Harwich Seeks Regional Support To Address Cape’s Carrying Capacity

 HARWICH – The Barnstable County Board of Regional Commissioners received a clear message from residents and select board members last week that the Cape’s carrying capacity, its ability to handle additional development, is a serious concern.

The commission was in Harwich on July 30. County commission Chair Mark Forest said the group is meeting with local officials to hear their concerns and priorities as well as what issues the county should direct more attention to.

 “The Cape’s finite carrying capacity,” resident Sally Urbano stated directly. “Nothing else will matter if we fail to face these realities head on.” 

 Matt Sutphin, the newly appointed Harwich representative to the Cape Cod Commission, agreed. Preservation on Cape Cod is looked at strictly in terms of development, he said. 

 “The preservation of Cape Cod will be much more than development, it will be the consequences of what we have developed,” Sutphin said.

Select board member Mark Kelleher spoke about the departure of the town’s longtime Cape Cod Commission representative Jacqueline Etsten and the frustrations she referred to in her resignation letter about the absence of commission staff responses to concerns she raised.

The Cape Cod Commission’s role in reviewing major housing developments that go through the 40B comprehensive permit process was a concern of select board members. The select board sent a letter to the Cape Cod Commission seeking a discretionary review of the Pine Oaks Village IV project, a 242-unit affordable housing development planned for North Harwich. 

Forest said the commissioners oversee the Cape Cod Commission, but the Cape Cod Commission Act, established by the state legislature, prohibits the agency from regulatory review of 40B projects. The regional regulatory agency issued staff comments on the Harwich project, he noted.

 “We don’t want to invite big box businesses,” said select board member Donald Howell. “Why do we want to invite big box housing?” 

 “What’s right for Fitchburg is harmful for the Cape,” Handler said of state 40B regulations that allow the waiving of local bylaws for 40B developments.

Commissioner Sheila Lyons said the commission is limited in what it can dictate to the Cape Cod Commission, adding that she heard what everyone was saying about development. In the 1900s the Cape was facing a development boom that led to the establishment of the commission, she pointed out.

 “Right now there is an onslaught of interest that is not thinking of the longevity of Cape Cod,” said Lyons.

Lyons, also a Wellfleet Select Board member, said that town is experiencing rapid growth, adding that her rural neighborhood now feels like she is living on a street in North Virginia.

 “I have very much the same concern,” Lyons said of development impacts on carrying capacity. She said the state primes the pump by putting money into affordable housing through 40B and giving away local zoning, and that is counterintuitive.

Commissioner Ron Bergstrom, who served as a selectman in Chatham for 12 years, said the first line of defense against major developments is the people appointed to town boards. Begstrom said he is a believer in local control and that the Cape Cod Commission provides another level of scrutiny and is an asset.

Bergstrom said there are ways for communities to avoid 40B projects, including developing 10 percent of local housing to meet the state subsidized housing inventory cap. 

Handler said he wanted clarity on the state of regional government, which he said he has very little confidence in. He questioned why the county commissioners were coming to Harwich. 

Forest said the commissioners are looking for feedback from the towns. Harwich was the sixth town they have conducted hearings in over the past six months. Forest outlined the many services the county provides towns and the constant communication from local officials serving on county advisory boards.

Handler said the county needs to work more in partnership with the towns, attending local select board meetings at least four times a year to better inform the public on county activities rather than having people just read about “transfer taxes.”

Bergstrom said the Martha’s Vineyard Commission is challenging in court its right to regulate 40B permits, but the state Supreme Judicial Court disagreed. It is also seeking to alter the 40B law through the legislature to provide that oversight.

Handler questioned why the Barnstable County Commission has “not jumped on board” with those initiatives.

 “We’re watching,” said Bergstrom.

 “I wouldn’t be sitting back waiting to jump into the water,” Handler responded. “We’re going in the wrong direction.”

The 40B issues should be brought to the Cape and Islands Municipal Leadership Group for regional support, said Forest. It is a topic that will be raised as the commissioners continue meeting with select boards throughout the Cape. 

 “A lot of work on regulatory programs will require more dialogue and we will do that,” said Kristy Senatori, executive director of the Cape Cod Commission, who was present at the meeting.

Handler said he wants to see regional government step up because local government would not have the power to influence the legislature. 

 “The message is clear,” Forest said. “This hasn’t come up in other towns, but we have to take this back [for discussion] because this is the first time we’re hearing this on the Cape.”

Handler questioned how the county commissioners create initiatives and the data used. He has not seen the county commission or other county representatives here in the three years he has served on the board, he said.

 “If you want buy-in from the locals, show up and be part of what the locals do every Monday night,” said Handler.