Town of Westford Housing Production Plan
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Town of Westford Housing Production Plan 2017·2021 The Residences at Stony Brook Abbot Mill Princeton Westford Graniteville Woods December 2016 Prepared by: Northern Middlesex Council of Governments 40 Church Street, Suite 200 Lowell, MA 01852 Northern Middlesex Council of Governments December 22,2016 A Multi-Disciplinary Chrystal Kornegay, Undersecretary Region al Planning Massachusetts Department of Housing and Comrnunity Development Agency Serving: 100 Cambridge Street, Suite 300 Boston, MA 02114 Billeri ca Re: Westford Housing Production Plan (HPP) Chelmsford Dracut Dear Undersecretary Kornegay, DU llstable Lowell The Northern Middlesex Council of Governments (NMCOG) worked Peppereli closely with the Westford Affordable Housing Committee, its HPP Tewksbury subcommittee, Westford Housing Authority staff and town staff to develop Tyngsborough the enclosed Westford Housing Production Plan for 2017-2021, which Westford summarizes the current housing market in the community and outlines a Five-Year Plan to increase the number of affordable housing units in order to exceed the 10% affordable housing goal. The Plan was approved unanimously by the Affordable Housing Committee on October 5, 2016 Pal Wojtas Chair and adopted unanimously by the Planning Board on November 7, 2016 and by the Board of Selectmen on November 15, 2016. This unanimous Beveriy A. Woods approval by the three boards reflects the Town's willingness to work in Executive Director partnership with your office to increase the availability of affordable housing in Westford. 40 Church Street Sui te 200 The HPP addresses the requirements outlined under Chapter 40B Lowell, MA of the Massachusetts General Laws, as well as the 2008 program 01852-2686 regulations developed by your office. This document is consistent with the TEL: (978) 454-802 1 Commonwealth's Sustainable Development Principles and establishes FAX: (978) 454-8023 goals and strategies that reflect Westford's specific community characteristics, consistent with the Town's Comprehensive Master Plan. WWW.l1ll1cog .org Once approved by DHCD, the HPP will serve as a guide for the Town's housing program for the next five years. During the past five years, the Town has made great strides in increasing the number of affordable housing units. Since the approval of its 2011-2015 Affordable Housing Production Plan in 2012, Westford implemented the 294 SHI units in their "pipeline", achieved Safe Harbor status from January 2014 to January 2016 and increased its total SHI units to 635 units or 8.28%. Currently, the Town has identified 510 units in its "pipeline", including three major Chapter 40B projects that have been submitted since September 2016. The HPP Subcommittee also identified 25 privately-owned and 3 publically-owned potential housing sites that could generate 225-330 additional affordable housing units. These efforts reflect how seriously the Town of Westford is taking its responsibilities in developing affordable housing for the community. If you have any questions or require any additional information, do not hesitate to contact Jay Donovan, Assistant Director, directly at (978) 454-8021 ext. 116 or at [email protected]. Sincerely, ~~ Beverly Woods Executive Director cc: Jody Ross, Town Manager Westford Board of Selectmen Westford Planning Board Westford Affordable Housing Committee NMCOG Councilors Chris Kluchman, Director of Land Use Management Paul Teixeira, Director, Westford Housing Authority Philip DeMartino, DHCD 2 TOWN OF WESTFORD BOARD OF SELECTMEN TOWN HALL 55 Main Street WESTFORD, MA 01886 Telephone (978) 692-5501 Fax (978) 399-2557 November 16, 2016 Chrystal Kornegay, Undersecretary Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development 100 Cambridge Street, Suite 300 Boston, MA 02114 Dear Undersecretary Kornegay, The Westford Board of Selectmen formally adopted the Westford Housing Production Plan for 2017-2021 at their meeting on November 15, 20 16. The Westford Affordable Housing Committee and its HPP Subcommittee worked closely with the Northern Middlesex Council of Govemments (NMCOG) for the past year in completing this document. We would also like to commend Chris K1uchman, Director of Land Use Management, and Paul Teixeira of the Westford Housing Authority for their contributions as well. The Westford Housing Production Plan for 2017-2021 fully addresses the Chapter 40B Housing Production Plan (HPP) requirements and is consistent with the Commonwealth's Sustainable Development Principles. The Goals and Strategies outlined in the document are consistent with the Town's Comprehensive Master Plan and provide a blueprint for the Town's affordable housing initiatives over the next five years. The HPP highlights the accomplishments the Town has had since the submission of our previous Affordable Housing Production Plan in 2011 - adding 294 affordable housing units to increase the Town's subsidized inventory to 63 1 units or 8.2%. Additionally, the production schedule outlined in the HPP shows how the Town will exceed its 10% affordable housing goal by 2017. We look forward to working with DHCD in addressing our overall housing needs over the next five years. If you have any questions or need any additional information, please feel free to contact Chris K1uchman at (978) 692-5524. Sincerely, Andrea Peraner-Sweet Chair Board of Selectmen cc: Jodi Ross, Town Manager Westford Affordable Housing Committee Westford Housing Authority Jeffrey Monissette, Town PlatUler Cln"is Klucinl1an, Director of Land Use Management Beverly Woods, NMCOG Phil DeMaliino, DHCD TOWN OF WESTFORD Planning Board 55 Main Street Westford, MA 01886 Tel: 978-692-5524 Fax: 978-399-2732 November 8,2016 Chrystal Kornegay, Undersecretary Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development 100 Cambridge Street, Suite 300 Boston, MA 02114 Dear Undersecretary Kornegay, The Westford Planning Board formally adopted the Westford Housing Production Plantor 2017- 2021 by a vote of 5-0-0 at their meeting on November 7, 2016. The Westford Affordable Housing Committee and its HPP Subcommittee worked closely with the Northern Middlesex Council of Governments (NMCOG) for the past year in completing this document. We would also like to commend Chris Kluchman, Director of Land Use Management, and Paul Teixeira of the Westford Housing Authority for their contributions as well. The Westford Housing Production Plantor 2017-2021 fully addresses the Chapter 40B Housing Production Plan (HPP) requirements and is consistent with the Commonwealth's Sustainable Development Principles. The Goals and Strategies outlined in the document are consistent with the Town's Comprehensive Master Plan and provide a blueprint for the Town's affordable housing initiatives over the next five years. The HPP highlights the accomplishments the Town has had since the submission of our previous Affordable Housing Production Plan in 2011 - adding 294 affordable housing units to increase the Town's subsidized inventory to 631 units or 8.2%. Additionally, the production schedule outlined in the HPP shows how the Town will exceed its 10% affordable housing goal by 2017. We look forward to working with DHCD in addressing our overall housing needs over the next five years. If you have any questions or need any additional information, please feel free to contact Chris Kluchman at (978) 692-5524. Chair, cc: Westford Board of Selectmen Westford Affordable Housing Committee Jodi Ross, Town Manager Chris Kluchman, Director of Land Use Management Beverly Woods, NMCOG Phil DeMartino, DHCD Westford Housing Production Plan Table of Contents Transmittal Letter Adoption letter from Board of Selectmen Adoption letter from Planning Board Page Table of Contents i Executive Summary v Introduction 1 A. Overview of the Housing Production Plan 1 B. Defining Affordable Housing 2 C. Data Sources and Definitions 3 I. Comprehensive Needs Assessment 5 A. Demographic Analysis 5 1. Population 5 2. Households and Household Types 6 3. Age Distribution 6 4. Household Size 8 5. Household Characteristics 9 6. Age Cohorts 10 7. School Enrollment and Projections 12 8. Race and Ethnicity 13 9. Residents with Disabilities 14 10. Household, Family and Per Capita Income 15 a. Median Household Income 15 b. Median Family Income 16 c. Per Capita Income 17 d. Income Distribution 18 e. Area Median Income (AMI) 19 11. Residents Living in Poverty 21 B. Existing Housing Stock Analysis 22 1. Housing Unit and Types 22 2. Housing Tenure 24 3. New Residential Development 24 4. Housing Market Conditions 25 a. Home Sales 26 b. Median Sales Prices 28 5. Housing Affordability Analysis 30 a. Housing Burden 31 i Page b. Affordability Gap 32 c. Subsidized Housing Inventory (SHI) changes – 32 Westford and Greater Lowell region d. Existing Subsidized Housing Stock 34 6. Affordable Housing Development 37 7. Gaps Between Existing Housing Needs and Current Supply 39 8. Affordable Housing Efforts in Westford 41 a. Actions since the 2011-2015 Affordable Housing Production Plan 41 b. Affordable Housing Entities 42 i. Affordable Housing Committee 42 ii. Affordable Housing Trust 42 iii. Community Preservation Committee 43 iv. Westford Housing Authority 45 C. Development Constraints and Limitations 45 1. Land Use Development Patterns and Potential 45 2. Zoning 46 a. Flexible Development 48 b. Senior Residential Overlay District (SRMOD) 49 c. Mill Conversion Overlay District (MCOD) 49 d. Open Space Residential Development (OSRD) 49 e. Assisted Living Facilities (ALF) 50 3. Infrastructure and Services Limitations 50 a.