Planning Board chair Ann Parizo said the board may vote on the New City neighborhood project after the next hearing.
View full sizeA southerly aerial view of Parsons Village from the Valley CDC's special permit application, filed Dec. 28, 2010.EASTHAMPTON – Planning Board chair Ann Parizo announced Tuesday that the final public hearing on the special permit application for Parsons Village will be May 10, possibly followed that night by a vote.
Parsons Village is the affordable housing development proposed for Parsons Street, which is in Easthampton’s New City section. The permit is necessary because the development would be multi-family and it would fall partly in a residential district and partly in a commercial district, said city planner Stuart Beckley.
The applicant, Northampton-based Valley Community Development Corp., has a purchase and sale agreement on the 4.3-acre lot at 69 Parsons St. and is working to secure low-income housing tax credits.
The New City Neighborhood Association has argued that the project violates the city’s Master Plan, especially its recommendations, called Smart Growth, that new housing should be in developments near transportation hubs and commercial districts. The New City Neighborhood Association says access to public transportation is half a mile away from the project, making it difficult for residents to get to grocery stores, the post office and houses of worship.
In a letter to the Planning Board dated April 25, David Boyle, owner of the parcel and former chairman of the Master Plan committee, said the association is wrong.
“...In no way does this project violate the Master Plan,” Boyle wrote. “Maybe there are details that are open to some interpretation but in no way does the Valley CDC project run counter to the spirit or results of that process.”
A yard sign, one of many in the New City neighborhood, expressing opposition to Parsons Village.Association member Amy Heflin said if the permit is granted, it will signify that city officials do not take the Master Plan seriously.
Another major concern among abutters is that there are already several affordable and elderly housing projects in the neighborhood.
“If there’s a need for housing of this kind, I think you should look to another neighborhood which isn’t as dense,” said resident Susan Hess at Tuesday’s hearing.
“No one debates that low-income housing is needed,” said Heflin. “We’re suggesting an alternative.”
Heflin said she would be happy if there were 22 units instead of the proposed 38 and some were owner-occupied. Valley CDC executive director Joanne Campbell said there is no state funding available for owner-occupied units and that reducing the number of units any further would hurt them economically.
“(The neighbors’) input has got to count ... or we’re not doing a very good job as government officials,” said City Councilor Justin P. Cobb, a New City resident who has opposed the project since its inception.
The New City Neighborhood Association has brought its concerns to state affordable housing grantors to try to cut off the development’s funding.
Campbell said the development meets all zoning requirements. If the permit is denied, she said, “Our team will have to determine what to do.”
The final public hearing will be held May 10, at 6:05 p.m. at the Municipal Building at 50 Payson Ave. Parizo said she would like to keep the public comment portion brief. She said the board may vote afterward.