Dear fellow Hanoverians:
Did you notice the full-page ad in the Hanover Mariner this
week as placed by “511 Washington Street LLC” – also known as
the developers of North Pointe? If you subscribe to the Mariner, it was
certainly hard to miss. I received e-mails and phone calls as a result of
the ad and went looking for more information to share with you as a result.
North Pointe was originally developed under the provisions
of 40B as an over 55 rental unit complex of 74 units. Nineteen out of 74
of those units, or 25%, were deemed “affordable”, thereby counting all
74 units toward the town’s goal of 10% affordable housing. According
to the North Pointe Office, it opened for business in 2005 and currently 47 out
of 74 of those units are rented, including all 19 of the affordable units.
The “market rate” apartments are renting for $1375 (including heat
and hot water) for a one bedroom apartment and $1675 (including heat and hot water)
for a two bedroom apartment.
The developer has previously come to the Hanover Zoning
Board of Appeals over two issues and with two different requests, both purportedly
in an effort to fill the units: One to convert all the rental units into
condominiums for purchase, and the other to remove the over 55 age
restriction. The ZBA turned down both requests, but the developer has
pursued and won the most recent appeal of the age restriction removal request.
Right now, today, people under the age of 55 can move into North Pointe. The
town has appealed this decision of the Land Court to the Massachusetts Appeals
Court.
Last Wednesday’s ad in the Mariner suggested that
taxpayers should question the most recent town appeal by asking “is this
how I want my tax dollars spent”? Interested readers of “Around
Town on the Web” have asked “(do we really) want these apartments flooding with children that we have not planned on
and really draining our town resources”? I personally wonder why
the units have not filled?
It’s an intriguing
debate. Here’s the North Pointe website for your further information:
http://www.northpoi nte-hanover.com/index.htm
. Where do you stand?
For "Around Town on the Web",
Cathy H-B
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