East Hampton Town is in negotiations for as many as four properties in the town that could be used for affordable housing developments, including one that is expected to be in contract this week and that could house as many as 30 reduced-cost residential units.
Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc said on Tuesday that the Town Board expects to be able to formally introduce the plan next week, when it schedules a public hearing on the proposed purchase of a not-yet-unidentified lot.
The supervisor and other board members declined to discuss where the parcel is located or any details about the pending deal until the contract with the seller is signed, for fear that publicizing it could spur interference, or another buyer to step in.
The supervisor said the property could be expected to accommodate 20 to 30 units of affordable housing, probably in the form of apartments in a multifamily-style development like those planned at the 531 Montauk Highway property in Amagansett.
The board is expected to introduce a resolution proposing the purchase at its work session next Tuesday, December 18, and to hold a public hearing on the proposal on January 17.
Mr. Van Scoyoc also said on Tuesday that the town has three other properties in its sights with affordable housing potential. He would not say where or how large those properties are.
The announcement came after a report the town’s Community Housing Opportunity Fund Advisory Board gave the Town Board on its efforts in the last year to boost housing stocks. The committee chairman, Job Potter, a former town councilman, told the board that efforts to incentivize the creation of affordable rental apartments above commercial storefronts and as accessories to existing single-family residences have struggled to win participants.
Additionally, a public request for proposals for the development of 30 temporary units of seasonal housing near the docks in Montauk drew no proposals, and another initiative to spur the creation of high-density housing in commercial districts was determined to not be legally permissible.
Mr. Potter noted that two projects that are in the works—a 12-unit condominium complex due to be completed this month, and the East Hampton Housing Authority’s 37-unit Amagansett project—are due to be occupied in 2019 and 2020.
“One of the hardest things the town has to do is create affordable housing,” Mr. Potter said. “It’s mixed in terms of popularity. Everybody understands it’s needed, but there’s resistance from neighbors, the grant process is very complicated, and some people think it’s not the town’s job to provide affordable housing.”
on Dec 11, 2018