definition is not unlike what
Brewster residents have envisioned for our town, however; it is important to note that
economic development is one element of a much larger interdependent system. A healthy
local economy cannot be considered as separate from the town’s land use policies, community
design and character decisions, housing incentives and regulation, management of natural
assets, resources and infrastructure, and its level of community engagement. An economy that
is considered sustainable – one that creates wealth and opportunity without destroying natural
and cultural assets – can only be achieved in communities that recognize and understand that
no decision, no policy, and no investment exists in isolation.
Local Demographics
Brewster, like much of Cape Cod, is populated by a mixture of working families, retirees,
summer residents, and visitors. In 1960, Brewster had a population of just over 1,000 year-
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round residents and 72% of the homes in town were seasonal. Today, the population is close to
10,000 and seasonal homes are 40% of the over 8,000 housing units in town. Thirty percent of
the year-round residents in Brewster are over 65 years old while 49% are working age adults
(between 25-64 years old).
Typically, the share of the population within the working age bracket is over 50%, however, in a
resort/retirement area like Cape Cod, it is common to see a distribution like that in Brewster.
Of those in the workforce, over 50% are in sales and service occupations and 43% are in
management or profession occupations. Just over 9% of the working residents have
construction related occupations. This occupational distribution mirrors that of the Cape as a
whole.
Brewster has many defining elements that make it an attractive place for retirees, seasonal
residents, and visitors as well as the working residents that support them. Like the Cape, the
business and job mix in town is heavily influenced by the non-working populations. Economic
growth and new opportunities depend in part on bringing resources/money from outside the
area, into the area; which is what retirees, second-home owners, and tourists do for the region.
Other types of places export goods or services to grow but in the Cape economy it is the place
that is valued, which cannot be exported, and must be visited. Defining Brewster as a place, and
investing in the elements that define that place, is essential to building a strong local economy.
Recognizing that much of Brewster’s economy is based on its natural assets, the Chamber of
Commerce’s Sustainability Strategy promotes the Town as an eco-tourism center and builds on
“green” opportunities such as recycling and biking.
II.Key Issues Moving Forward
The visioning workshops identified a number of treasures/assets that are highly valued by the
community, including; open space and recreational opportunities, beaches and healthy
waterbodies, the historic character and the sense of community that is rural in nature, and the
small local businesses consistent with a rural feel. The challenges identified had to do with the
high cost of housing and low wages, the need to protect natural resources, from drinking water
to beaches, and the desire to retain the unique historic and rural character of the town. The
workshop participants also identified the challenge of creating and paying for the appropriate
infrastructure needed to meet the town’s goals.
There is value in considering these local challenges and assets in the larger context of national
trends and their economic consequences, both good and bad. As a relatively remote region
with a leisure driven economy, we are greatly impacted by policies and actions that effect the
distribution of wealth and disposable income, the means and allocation public investment in
education and infrastructure, business regulation and natural resource use policies, and rules
governing the allocation of utility services such as telecommunications and energy. In plain
terms:
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•Fewer people with more wealth who can and will come to Cape Cod, their buying power
and the ways they may spend their money;
•Greater reliance on local tax revenues to support education and infrastructure will
increase the already high cost of entry into the local housing market as well as the on-
going cost of living for those already here;
•The concentration of business activity into multinational companies, particularly in retail
and banking, changes the ability of small enterprises with local ties in Brewster to
compete with national chains in a high cost environment like Cape Cod;
•Expectations that public utilities and transit pay for themselves means that providers are
unwilling, and often not required by law, to offer high caliber services affordably to Cape
towns where small populations, dispersed development, and high land costs make
expenses high and profits unlikely.
By accounting for these external trends when local decisions are made, Brewster can tailor our
policies and investments to either take advantage of or counter these outside influences in
order to reach our local economy goals.
Opportunities: Public Policy and Investment
Brewster has an opportunity to review and revise local by-laws and investment strategies to
meet its economic and community development goals. With clear vision for a sustainable
economy, the town can align its public policies, public investments, and private efforts to build
on and protect its assets. The following are ways in which other communities have addressed
economic development through policy change and investment.
Zoning
•Review Zoning Bylaw use regulations by district to ensure the land uses desired by the
community are appropriate and in the desired locations.
•Focus new residential and business development potential in Village Business and
Commercial zones; relax redevelopment standards for existing commercial businesses
outside these zones.
•Review Zoning Bylaw to ensure mixed-use buildings, multi-family homes and a mixture
of uses are allowed within and proximate to village centers
•Discuss form based approaches to increase residential density limits in appropriate
areas.
Permitting
•Make training for volunteer board members mandatory
•Create permitting handbook/e-book/web-page for all Regulatory Boards (ZBA and
Planning Board have adopted a handbook)
•Adopt an E-permitting system
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•Simplify special permit process (i.e. fee waivers for certain uses)
•Allow highly desired uses by-right
Public Facilities
•Use public facilities that draw the community together such as schools, community
centers, town halls and libraries to anchor village centers.
•Coordinate infrastructure planning and investment (i.e. identify a policy to ensure
interdepartmental and multijurisdictional coordination).
•Identify and build infrastructure necessary to support vibrant mixed-use village centers;
limit investments that could encourage dispersed low-density development.
•Identify opportunities and invest in green infrastructure alternatives to help improve
water and air quality.
•Plan for sea-level rise and storm recovery and resiliency.
•Develop a long-term systems map of desired transit, bicycle and walking connections in
order to invest over time in non-auto transportation infrastructure.
Community Development
•Adopt and fund programs to help owners of historic structures and other community
assets to maintain and preserve them.
•Involve residents directly in projects serving the community – everything from beach
clean-up to creating a community e-bulletin-board or list-serve.
•Coordinate inter-generational work projects, internships, visiting teachers.
Business Development
•Identify underutilized business assets, identify and rectify impediments to
improvements.
•Visit existing businesses to understand owners’ and workers’ hopes for the future and
current challenges - develop a questionnaire to guide and record the discussion.
•Encourage businesses that provide basic necessities for residents to locate in village
centers along with non-essential/tourism based businesses.
•Encourage use of businesses assistance services that help with marketing, accounting,
finance, and possibly provide low-interest loans to small businesses.
III.Discussion and Draft Vision Goal
1.What types of business does the community most value in terms of products and services
sold as well as the ownership structure of businesses?
2.How does Brewster define “Inclusive Community”?
3.Are existing local businesses struggling? If so, why? How do town investments or lack of
investment in infrastructure impact the cost of doing business?
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4.Are there types of businesses and forms of development that are desired but cannot be
built due to existing policies or the need for infrastructure not currently provided?
5.Are community facilities currently located in or near village-like business clusters? Are
community facilities located near each other?
6.How does zoning impact the kinds of businesses and business ownership found in
Brewster?
7.How do town policies impact the cost of land, construction, and rents/mortgages?
8.Can developers afford to build the kinds of housing desired at the prices desired?
9.Does zoning allow the types of residential units desired at a concentration that makes it
affordable to build and rent/buy?
Goal: Promote a sustainable economy the builds on Brewster’s natural and human assets,
addresses the needs of small businesses, and provides year round employment for Brewster’s
young families
Purposes:
1.Focus on building a “green economy” based on the Town’s natural beauty and resources
2.Foster the growth of small businesses and businesses that are compatible with the Town’s
character
3.Promote the growth of a sustainable year round economy that stimulates the entry of small
businesses and supports Brewster’s workforce