Saugus board to appoint housing commissioners

SAUGUS-The newly elected Board of Selectmen has a new job to appoint nine trustees to the newly developed Affordable Housing Trust.Town Meeting voted to approve the creation of the Affordable Housing Trust last spring. The trust was developed for the sole purpose of providing for the creation and preservation of affordable housing.Every community in the commonwealth, by law, must designate 10 percent of its housing stock as low- and/or moderate-income housing.According to Town Meeting member Janet Leuci, who worked on the committee that developed the trust, there will be nine trustees, including the Town Manager.The terms will eventually be for two years, but four of the initial trustee appointments are for one-year terms. The trustees may be reappointed at the discretion of the selectmen.While the trust deals in real estate – gifted, purchased or otherwise obtained – it is subject to the same laws as other boards and committees. The open meeting law and basic laws governing public procurement and public bidding would all apply to the Affordable Housing Trust.Leuci said the trust has the power to own and manage real estate and to employ consultants and other advisers. It can collect funds for housing from grants, federal funds, private contributions, developer fees, and in lieu of payments from Inclusionary Zoning.Any funds garnered for the trust will also be separated from the general fund. It cannot be used to pay off other debts in town or put toward other financial needs.Leuci said that money would in fact be put into an account labeled strictly for Affordable Housing Trust Fund.Having the funds would also help the community respond quicker in securing a piece of land or a building for future affordable housing.This would have helped in the past when a Town Meeting member who had inherited a house tried to donate it to the town. In the end, the meeting member withdrew the offer after more than a year of frustration because there was no mechanism in place to accept the property and the town didn’t know what to do.Leuci said at the time the property could have been accepted quickly had the Trust been in place.And to those who believe there is no need for an affordable housing trust, Leuci said that clearly is not true.Affordable housing is defined by the state as housing reserved for households earning at or below 80 percent of the median income and the estimated median household income in Saugus in 2005 was $61,300.Leuci had said previously that despite widespread misconceptions regarding eligibility for affordable housing, many young Saugoinians as well as elderly, teachers and public employees would qualify.Those interested in serving as an Affordable Housing Trustee should apply to the Board of Selectmen, Town Hall, 298 Central St. no later than Nov. 26.