Harvest Fields - Draft Document Reviewed

The Selectmen and MUD Proposal Review Committee met with developers Skip Cicarelli and Mark Cunningham of Harvest Fields, LLC last week to review a draft Protocol of Understanding that documents the terms of the project that have been discussed to date and give Harvest Fields some assurance of the town's intent to move forward with them on the project. Since delays in the construction of the Salmon Brook Commons 40B project have disrupted the town's affordable housing production schedule, town officials are making every effort to get the MUD project going as soon as possible.

Harvest Fields: Proposed layoutSince selecting the Harvest Fields proposal from a group of five proposals submitted in response to the Town's RFP for development of the MUD, the Selectmen and MUD Committee have met several times to discuss changes to the proposed concept. The current plan is to lay out 50 one and two-bedroom townhouse condominiums in clusters of 6 and 8 units around a loop road with open space in the middle. Harvest Fields proposes to sell 28 of the units, 8 of which would be restricted as affordable housing, and 22 of the units would be managed as rental units. Although only 6 of the units would actually be rented at "affordable" rates, all 22 rental units would count toward Dunstable's affordable housing stock. Harvest Fields would manage the rental units. The condominium association have an agreement with Harvest Fields for sharing the sewerage treatment plant.

Two major concerns in the preliminary discussions have been the project's dependency on having the water main expanded and the timing of the project start. Originally the project did not include any work related to installing a new water line and construction was not expected to begin until 2008. However, delays in the start of the Salmon Brook Commons 40B project have made it necessary to build the water main improvement into the MUD project plans and call for a 2007 project start on that project.

According to the Protocol of Understanding presented at the meeting:

• The scope of the project would include installation of a 12 inch water main from Pond Street to the Post Office, as well the proposed 50 townhouse condominiums and commercial space. The water line upgrade is needed to service the MUD development.
• To determine the transfer price, the Town would agree to have the value of the land appraised by a qualified appraiser, and the developer would agree to limit the profit based on the same that a 40B project is subjected to based on an independent proforma analysis of the project's economics.
• Harvest Fields is already in the process of submitting engineering plans, plans for a sewerage treatment plant, and topographic maps delineating conservation areas. It is the Town's intent to have Phase I of the project begin as early as possible in 2007.
• The Town plans to convey ownership of the land in a way that would make sure the Town maintains a reasonable level of control over the project. After some discussion, both parties agreed that it would make the most sense for the Town to lease the land to Harvest Fields while it is under construction, and transfer ownership in pieces as each phase is completed. A Clerk of the Works hired by the town but funded by Harvest Fields would verify completion of each phase. Ultimately, Harvest Fields would own the developed areas, with the remainder of the land set aside for conservation.

Harvest Fields asked if there would be any consideration given to waiving or reducing some of the permitting and inspection fees that the town charges to developers. Since they are putting the water line in, they feel they should should get a break on the $1,000 fee that the town charges for each hookup to the water line. They also argued that, since they are paying for a Clerk of the Works who would do some of the work that is ordinarily done by the Building Inspector, it would be reasonable for the Town to reduce the fee for the building permit. Selectman Ted Gaudette said they would consider the request, but "it should all be documented."

Affordable Housing Chairman Dave Johnson asked whether Harvest Fields had given any further consideration to adding 2 more affordable units and phasing the project so that 16 units could be certified in 2007 and have the remaining 16 units certified in 2009. He pointed out that, if Harvest Fields could make that work, Dunstable would not need to certify any more affordable units until 2011.

Cicarelli said that Harvest Fields would have to keep the project within a 2-year period, so adding the extra two units wouldn't help. He explained that the economics of the project are challenging, because it requires a large up-front investment in the infrastructure for the water line, the roads, and the sewerage treatment plant, all of which have to be done before they can sell any units."We could be into this project for over a million by next summer," he said. "It's all relegated by the banks. The best proposal we can give you is 2 years. " To alleviate some of the strain on the financing, Harvest Fields is planning to initially focus on the infrastructure and building eight condominium units so they can have some units on the market while they move on to building the rest of the units in subsequent phases. Cicarelli also expressed concern about the recent slowing of the housing market.

While acknowledging that the project would be difficult for any developer to do, Johnson expressed concern that the town needs to get the most benefit that it can get from the project. "Before we give up our rights to work with someone else, we should make sure that no other developer can do it." For a project of this scope, he would like to see the town get more than two years of coverage on the town's affordable housing production schedule.

At the end of the meeting, Cicarelli and Cunningham said they would like to look over the document. Another meeting will be scheduled in the near future.