Traffic Primary Topic As Pennrose Pitches Housing

 HARWICH – Traffic was the main topic of discussion in the opening hearing on the affordable housing trust/Pennrose comprehensive permit application to construct 60 income- and rent-restricted housing units on 5.4 acres on the former Marceline property at 456 Queen Anne Rd.

 The appeals board opened the hearing Jan. 8 with approximately 40 people in attendance. The session was labelled a “listening meeting” by attorney Marian Rose, who represented the applicants. The majority of the three-hour session consisted of presentations on the project by Pennrose staff and consultants.

 Discussions focused primarily on traffic and not on housing.

 The parcel is part of 11.6 acres purchased by the town’s affordable housing trust from the estate of James Marceline. Pennrose was selected out of three respondents to build and manage the 90-bedroom complex. The trust entered into a 99-year lease with Pennrose on the land. The trust controls the additional 6.2 acres.

The project calls for the 60 units to be constructed in 14 one- and two-story townhouses varying in size from three to eight units each centered around a greenspace and woods. The complex will also have a clubhouse in which management and maintenance offices will be located along with a community room and a fitness center. 

Paul Atteman, a principal with complex designer Union Studio Architecture, said the development will consist of multiple small buildings at a scale found on Cape Cod using a variety of architectural forms, including gables and dormers.

“We use the power of design to enrich and strengthen communities,” Atteman said.

The onsite innovative/alternative septic system will exceed the town’s board of health Title 5 requirements, and nitrogen reducing technologies will be used. There will be 75 parking spaces.

Ten of the units will be income- and rent-restricted for residents earning less than 30 percent of the area median income; 32 units for those earning less than 60 percent; nine units for those earning less than 80 percent; and nine units for those earning less than 100 percent.   

“We are build and hold developers committed to the long term,” said Pennrose’s Ryan Kiracofe. “Soup to nuts developers.” Pennrose has developed housing in Eastham and Orleans and is currently working on two projects in Chatham. He said the company has a good understanding of the needs on the Cape.

“We are engaged with the community we’re working in and [are] hand in hand with the affordable housing trust in Harwich,” Kiracofe said.

Kiracode said when developing the plan there was discussion about the location of the proposed driveway off Queen Anne Road. It was recommended that the driveway be relocated further east and away from the intersection with Pleasant Lake Avenue, which has been identified as a high-crash intersection.  

That intersection was also recognized as needing improvement during the comprehensive permit hearings for the 242-unit Pine Oaks Village IV project on the west end of Queen Anne Road. 

“This developer will add to those infrastructure improvements,” said Jeffrey Dirk, a project traffic engineer with Vanasse and Associates, Inc.

Dirk said the project doesn’t create a significant impact on the infrastructure, but there will be back ups which will persist without infrastructure improvements. Delays at the intersection will increase by four to 12 seconds, he said, adding that that is not significant. In the queuing at the ramp coming off Route 6 from the west, delays could go up 30 seconds at Pleasant Lake Avenue.

It was estimated the vehicle flow during peak hour at the development would be 36. The 24-hour flow was put at 382 vehicles. There were discussions about the use of Bassett Lane, a dirt road that runs through the property from Pleasant Lake Avenue to Oak Street, as an access and egress for the development.

Residents said there are backups on Queen Anne Road heading west into the intersection, which would make it difficult for vehicles leaving the development, turning left and heading east on Queen Anne Road. It was estimated that 25 percent of the vehicles would make the left turn and head toward Oak Street.

Dirk said the Massachusetts Department of Transportation prohibits the placement of driveways close to off ramps at highway exchanges. Bassett Lane would be too close to the off ramps. According to Dirk, MassDOT said put the driveway on Queen Anne Road, where the sight lines at the proposed driveway are pretty clear.

It was suggested that sidewalks and crosswalks are needed, but Dirk said there is no room for sidewalks along Pleasant Lake Avenue with only three feet of right of way next to the road surface. However, there is room along Queen Anne Road for sidewalks and turning lanes, he said. 

“This project is piecemeal,” said neighbor Herb Raffaele. “The town should make Bassett Lane the access and the egress.

Questions were raised about the additional 6.2-acre parcel held by the trust, the development potential of that parcel, and the additional traffic that would be generated from that future development.

Neighbor Joanne Smith urged taking a step back and assessing the numerous large developments being proposed in the area and their impacts. She also suggested the town should be looking at a rent-to-buy program to address housing needs, instead of strictly rental units. 

“Place this on a temporary hold while we examine these issues,” Smith said.

Appeals board members agreed the use of Bassett Lane should continue to be examined, at least for right turns in and out of the development.

Board member Christopher Murphy said the land is within the Six Ponds Special District, which requires 2.5-acre zoning. Saying that drinking water needs to be protected, he urged Pennrose to get nitrogen counts down to zero.

Former select board and affordable housing trust member Julie Kavanagh said the project is well designed and she emphasized the need for housing in town. As for traffic, she noted that Harwich has an aging population, which will reduce some of that traffic.

Affordable Housing Trust Chair Larry Ballantine stressed the need for housing, noting that he is a member of the board of directors for Outer Cape Health Services which is having trouble hiring medical staff because of the lack of housing. He added that the school district is having a similar problem hiring teachers. 

The appeals board voted to continue the hearing to Feb. 26 at 6 p.m. at town hall. Future hearing topics will include the site plan, stormwater and drainage assessments, traffic and public safety, and environmental and public health impacts.