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By Gayla Cawley
SWAMPSCOTT — The Board of Selectmen Wednesday unanimously approved releasing the Request for Proposals (RFP) to formally solicit developers for the purchase and redevelopment of the shuttered Greenwood Avenue Middle School.
No public comment, aside from a question from one neighbor about the process of the RFP, was made prior to the vote.
Developers responding must adhere to an affordable housing component with their design for the construction of up to 28 apartments. A zoning change for a planned development district at the site, which was approved at Town Meeting in May, 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.
A public session held last week gave neighbors a last chance to weigh in on the RFP before it was released. Concerns raised at the meeting mostly centered around the pending litigation, between the town and Groom Construction, the Salem-based company that originally won approval for condominiums on the site five years ago, after Town Meeting members had approved a zoning change allowing a multi-family on the parcel.
Neighbors filed suit in 2014 and Massachusetts Land Court reversed the decision, reverting zoning back to single-family housing. Selectman Peter Spellios last week said that the litigation needs to resolved before the town is able to proceed with the sale of the property.
The litigation is disclosed in the RFP and Groom could potentially bid and settle the lawsuit. If the company wins the litigation, it could adhere to the zoning change, building a 28-unit structure or a much larger Chapter 40B affordable housing project.
The state’s 40B housing project 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, like Swampscott, where less than 4 percent of its housing is considered affordable.
Spellios said the main difference in the final RFP drafted after neighbors commented last week has to do with the inclusion of certain design guidelines.
“We think those comments were very fair and reasonable comments,” he said.
Developers have until Oct. 17 to respond. Another public community session will be held after proposals are received. Spellios said developers are also put on notice that an architectural peer review will be done by the town for design proposals.
In other business Wednesday, town officials were prepared to name an interim harbormaster, but the candidate for the position decided he was no longer interested in the job.
Town Administrator Thomas Younger said he was prepared to recommend assistant harbormaster Mounzer Aylouche as interim harbormaster to the Board of Selectmen Wednesday. But Younger said he was informed by Aylouche over the weekend that he did not wish to be appointed. Aylouche cited time constraints as the reason for not taking the job, Younger said.
Harbormaster Lawrence Bithell has been placed on leave. Younger said that he informed the Board of Selectmen that he will not recommend Bithell’s reappointment as harbormaster. He would not comment on why.
Bithell’s attorney, Neil Rossman, said last week that Bithell is scheduled to appear at a Sept. 19 clerk magistrate’s hearing to determine if criminal charges should be filed for use of an expired license plate. He declined to elaborate on the charge except to say that it is a complaint regarding a boat trailer. He wouldn’t comment further on Wednesday.
Younger said Bithell’s part-time position was budgeted this year for $7,983. Before an interim is named, he said there are assistant harbormasters in place, including the main assistant in Aylouche. Town public safety officials, including police and fire personnel, would also respond to a call requiring the harbormaster, he added.
Younger said town officials were exploring their options for the interim harbormaster.
“We are working to have a recommendation to the board as soon as possible,” he said.
Gayla Cawley can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @GaylaCawley.