The Greenwood Avenue site. File Photo
By Gayla Cawley
SWAMPSCOTT — Residents had a chance to weigh in on plans to turn the shuttered Greenwood Avenue Middle School into affordable housing, before developers are formally solicited.
On Thursday, Naomi Dreeben, chairwoman of the Board of Selectmen, and Peter Spellios, a board member, presented the drafted Request for Proposals (RFP) for the purchase and development of the middle school.
Residents had a brief period of time after the presentation to weigh in, with some of the comments centered around the town’s pending litigation with Groom Construction, the Salem-based company that originally won approval for condominiums on the site.
The litigation, which is disclosed in the RFP, needs to be resolved before the town is able to proceed with the sale of the property, Spellios said.
With the pending litigation on the property, Freddy Phillips, a Greenwood Avenue resident, questioned how someone besides Groom is going to get involved as a developer. Another resident questioned what the status of the litigation was and how much it has cost the town to fight the case.
Although Spellios said he hopes that Groom does bid, he added later that he has no preference with whether Groom or another third party responds, as long as it gives the town the tools to reach a settlement.
Dreeben said the case has not been especially active in the past year. Spellios said the next step is full discovery and motions on the plea case. Both said they didn’t know how much the litigation has cost.
Drew Epstein, a Rockland Street resident, called the litigation “the elephant in the room.” He said he didn’t see any advantage for Groom to try to negotiate a settlement, saying the judge would come in and the company is either going to win or lose.
Following the middle school’s closure in 2007, voters subsequently approved a zoning change that would allow for multi-family construction on the property. Then, voters approved a plan to turn the building into condominiums. Neighbors filed suit in 2014, opposing the revision. A Massachusetts Land Court judge revoked the multi-family zoning, and zoning reverted back to single-family housing.
In May, Town Meeting approved a zoning change to allow for a planned development district at the site. The designation allows for construction of up to 28 affordable housing apartments.
If there is no legal settlement and Groom wins, Spellios said Groom could proceed with the 28 units the zoning allows for or can decide to build a much larger 40B affordable housing project. The state’s 40B housing program allows developers to override local zoning bylaws to increase the stock of affordable housing in municipalities where less than 10 percent of the homes are defined as affordable. Less than 4 percent of Swampscott’s housing is considered affordable.
Epstein said that he would like to see developers proposing a project with less than 28 units get a higher score than someone else.
Jim Olivetti, vice-chairman of the Open Space & Recreation Committee, wanted to see some sort of open space with any project. He said behind the existing building down to Fuller Avenue is a tree slope, which he would like to see preserved. He said there is piece of green space on the corner of Greenwood that he would like to see as a small park.
Resident comments from the public discussion could potentially be included in the final draft of the RFP, which will be presented and potentially approved by the selectmen at their Sept. 7 meeting. If approved, the document will go to Town Counsel and Peter Kane, director of community development, and released for developers to respond shortly after.
All respondents must adhere to the zoning change, which requires that at least 15 percent of the units constructed be affordable. A second option allows a builder to contribute to an Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which would be used to pay for affordable housing elsewhere in town.
Gayla Cawley can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @GaylaCawley.