JULY 20, 2009

Board members present: Ethan Swift, Linda Stewart

Others present: Jeff Ojala, Tony Stout

There was not a quorum. The meeting was opened at 7:15 pm

Ethan questioned why Jeff had not yet been appointed by the Selectboard.

Tony Stout gave an update on the Brandon Housing Initiative. He said his company is doing a feasibility report in order to bring to housing partners. The concept has not changed since the last time he spoke with the Commission. They are looking at single family housing for working people and using the value of the land, currently owned by the state and appraised at half million dollars, to keep the price of the lots reasonable.

Tony said a market study was done and the biggest challenge now is the housing market. He distributed a summary of what they found. The parcel of land is 69 acres. The housing market in Brandon, and elsewhere, is not as strong as it was five to ten years ago. He said for a long term view, there is no reason to believe that the market won’t come back. There is a vibrant arts community in town and optimism that the Tubbs facility will be refilled.

The State has told Tony to take a long term approach to this. The project could be divided into two phases to be more realistic about how it can be built out. Tony explained some of the design ideas, some configured because of the lay of the land including wetlands and ledge.

Tony said he has been speaking with various State agencies: Agriculture, Wetlands, Division of Historic Preservation, Stormwater, and others. There are still some unknowns. There could be some open land for the community and they would look to see about sharing resources with Park Village.

Cost estimates have been figured based on conceptual homes. Smaller homes would be 1500-1900 square feet. He has drawn 1/5 to 1/4 acre lots. The plans show a dashed line which is a 5-foot setback. There could be a clustered subdivision with houses closer to the street for a neighborhood feel. There will also be larger homes with a garage, probably about 2000 sq ft. Those homes would help pay for the infrastructure of the overall project. He said they are looking for quality housing that people will want to live in. Tony said the development partner will bring in their own ideas. Homeowners will be able to make additions to the homes.

Tony said some of the land is prime agriculture and they will have to set aside some acreage. He is showing cluster development. However, a development partner could come in with a different approach. Tony's company is doing preliminary work such as talking to state agencies. His discussions are based on the model he has presented to the board.

Linda said with close setbacks proposed, even adding a garage could pose a problem. Tony said there really isn't a PUD ordinance in Brandon and that is a problem. Ethan said the Commission is about to start looking at realigning some of the land use districts. Tony said this parcel is split with some in Rural and some in HDMU. The ordinance is not clear about density when the parcel is split because there is nothing about PUDs. Ethan said the Commission will also be giving more thought to PUDs. Tony said some people might be nervous about moving land use district lines because of the potential for creating a parcel that could be permitted for +200 units. Linda said she has a concern about this bumping up to the town’s highest assessed parcels. Ethan said the parcel is adjoining Park Village, which is already a mixed use development.

Linda asked what if a developer comes in with home prices at $250,000 or $300,000. Tony said the state will be involved. The whole reasoning is to use the half million dollar land value as a subsidy for young family housing. He described potential financing ideas and models which could be used.

Ethan asked about the difference between affordable housing versus worker housing. Tony said they are not using the term "affordable housing." This housing would target working families who can’t afford market rate housing. He envisions 1500 square foot homes potentially on the market for $160,000. A big factor will be the potential for $270,000 homes which would be bigger and of higher quality construction with garages.

Linda asked about houses on Route 7 that haven't been able to sell although many are priced very low. Tony said there will be people looking for lower priced housing than this proposal. He said those houses will still be available for a single wage earner and others who can't get into other housing.

Ethan said there are some funds under ARRA that might be available for these types of projects - green development with lower impact on the landscape. Tony said there are some ideas they could use to minimize costs such as only having a sidewalk on one side of the road, not both. They would not have a lot of needless infrastructure. Tony said one issue they have to deal with is an upgrade to the Champlain Street pump station. The state is willing to pursue grant money for this type of work.

Tony distributed a wastewater draft document. He said the plant has the capacity they need to get groundwater and stormwater out of it. A project this size would take about 11,000 gallons a day. The fire district is concerned with the water supply. There is allocation but there is only a single pipe that connects out here. If something happened to the tank or the line, there is no other way to serve that end of town. He said they did not suggest a solution.

Ethan said there were some groundwater feasibility studies done by OVUHS and McConnell Rd and there appears to be a significant aquifer in that area. There is a great water supply and pressure and the well at OVUHS has a constant overflow. It might be good to explore that further. Tony said from discussions with the fire district, there is not a problem with the quantity of water but with the delivery.

Ethan summarized some of the issues they still need to address:

Tony said the state understands this could take a few years; they understand market conditions. One of the next steps is to talk to potential development partners to see their level of interest and to see what they think. Tony said there is also the question of what type of broad community involvement there will be. He’ll be speaking with folks at Park Village. There are no big neighbors. Marketing would be left to the developers. He would be flushing out potential opponents or a neighborhood group that might be upset. Ethan said there is residential living in Park Village. As the project moves forward, it might be good to have an informal meeting with the folks at Park Village. He said the future use at Tubbs is still unknown and there could be a conflict. Tony said he feels that HDMU and most industrial uses would be reasonably compatible.

Tony said commercial enterprises could include child care or a small neighborhood food service. He is thinking something that could primarily serve the people who live there. He thinks mixed use is desirable and creates a more vibrant community.

Tony said his company will move forward with the reporting, whether or not the state jumps in looking for a developer or waits. He said the market study brought some reality.

Ethan said the Commission will be looking at the land use ordinance in the near future.

Ethan reminded board members of the August 17 training from 6:30 - 8:30 pm at the fire station.

Being no further business, the meeting closed at 8:25 pm.

Respectfully submitted

Janet Mondlak

Recording Secretary