Housing Trust Examining ADU Expansion Program

 HARWICH – The affordable housing trust board is considering the creation of a pilot program that could increase the number of accessory dwelling units in the community.

 Noreen Donahue made a presentation several months ago on the concept of using existing homes in which ADUs could be developed with financial contributions from the trust.

“It’s a way to grow affordable housing, even though it’s small, without digging up a neighborhood,” Donahue said during a meeting with the trust board on Monday.

 Donahue said there are a lot of single-family homes in town in which a single resident resides and has extra rooms available. She used her situation as an example. Donahue said she has a 1,500-square-foot ranch house and there are rooms she does not use. Many of these residents could also use some additional cash, she added. 

 The cost of conversion of a portion of a home to an ADU is a major issue, she said. Donahue said if the trust were to provide funding, say $250,000 for the creation of a one-bedroom unit utilizing the additional space while retaining a primary unit for the owner, it would expand affordable housing.

 Donahue also said a provision could be established with the owner for an additional $50,000 to deed-restrict the primary residence in the home to affordable housing in perpetuity.

“You could add 10 to 15 more units for short money, $1 million to $1.5 million,” Donahue said.

AHT member Robert Spencer was interested in the concept and wanted to know the route to establishing such a plan.   

“How do we take a good idea and grow it?” inquired Spencer. “I’m not an expert.”

 Newly appointed AHT member Jeffrey Handler wanted to know whether the concept has been done elsewhere in the commonwealth and whether there was a template for such a program.

 He also wanted to know how it would interact with the town on the management side and whether the units would be eligible for the state’s subsidized housing inventory (SHI). A lot more information needs to be gathered, he added.

“It’s a great idea and I like the outside-the-box thinking, but the devil is in the details,” Handler said.

AHT member Claudia Williams raised questions about whether a deed restriction could be placed on just a portion of a home.

Community Preservation Committee member Kathy Green also said the trust should find out whether Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds could be used for such a purpose. She pointed out that much of the trust’s funding is provided through the community preservation committee.  

 Housing committee member Art Bodin said every town on the Cape is doing something with ADUs, and the trust should reach out to those communities to see what programs are working. 

 AHT member Brendan Lowney said that Gov. Maura Healey’s Affordable Homes Act provides a lot of options for the development of ADUs. 

 Members were interested in a pilot program, potentially beginning with two or three units a year, but agreed that a lot of questions remain. They agreed to reach out to town counsel, KP Law, on the question of deed restrictions for a segment of a home, and to see if the law firm is aware of any similar program in place across the state.

It was agreed that the town housing advocate, Brianna Powell, would also reach out to other communities on the Cape and communicate with housing advocates such as the Community Development Partnership and Housing Assistance Corporation for additional insight into any such programs.