More Than $1 Million In CPC Funding Sought In Brewster

BREWSTER – Spring town meeting will see a number of requests for Community Preservation Act funding totaling more than $1 million for open space, historic preservation, recreation and housing projects.

 Five applications were submitted before the Dec. 1 deadline, including a repeat request to fund the position of housing coordinator. 

 Back in 2017, the housing production plan identified a need for a new position to oversee housing efforts in the community as median home prices increase and the town lacks necessary affordable housing options. In 2022, town officials were able to establish the position with the help of CPA funding. 

The job of the housing coordinator is to create community housing, support eligible housing initiatives and the ongoing work of the Brewster Affordable Housing Trust and continue to support the Brewster Buy Down Program, which assists first-time home buyers. 

The new application is requesting $79,000 in CPA funding for the position, with the total cost coming in at $123,695.

The Brewster Conservation Trust is continuing its preservation work by requesting CPA funding for a conservation restriction on 2.77 acres of upland forest in West Brewster. The property, located on Satucket Road, is owned by the children of the late Jane Doble Ker and is part of a larger 9.95-acre parcel. 

The trust is purchasing the land for $385,000 with the help of The Compact of Cape Cod Conservation Trusts, but the group is requesting CPA funds to purchase a conservation restriction for $75,000. With the conservation restriction in place, the protected parcel will become part of the Upper Mill Pond watershed forest. 

In 2005, the Doble heirs donated a parcel of land to the BCT, initiating a larger conservation project in the area. The BCT currently protects 29.12 acres in the Upper Mill Pond watershed forest, adding the 2.77 acres this year. The trust hopes to continue working with the family to purchase the remaining land, connecting the parcels and creating around 40 acres of protected land. 

The recreation department is seeking $250,000 in CPA funding to complete its compliance project at Freemans Way Fields. Around three years ago, the recreation department worked with the department of public works to bring the fields into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Handicap parking spaces were added in the first phase. With additional CPA funding, the rec department would like to build ADA compliant pathways around all four fields to provide added accessibility for residents of all ages and mobility. 

 The work will be contracted out. The council on aging previously received CPA funds to install benches along the walkways once the pathways are completed. 

The Crosby Mansion property manager Richard Archer is asking for $175,000 in CPA funding to cover repairs to the seven chimneys on the property and some small exterior carpentry projects. The request has already been approved by the state department of conservation and recreation, which owns the property. 

The largest request comes from Nauset Youth Alliance and the Brewster School Committee for replacement of the Stony Brook Elementary playground. They are asking for CPA funding to cover $500,000 of the $800,000 project, which will replace playground structures and swing sets. The proposal also calls for a new asphalt basketball court, a lawn area for field games and netting replacements to safeguard the area from stray baseballs.

The current playground is not compliant with state code requirements. The plans will add a poured-in-place surface around the new playground as well as the preschool playground, which lacks accessibility.

The NYA is using retained earnings to donate $410,000 to the project. Of that contribution, $60,000 will be used for consultant design work, bidding and construction oversight. The remaining $350,000 will be used for construction costs. 

All five of the requests total $1,079,000.