CPA Projects Database

The Town issued a Request for Proposals seeking an affordable housing rental development on Town-owned property at 160-164 Pleasant Street. This process resulted in the selection of MCO Associates for the future construction of 44 rental units, 25% affordable. The Select Board has approved a Land Development Agreement and Lease Agreement ((99-year) with the developer. On May 11, the Dunstable Affordable Housing Trust approved payment of $2666 in consultant fees to assist the Town the RFP, proposal review and selection process.

Project entails the restoration of the large oak table and accompanying five (5) chairs that furnish Memorial Hall. There is photographic evidence of the furniture in the space dating back to the 1930’s, and the pieces are believed to be original to Memorial Hall (1928). Wood and upholstery will be restored by a specialist with the aim of returning the furniture to use in the historic hall.

Funding will be used to have several additional volumes of Norwood's Annual Town Reports dating back to the 1800's professionally repaired and preserved by a qualified conservator. These historic documents have been digitized; however, the original reports are in poor condition and require treatment to prevent them from disintegrating beyond repair. Limited public access to the reports will be provided once the preservation work is complete.

An initial “inventory form” for the Morse House has been completed; however further information and action is needed to pursue a listing on the National Register of Historic Places. As a precursor to pursuing grant funding from State and Federal sources, funding will be used to hire a historic preservation consultant to assist in compiling and submitting the documentation necessary to have the house listed on the National Register.

Funds will be transferred to the Conservation Fund for future projects initiated by the Conservation Commission that comply with both the Conservation Commission Act (MGL Ch. 40 S. 8C) and the Community Preservation Act (MGL Ch. 44B).

The expenditure of $225,000 for the purchase of 30 acres, off 165 Fairview Ave along with the costs associated with such purchase, such acquisition to support preservation and passive recreational use, and further to authorize the Town to convey an appropriate conservation restriction in such property.

$81,480 from the Historic Preservation Reserve of the Community Preservation Act (CPA) for the moving and restoration of Rehoboth Historical Commission's three farm museum building at Francis Farm to a new location at the complex in order to provide better parking for Senior Center

Funds will be used to continue building a continuing 1,300 foot loop on the already started trail and to build 100’ of bog bridges around a wet area. Approval is awaiting Conservation Commission approval and will not be started until that is received. Work will be done by Greenagers.

This a rehabilitation project to create an affordable housing unit in Becket. CPA funds will be used to cover the disparity between construction costs and an affordable sale price.

Pioneer Valley of Habitat for Humanity

$24,000.00 to renovate existing school lot, to neighborhood park.

The Arlington Affordable Housing Trust Fund (AHTF, the “Trust”) was established at a Special Town Meeting in 2020. These CPA funds will be used to stimulate creation and preservation of affordable housing in town. Working closely with the CPAC, the Trust will be able to use these funds to act expeditiously on emerging opportunities, while advancing the town’s Housing Production Plan and beginning to implement its 5-year Action Plan. In FY2023, the Trust received its first CPA award, $250,000, enabling it to begin its work. After an extensive public input process, the Trust’s 5-Year Action Plan (2022–2027) was adopted on October 20, 2022 and approved by the Select Board in November of 2022. More information about the AHTF, with a link to the Action Plan, may be found here: https://www.arlingtonma.gov/town-governance/boards- and-committees/affordable-housing-trust-fund-board. Among the three strategies to be pursued in the AHTF 5-Year Action Plan is to “Create More Affordable Housing”, with a goal to facilitate creation of at least 100 affordable homes. The strategy includes working in concert with other affordable housing stakeholders, such as the HCA. Consistent with this strategy, of the proposed CPA award for FY2024, the AHTF has agreed to make $250,000 available to the HCA as a grant or loan for the 10 Sunnyside Avenue development. This will result in a total of $750,000 in locally-committed funds that HCA can leverage in order to secure the funding needed for this project (see “10 Sunnyside Avenue” project). Although the 2021 Town Meeting approved a Home Rule Petition for a real estate transfer fee, CPA funding is a primary funding source for housing trusts throughout the Commonwealth. Moving forward, the CPAC will continue to liaise with the AHTF and ensure that any disbursement of funds meets the guidelines and requirements of the CPA.

The Hauser Building, at 37 Drake Road, is one of the AHA’s largest state-aided senior low-income public housing developments, with 144 one-bedroom units for seniors who make a low-income and individuals under age 60 living with disabilities. Its roof was installed in 1986 with an estimated lifespan of 25 years. The replacement of the roof is needed to address the ongoing leakage of water into the building, causing damage to common areas and residents’ units, and is thus consistent with the CPA mission to preserve existing community housing, as well as addressing goals of affordable housing preservation in the Town’s Housing Plan. The planned installation of a white roof to increase energy efficiency and reduce the AHA’s carbon footprint is consistent with the Town’s Net Zero Action Plan. The AHA has secured additional funding for this project, with an estimated total cost of $745,875.83, and, with the proposed support from the CPA, expects to proceed with the project as soon as possible.

In 2020, a young Arlington resident presented the PRC with a proposal to build mountain biking trails and a skills area in the community. A working group examined various possible sites, and selected Hill’s Hill as the most desirable location because of its proximity to the Bikeway and the recreation center. Hill’s Hill is a mostly wooded area of approximately 6 acres, of which approximately 0.65 acres is proposed for the mountain biking area. It is currently appreciated by residents as a walking site, including a place to observe wildlife; unfortunately, it has also long been known as a site for public drinking. In addition, like some other wooded properties, it has been used unofficially by local youth as a site for mountain biking and the opportunity to construct official, well-designed trails would be beneficial, including from a safety perspective. During its review of this project, the CPAC received a high volume of feedback, helping guide the CPAC’s decision. Many voiced support, including young people who enjoy mountain biking or wish to learn it and adults familiar with the sport while others voiced serious concerns, in particular a desire that this new recreational resource be created in a manner that will preserve the natural, wooded environment of Hill’s Hill, including wildlife habitat. Taking into account the substantial and wide-ranging community feedback, the CPAC voted to recommend that this project be funded only if the following requirements are met: That (1) a member of the Open Space Committee be incorporated into the project's Working Group; (2) a tree inventory be completed during the design process; and (3) the chosen designer be directed to advance at least two concept alternatives for the location of the pump track. If the preferred concept places the pump track in the woods, then the applicant will need to seek final authorization from the Community Preservation Act Committee prior to proceeding with construction.

Funding for this project will enable a feasibility study for the preservation of Mill Brook between the Arlington Reservoir and Hurd Field. This preservation, affecting approximately 2,400 linear feet of the degraded, heavily-eroded banks of this section of Mill Brook, may be considered an extension of the extensive and popular improvements made, with support from the CPA, at the Reservoir and Hurd Field. The overall aim is to improve the ecological integrity and stability of Mill Brook, preserving its condition and that of the Reservoir and Hurd field. The complete preservation project will use bioengineered bank stabilization treatments, enhancement plantings, select invasive species management, and green infrastructure for stormwater management. The recommended CPA funding for FY2024 will cover the first phase of this project, working with an engineering firm to reach 75% design for review and further input by Town departments and other relevant boards and committees.

NoName Brook is a ~1,600 linear foot water body running parallel to the Minuteman Bikeway in Arlington Heights. The brook is severely degraded and prone to further damage due to bank destabilization, invasive species, blockage, stormwater pollution, and infrastructure failure. Funding for this project will advance plans reflected in the recently completed Minuteman Bikeway Plan to preserve the condition of the Bikeway along NoName Brook and enhance the integrity of the waterway. The Open Space Committee is seeking funding for a preservation feasibility study of NoName Brook. The goals of the feasibility study will include gaining an understanding of its current conditions and its role in stormwater management and creating a conceptual plan for its improvement. The feasibility will be complemented by a public engagement campaign to rename the brook. Because NoName Brook is located in the Minuteman Bikeway, owned by the MBTA and licensed to the Town, the feasibility study will include determining whether and how the MBTA will need to be involved in subsequent changes.

This project will preserve and restore the Arlington Friends of the Drama (AFD) building, which is listed in the Town’s historic inventory and is located in the Pleasant Street Historic District. It was purchased by the AFD in 1923; now in its centennial year, it is one of the oldest continuously operating theaters in the country. The AFD partners with many organizations in the arts community, for example, participating in the successful campaign to designate a Cultural District in the Town. In addition, AFD reaches out to the broader community in numerous ways, such as providing an annual scholarship to a local graduating senior to further their education in the performing arts. Thus, this project will rehabilitate and restore an historic building while also supporting an important cultural resource in the Town. Specifically, the funding will be used to repair and restore elements of the building façade and crumbling stairs and to replace an aged, partially functional HVAC system with a heat-pump system. Both improvements are necessary to preserve the building (e.g. a burst pipe caused by the outdated HVAC system resulted in a significant leak causing interior damage). The energy improvements are consistent with the Town’s energy efficiency goals and are expected to be eligible for MassSave rebates, for which AFD will be applying; any such rebates would be returned to the CPA.

The “Foot of the Rocks”, at the intersection of Lowell St and Mass Ave, is the site of a battle on April 19, 1775 where the British soldiers, retreating from Concord through Lexington and into present day Arlington (Menotomy), were confronted by over 1,700 colonial militia. The overall goal of the applicants is to increase public awareness of this battle site and, more broadly, Arlington’s role in the Revolutionary War. With a previous CPA grant in FY2022, the applicants began a plan to develop this memorial, and envision an inclusive design providing various opportunities for interpretive experiences that engage diverse audiences. To support a comprehensive and inclusive narrative of the local history, the goal will be to amplify the stories of those under-represented in the traditional storytelling, including the participation of women, people of color and indigenous peoples in the fateful events of the battle and the conflict more generally. With the FY2022 CPA grant, a working group was formed that, with public input, explored the feasibility of developing this site, as described in a report that was presented to the CPAC. The report is available on the Town’s website. The present grant for FY2024 would take this project into the design phase and through the development of construction documents. With a shovel-ready design, the Applicants will be better positioned to seek future construction funding from state, federal, and private sources. The goal is to raise a significant portion of the estimated one million dollars that will be required to build the public gathering space, including the battlefield memorial, in advance of the 250th anniversary of the historic battle of the Foot of the Rocks in April 2025, and the Declaration of Independence in 2026. The Applicants intend to pursue funding from the National Parks Service earmarked for preserving cultural resources that commemorate the nation’s independence.

The Robbins Memorial Town Hall was built in 1912 and serves as Arlington’s center of civic activity. This architecturally-significant building is owned by the Town of Arlington and protected by a preservation restriction and needs reinvestment following over a century of service and decades of deferred maintenance. The entire building envelope, including the limestone façade, terra cotta Clock Tower, wooden windows and doors, and various roofing membranes need repair or replacement. Principal Patrick Guthrie conducted a preliminary assessment and prepared a preservation plan for the envelope of Town Hall. The most pressing findings relate to the dire conditions of the Clock Tower, which is losing structural integrity and causing water penetration affecting the building interior, specifically the Lyons Hearing Room. The first goal would be to complete a comprehensive 3D laser scan of the Clock Tower that will capture shape and dimensional information for the structure and its various ornate elements. The existing Clock Tower would also be safely removed and the opening into the attic would be roofed over to protect the interior from further damage. The laser scans would then be used during later phases to design and fabricate new elements off-site for reconstruction of the Clock Tower at a later date. The proposed FY2024 CPA funding would facilitate execution of this crucial preservation work. Because of the severity of the current condition, the Town has tarped the structure to stem the rapidly-worsening conditions inside the building. Beyond the Phase 1 work to be funded by the proposed CPA award, the consultants estimate that the entire exterior renovation project will be approximately $8–10M. Phase 1 intends to stabilize the structure, allowing the Town to develop a plan and timeline to fund the remaining work, likely via a borrowing supported over time by CPA funding and the Town’s Capital Plan.

Build 5 new post-tensioned concrete tennis courts, 3 new bituminous concrete basketball courts, and 4 new bituminous concrete pickleball courts and associated fencing, drainage, and other infrastructure at Oliver Ames High School, for use by school students and the general public.

Create design, construction & bid documents for Swift's Park.

Funding for FY24 Affordable Housing Trust programs, projects, and administration.

Funding for general improvements to the recreational facilities at Goodwill Park, including construction of an enclosed pavilion, bandstand, tennis court bleachers and restrooms.

The funding for the Maynard Affordable Housing Trust are a yearly addition to support initiatives to create affordable housing in Maynard.