Amherst made the right decision last week when the Select Board unanimously agreed to give the North Square at the Mill District project a tax break in exchange for affordable housing.
Beacon Communities Development of Boston now will apply for financing under the Massachusetts Housing Partnership for the $47.5 million mixed-use project which will bring 130 apartments and 22,000 square feet of commercial space to North Amherst.
This is the first time that Amherst is using the affordable housing property tax incentive program that was adopted by Town Meeting in 2015 and approved by the Legislature. It gives Beacon a $2.8 million tax break on the residential portion of the project during the first 10 years after it is built. Rather than the estimated $4.37 million in taxes that would be generated, the town will collect $1.57 million during that decade.
That is still significantly more than the $10,000 a year which the town now receives in property taxes assessed to the vacant 5.3 acres that was formerly a lumberyard. The property is owned by W.D. Cowls.
In exchange, Beacon has agreed that 26, or 20 percent of North Square’s 130 apartments, will be set aside for tenants who earn 50 percent or less than the area’s median income.
The tax break does not affect the commercial portion of the project, which is expected to generate some $2.8 million in revenue over 30 years.
North Square will be the first major new development in North Amherst village, and it will help fill the need for additional rental housing in Amherst.
Darcy Jameson, the development director for Beacon, said the project will help ease the tight housing market with a mix of rentals for low-income people, graduate students, young professionals and young families.
“Amherst traditionally has quite low vacancy rates,” Jameson said during a hearing in December, citing her company’s experience managing Rolling Green Apartments. Beacon three years ago bought Rolling Green on Belchertown Road, and preserved as affordable 41 of its more than 200 units.
While some residents of North Amherst have expressed concern about the size of North Square, town officials say that the 130 conditions established by the Zoning Board in approving the project will minimize its impact on nearby homes. Among them is underground utilities.
Among those who support the project is Thomas Kegelman, chairman of the town’s Affordable Housing Trust, who says, “The return in the investment is going to be substantial to the town.”
Mindy Domb, executive director of the Amherst Survival Center, wrote in a letter backing North Square, “As we support the use of public funds to assist our neighbors with the distribution of food, we also support its use to assist our neighbors to secure affordable housing in our community.”
We are optimistic that the development will benefit North Amherst village and the entire town by adding badly needed affordable housing, boosting the tax base and providing opportunities for commercial expansion outside of downtown.