EASTHAMPTON — A large affordable housing project known as “Growing Green,” planned for a site located at 385 Main St., is still in the works after having to make significant design changes due to conservation concerns raised by a legal complaint.
The project, managed by The Community Builders (TCB) in a partnership with Kestrel Land Trust, seeks to combine land conservation and affordable housing, according to the two groups. This is the first time the two organizations have partnered on a project.
The city’s Zoning Board of Appeals issued a comprehensive permit for the project — a type of permit created by the state that aims to support affordable housing developments — to TCB in October 2024. At that time, however, several abutters filed a legal complaint against the project, citing concerns about potential damage to the area from stormwater runoff and aging sewer infrastructure.
More than a year later, with revisions made to the project and the legal complaint nearly resolved, new designs have satisfied the Conservation Commission and ZBA.
“Since that time, we’ve been working on restructuring and changing our plan to move forward,” TCB Senior Project Manager Julia Scannell said at a ZBA meeting. “We are really pleased with the project that we presented to you here tonight. We’re really committed to moving forward affordable housing in Easthampton.”
Scannell spoke at the ZBA’s Jan. 28 meeting, presenting the changes that have been made since the original plans were shown.
Under state guidelines, a comprehensive permit requires reopening a public hearing if a project change has a greater impact on the site than the original proposal. Ultimately, the board determined that the changes were not substantial enough to reopen the public hearing, despite requests from two residents to do so to give residents more time to review the changes.
The original permit sought to bring 87 new units of affordable housing across three new buildings to 11 acres of the 53-acre site, with the balance of the land to be conserved by Kestrel. In the updated plan, there is one building with a smaller overall footprint and only 55 units — 13 one-bedrooms, 30 two-bedrooms, 6 three-bedrooms and 6 studio spaces.
Other additions include increased parking for the number of units and a lowered building height. Scannell doesn’t anticipate traffic impacts for the site, which is surrounded by wetlands.
Additionally, Scannell said at the meeting that the stormwater drainage and sewer system is improved, one of the main worries from the legal complaint. Designed by Berkshire Design Group, a wastewater drainage connection to Wemelco Way was designed with help from the city of Easthampton to create a safer, more sanitary plan.
The storm and wastewater system was reviewed by a third party, according to Scannell, and the Conservation Commission recently granted an order of condition, approving the plan.
“They’ve addressed our concerns and we wish them well,” said Michael Pill, the attorney representing the group of abutters.
Pill said the new wastewater connection to Wemelco Way is a clever piece of engineering. While the concerns have been addressed, Pill said the legal complaint was the main reason the city reconsidered the safety of the original project plans. Before the changes, he said the project was “grossly oversized” and called the previous stormwater plan an “outright fabrication.”
Pill said a hydrologist studied the groundwater analysis and found that “there was no way” that a project of that size does not create a groundwater issue. Additionally, one of the abutters who made the complaint is an engineer who also felt there was an issue, ultimately leading to the review, Pill says.
Kestrel Conservation Director Mark Wamsley said the legal complaint did not affect their 42 acres of the project.
“Were really happy where things are right now and sometimes the best things take time and effort to come to fruition,” Wamsley said.
Wamlsey said Kestrel originally reached out to the previous owners to enter a contract agreement for the land and then reached out to TCB to combine affordable housing and land conservation, tackling two problems at once.
“Kestrel realized there are a lot of problems we are facing right now,” Wamsley said. “There’s a biodiversity crisis, an environmental crisis and a housing crisis, and we have to face all of those.”
Wamsley said Kestrel will start more active conversations with neighbors in the spring to gain input on ways the community wants to see the land conserved. He said projects that will likely take place include making the land more accessible for recreation, including hiking trails. Additionally, Kestrel is talking with farmers and agricultural groups about potentially bringing new crops on the land, which is currently used to farm hay.
In an interview with the Gazette, Scannell said that affordable housing projects take a long time to develop, mainly due to town processes and the competitive funding application process. As for the housing, she said TCB will be likely be applying for funding within the next year but there is no projected timeline for a construction date.
“It’s a competitive process in the state of Massachusetts. We, along with lots of other developers, apply for restricted resources,” Scannell said.