HomeMy Public PortalAboutCommunity Preservation Committee -- 2018-04-25 Minutes 1 + fit
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RESERVATION COMMITTEE
COMMUNITY P
Held a Regular Meeting
On Wednesday, April 25 , 2018 at 4 : 45 p . m .
At The Brewster Town Office Building, 2198 Main Street, Brewster, MA
MEETING MINUTES OF APRIL 25 , 2018
Present : Chair Paul Ruchinskas , Vice - Chair Faythe Ellis , Elizabeth Taylor, Diane Pansire,
William Klein, Sharon Marotti , Roland Bassett, Peggy Jablonski (5000pm)
Absent : Barbara Burgo
Also Present : Executive Director of the Compact Mark Robinson , Natural Resource Director
Chris Miller, Assistant Town Administrator Donna Kalinick, Linda Coneen- Cape Cod Appraisal
Service , Jill Scalise Housing Coordinator
Chair Paul Ruchinskas called the meeting to order at 4 : 45 pm
Recording or Taping Notification : `As required by the Open Meeting Law we are inforrningyou that the Town will be
videotaping and/or audio taping this public meeting. In addition, if anyone else intends to either video or audio tape this
meeting they are required to inform the chair. " We request that all cell phones be turned off or to vibrate.
1 . Discussion and vote that the appraisal value on 0 Millstone Road for community housing
purposes is acceptable as the appraiser used customary appraising procedures and
techniques to determine the value of the property .
The Committee had asked that Ms . Coneen attend to answer questions about the revised
appraisal . Donna Kalinick explained that Ms . Coneen had prepared an additional
addendum on the 0 Millstone Road property that took into consideration the value of the
land based on development of the land locked 15 acre parcel . Ms . Kalinick also said that
she had contacted the Coalition of Community Preservation committees as Ms . Taylor
had suggested and those email correspondences were provided . Ms . Coneen explained
that the original appraisal was based on standard market value . Ms . Coneen then told
members how she updated the appraisal based on the contribution of value which she was
originally going to do . It is acceptable methodology to figure out the value of a parcel .
She prepared a highest and best use analysis for the entire 16+ acres , under current
zoning allowance which would be a 12 lot subdivision, not as a 40B . In the subdivision
analysis , you calculate how many lots you have , what they would sell for, the amount of
time it would take , and development costs to come to a per acre value of land . This is the
same analysis she would use for a bank or a developer . Faythe Ellis had questions from
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Minutes of April 25, 2018 Page 1 of 6
the last meeting because she was unfamiliar with this methodology and questioned how
the revised appraisal was higher . She appreciates the alternative explanation . Ms . Taylor
said it was interesting that we went around in circles and we are back to the appraiser .
Ms . Coneen explained that the land value will probably end up being higher if the usage
is more intensive but we don ' t know that right now . This method calculates residual land
value . Ms . Marotti just wanted to ensure standard appraising methods were used . Ms .
Coneen explained that this methodology is subdivision value versus straight market
value . Ms . Kalinick stated that they were concerned about making assumptions regarding
what the development would be , without public input which put them between a rock and
a hard place . Ms . Coneen said that typically you would know what the end usage and
development would be then figure the land value from there, but the Town did not want
to do that until later in the process . Motion made by Faythe Ellis to accept the
addenda appraisal dated March 29t" in the amount $275,000 , Mr. Bassett second .
The Committee voted 7 -Yes , 0-No . Chair Ruchinskas stated the acceptance of the
appraisal met one condition of the award and that the other was that Article 8 in the
Special Town Meeting pass . Ms . Kalinick clarified that if Article 8 did not, then this
Article, 30 would be indefinitely postponed .
2 . Review of the appraisal and site control documentation for the Open Space funding
request for 0 Long Pond Road and votes that the appraisal is acceptable as the appraiser
used customary appraising procedures and techniques to determine the value of the
property ; that the applicant has site control ; and that the application is complete .
Chair Ruchinskas explained that the application for 0 Long Pond Road was complete and
accepted . Mark Robinson of the CC Compact and Open Space Committee consultant said
that he had direct negotiations with the sellers . The Town Open Space Committee hired
Linda Coneen to perform an appraisal based on various best and highest values . They
have negotiated a price that is below market value . Mr . Robinson also said that their
surveyor, Mr. O ' Reilly has sketched out the retained land that the sellers would keeps the
remaining acres , about 42 acres would be bought for the town for conservation purposes ,
includes frontage on Long Pond Rd . and frontage on Long Pond . It is all upland and the
Town would have legal access to WH Besse Cartway for public use . Linda Coneen
explained that she was asked to analyze highest and best use which would be four, (4)
acre lots with 30 acres put aside for watershed protection with no water frontage , no
water views , but deeded right to pond and the value was 1 . 9 million but she did not
consider pond frontage which they are now getting so the value would actually be higher .
Chair Ruchinskas went through the potential scenarios for the public and wanted to make
sure that people understood that under current zoning, a 24 lot subdivision could be
allowed so this was an important purchase to protect this critical area . Ms . Jablonski told
the Committee that she visited the land recently and it was an impressive amount of land
and purchase for the Town . Ms . Ellis asked about the land numbers . Mark Robinson said
he would not use anything but the latest survey work as the plan they have now is the
final negotiated plan, 42 acres . This would be the plan that would go in front of the
Planning Board . Ms . Ellis asked about the assessor ' s card . Mr. Robinson said they use
Assessor ' s cards for information only; they will have the correct number once a survey is
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Minutes of April 25, 2018 Page 2 of 6
recorded . Mr . Robinson explained there is a separate parcel that has the pond cottage on
it which is not part of Land Court . Ms . Ellis said she added the assessor ' s cards that were
included with the appraisal . Mr . Robinson said they are using the number that was
determined by the surveyor . Ms . Coneen said this is similar to the other purchase that the
survey determined the lot was actually larger . Ms . Taylor stated when they take land they
always use the words more or less in the town meeting articles in case there is a change
once a full survey is completed by licensed surveyors . Ms . Ellis said that retained parcel
is also a little more than originally estimated . Ms . Coneen said that now you are getting
water frontage which is very valuable and would increase the appraised value . Ms .
Coneen will refine her work based on the final plan since they will be applying for state
grants . Chair Ruchinskas asked why it was referred to as a restricted appraisal . It was
intended to be used for negotiating purposes . Ms . Coneen will now produce a full
appraisal Mr . Robinson they have been working on this project for 15 months and this is
a big opportunity but there were also constraints . Ms . Taylor explained that it is common
for them to start out with an estimated value then do a full appraisal once the terms have
been negotiated . There is a very specific appraisal form you must have when applying for
State Grants which Ms . Coneen will be working on . Chair Ruchinskas asked if there were
any questions on the site control document in the Purchase & Sales agreement . Chair
Ruchinskas asked about the $ 75 , 000 for the State Conservation Land Tax credit which
goes to the seller . Mr . Robinson said that if the purchase price is $ 150 , 000 less than the
appraised value , the sellers get a $ 75 , 000 state tax credit . Mr . Robinson said they have
been successful using this tax grant in order to get a lower price . The State does have a
process to grant the credit; this project meets many of the criteria ; open space, natural
heritage . They have received the Letter of Eligibility from the State, but the closing
would not be until after January 1 , 2019 . Mr . Robinson said if for some reason the credit
was not granted , they could use the contribution from the Brewster Conservation Trust,
but he does not anticipate that this will happen . Chair Ruchinskas asked about the date to
sign the Purchase & Sales , April 10�h . Mr. Robinson is working with all the attorneys to
get all the paperwork done and signed . Chair Ruchinskas asked if it would help to
condition the award on the Purchase & Sales being executed . Mr . Robinson said it is not
required for Town meeting but it may help to convey the urgency to the Town
Administrator . Ms . Marotti asked what the actual CPC allocation is since Brewster
Conservation Trust is contributing $230 , 000 . Mr. Robinson said they will be applying for
the State Land Grant which you have to authorize the whole amount then receive the
grant back which they would ask for the maximum, $400 , 000 . Mr . Robinson said it is
very competitive process , but Brewster tends to do very well because they have protected
so much land . He believes this purchase will receive a grant because of the size, water
frontage, Natural Heritage and it abuts other open space . Mr. Robinson will apply on
behalf of the Town in July and they will know in January . They will have to either short
term borrow or long term bond depending on the timing . Ms . Taylor asked if they will be
applying for any Water or Drinking water grants . Mr . Robinson said the State does have
grant anticipation loans as well . Motion made by Faythe Ellis that the appraisal is
acceptable as the appraiser used customary appraising procedures and techniques
to determine the value of the property ; that the applicant has site control , and that
the application is complete, Roland Bassett seconded . VOTE : 8 -0-0
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3 . Report on meetings with the Select Board and Finance Committee on CPC Town
Meeting warrant articles .
Ms . Ellis said the presentation to the Select Board went very smoothly and everything
was approved unanimously . They did have one question about the Recreation ADA
improvements and who would be doing the work. Chair Ruchinskas said there was a little
more of a mixed bag at the Finance Committee . In the Special Town meeting article , they
recommended that the Recreation ADA appropriation should have been its own article .
Article 9 was fine ; all voted in favor. For Article 29 Open Space , they voted 7 - 0 against .
There were a lot of zoning related questions that were hard to answer and the number of
lots that could be there . There was also concern about the amount of open space we
already have an already off the tax rolls as well as the amount of debt for open space
purchases . Ms . Ellis said there was a lot of discussion about the warrant map . Ms . Taylor
will do a display for Town Meeting . Unfortunately a lot of this confusion with the
warrant map was because of the time constraint . There was a lot of discussion about the
number of lots that could be subdivided and what they were actually protecting at what
price . The map definitely created confusion . There was also a question of maintenance
and WH Besse Cartway . Ms . Jablonski suggested that the updated map and further
outreach been done with Finance Committee prior to Town meeting for possible
reconsideration of a vote . Ms . Taylor said there was also questions about the paper road
which she referred to the Town Planner . Chair Ruchinskas will send Mr. Embury the new
map and the appraisal to give to the Finance Committee . Chair Ruchinskas said Article
30 , 0 Millstone Rd . purchase ultimately got a 4 -2 - 1 vote though it was contentious . The
main opposition was that we do not know what is going to go there . Mr . Ruchinskas said
you could do a feasibility but when you do the RFP , you can ' t be that prescriptive ; you
set guidelines only . There was question as to why the town did not do feasibility after
they obtained the 15 acres , but they did not have access at that point . The other concern
was property values declining . Mr . Ruchinskas tried his best to speak to that issue,
including referring to a MIT study that affordable housing does not decrease property
values . The article in Special Town Meeting to transfer the 15 acre parcel for community
housing purposes will be the indicator as to whether this article will pass . Mr . Bassett
noted that there was a prior article to transfer this land . Mr . Ruchinskas explained that is
was amended on Town meeting floor and that was why a new article was needed . Diane
Pansire suggested it would be helpful to talk about the process to get community input.
Jill Scalise said that they are in process of creating a timeline to show where and when
community input will be sought . Chair Ruchinskas said that it is important to keep in line
with the design in the surrounding areas and he does not think for instance there was any
impact from the Yankee Village development. Location, respectful development are
important and if you look at the developments in Brewster, they have not had negative
impact on the neighborhoods ,
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4 . Review and vote on the draft award letter to the Brewster Historical Society on its Cobb
House outbuilding funding request .
Ms . Ellis went over the award letter which includes the recommendations from Eric Dray
and was reviewed to make sure it was compliant with state laws . Mr . Ruchinskas said we
need to include a statement that they need to execute a Grant agreement but you can
remove the application attachment because it is incorporated by reference . A few other
minor details needed to be changed . Motion made by Roland Bassett to accept the
award the letter with above revisions , Sharon Marotti seconded . VOTE : 8 -0-0
5 . Discussion on status of award letters .
Chair Ruchinskas said the Housing Coordinator and Housing Authority award letter have
gone out . Ms . Ellis dropped off CDP letter to town hall today . Ms . Taylor is working on
Recreation awards , need to add a section about getting a copy of the contract for the Tennis
Courts .
6 . Review and discussion of progress reports on open projects
Update on Bikeways -Mr . Bassett believes that the bike light project is in Mr . Ellis hands .
They will see if they can get Bikeways in for next meeting. Borden purchase has closed, then
everything will go to state . If they get the money before the end of the fiscal , they can do a
transfer back to Open Space in fall . Habitat is moving along, hope to have everyone into
Phase I by July or early August . They are going to submit for Phase 11 in Fall with wall raising
in 2019 . Cape Cod Village got all their state funding, going out to bid now . Brewster Woods
received their Comp permit with conditions , 20 day appeal period ends May 1 lth . Expectation
of funding in 2019 . Jill Scalise included all three months of her updates . Mr . Ruchinskas
asked who they hired to help with the ADU . Ms . Scalise replied Lauren Harbottle , a retired
Planner . Ms . Scalise said that the Housing Production Plan has really guided her work and
that communication and outreach have been a large push in the last few months . There is now
a Housing Office page on the website . Chair Ruchinskas explained that Sarah Turano -Flores
is now working with KP Law to do the preservation restriction for Cobb House and deal with
the issue with Brewster Baptist issue .
7 . Vote to approve the minutes of the March 28 , 2018 meeting .
Motion made by Roland Bassett to approve the minutes of March 28 , 2018 , Faythe
Ellis seconded . VOTE : 6 -0-2
8 . Topics the Chair didn ' t reasonably anticipate and Announcements
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BCN Forum next Thursday on Millstone Articles and Long Pond Article . Ms . Scalise
announced the Housing Trust information session tomorrow evening at Town Hall .
9 . Next meeting : May 9 , 2018 @ 4 : 45 p . m . at Town Hall
The next meeting will take place on May 9 , 2018 at 4 : 45 pm . Potential agenda items are
to look at the current CPC application and the deadlines .
Motion made by Faythe Ellis to adjourn the meeting at 6 : 09pm . Roland Bassett seconded .
VOTE : 8-0 -0
Respectfully submitted,
Donna J . Kalinick
Items used at the meeting .
• 0 Long Pond Road Appraisal and Purchase & Sales Agreement
• Supplemental Addendum for 0 Millstone Road dated 3 /27/ 18
• Brewster Historical Society Award Letter
• Draft Meeting minutes of 3/28/ 18
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