Town of Sunderland Housing Plan 2016 Update Effective February 12, 2016 through February 11, 2021 Prepared by the Sunderland Housing Committee with assistance from the Franklin Regional Council of Governments This plan was funded by a Direct Local Technical Assistance Grant from the Massachusetts Department of Housing and Community Development Sunderland Housing Plan 2016 SUNDERLAND HOUSING PLAN TABLE OF CONTENTS INRODUCTION............................................................................................................................3 1. HOUSING NEEDS ASSESSMENT.........................................................................................6 1.1 Community Demographics .......................................................................................................6 1.2 Current Housing Characteristics .............................................................................................16 1.3 Regional Housing Characteristics and Needs………………………………………………..30 1.4 Future Housing Demand……………………………………………………………………..33 1.5 Identified Housing Needs (moved)..........................................................................................35 2. DEVELOPMENT CONDITIONS AND CONSTRAINTS………………………………..39 2.1 Zoning for Housing………………………………..…………………………………………39 2.2 Natural Resources……………………………………………………………………………45 2.3 Capacity of Municipal Infrastructure………………………………………………………..48 2.4 Local Capacity for Affordable Housing Development………………………………………57 3. AFFORDABLE HOUSING GOALS AND STRATEGIES................................................63 3.1 Housing Goals.........................................................................................................................63 3.2 Mix of Housing Desired..........................................................................................................63 3.3 Enabling Strategies to Support Affordable Housing Development........................................65 3.4 Strategies Specifically to Increase the Subsidized Affordable Housing Supply ....................68 3.5 Identification of Sites for Affordable Housing Development………………………………..72 3.6 Strategies to Promote Further Regional Collaborations……………………………………..75 3.7 Strategies to Mitigate Development Constraints in Housing Target Areas………………….77 3.8 Housing Strategies – Priorities and Summary Table………………………………………...79 1 Sunderland Housing Plan 4. POTENTIAL FUNDING SOURCES AND AVAILABLE RESOURCES FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING........................................................................................................82 4.1 Potential Funding Sources and Programs for Affordable Housing Development………...…82 4.2 Available Resources for Affordable Housing Development…………………………..…….86 APPENDIX: MEETING MATERIALS AND PUBLICITY………………………………...90 2 Sunderland Housing Plan INTRODUCTION Purpose of a Housing Production Plan A Housing Production Plan is a planning document that identifies the housing needs of a community and the strategies it will use to facilitate the development of affordable housing. The plan provides information on trends in Sunderland relating to its residents, the existing types of housing, and the current development conditions in town. The collection and analysis of this information, along with public input, were used to develop the housing goals for Sunderland. These goals outline the types of affordable housing desired in the future, where new housing should be targeted, and what this new development should look like. Finally, the plan includes implementation strategies that the town can pursue to make these goals a reality. On a broader level, this plan seeks to develop a vision that will help shape the future of Sunderland. Will long-time residents have affordable, suitable housing that allows them to stay in town as they age? Will children who grew up in town be able to return to Sunderland to raise a family? Will people who are employed in Sunderland be able to afford to live in town? These are the types of questions this plan has tried to address. Housing Affordability In particular, this plan examines the affordability of the town’s housing. Housing is generally considered affordable when households spend no more than 30% of their gross income on housing costs. Affordable housing can come in many forms – market rate or affordable, with or without subsidies, and privately or publically owned. Typically, the private market rate housing that is affordable to low income families has problems that keep the rent low, such as poor condition, limited maintenance and management, expensive utilities that are not paid for by the landlords, lead paint or located in an undesirable area. Similar to public subsidized housing, there is also private affordable housing that is reserved for low income families. Typically, the owner of the property receives public or private funding for development and/or operation of affordable housing in exchange for long-term deed restrictions limiting tenant eligibility by income and limiting rent. The type and extent of this funding determines the affordability of the property. A Housing Production Plan (HPP) is focused on a community’s subsidized affordable housing. For a housing unit to be defined as affordable and listed on the State’s Subsidized Housing Inventory (SHI), it must be affordable to a household earning no more than 80% of the area median income, must have some form of subsidy for development and/or operations, and the housing must have deed restrictions to ensure long-term affordability. In 1969, Massachusetts enacted the Chapter 40B Program, which sets a goal of increasing the amount of long term affordable housing to 10% of the housing stock in each community. In 3 Sunderland Housing Plan municipalities that have not met this goal, developers of affordable housing can take advantage of a streamlined permitting process that provides exceptions to local zoning requirements. The SHI is the official measure of which communities currently meet the state’s 10% affordability goal. Housing Production Plans and Chapter 40B A Housing Production Plan (HPP) is important because it provides a community with a comprehensive understanding of its housing needs. It is also very valuable in that if a town has an approved HPP and meets its annual Chapter 40B affordable housing production goal, it can be certified to be in compliance with the plan for a period of one or two years. If a community is certified compliant, decisions made by the town’s Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) will be deemed Consistent with Local Needs under the Comprehensive Permit Act (Chapter 40B), and the ZBA’s denial or approval with conditions of a comprehensive permit application will be upheld as a matter of law. Essentially, with an HPP and demonstrable progress towards creating affordable housing, a town has control over comprehensive permit applications, also known as 40B developments, during the certification period. A community will be certified in compliance with an approved HPP if, during a single calendar year, it has increased its number of low- and moderate-income year round housing units, as counted on the Subsidized Housing Inventory (SHI), in an amount equal to or greater than its housing production goal. The housing production goal for each community is based on the year round housing unit count as of the last U.S. Decennial Census. Sunderland’s current goal is based on the 2010 U.S. Census total housing unit count of 1,718. To be certified for a one year period, the number of affordable housing units created within a calendar year must be equal to or greater than 0.5% of a town’s year round housing stock. For a two year certification, the number of affordable units created in a calendar year must be equal to or greater than 1% of year-round housing units. In Sunderland, this equates to 9 units for a one- year certification, and 17 units for a two-year certification. Sunderland will strive to meet these goals through the strategies outlined in this Housing Plan. If a community has achieved certification within 15 days of the opening of the local hearing for the Comprehensive Permit, the ZBA shall provide written notice to the Applicant, with a copy to the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), that it considers that a denial of the permit or the imposition of conditions or requirements would be consistent with local needs, the grounds that it believes has been met, and the factual basis for that position, including any necessary supportive documentation. If the Applicant wishes to challenge the ZBA's assertion, it must do so by providing written notice to the DHCD, with a copy to the Board, within 15 days of its receipt of the ZBA's notice, including any documentation to support its position. DHCD shall thereupon review the materials 4 Sunderland Housing Plan provided by both parties and issue a decision within 30 days of its receipt of all materials. The ZBA shall have the burden of proving satisfaction of the grounds for asserting that a denial or approval with conditions would be consistent with local needs, provided, however, that any failure of the DHCD to issue a timely decision shall be deemed a determination in favor of the municipality. This procedure shall toll the requirement to terminate the hearing within 180 days. Planning Process The Town of Sunderland requested assistance from the Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG) through the Direct Local Technical Assistance program to update the 2007 Sunderland Housing Plan. The Housing