LYNN—The City Council unanimously (11-0) approved on Tuesday a petition by Rising Community & Housing Inc. for Apartment Use to build housing for senior citizens in the business district at 119 Essex St.
The housing complex would contain 28 units, 20 bedrooms and 8 studios. An age restriction of 62 years or older is in place for residents. The project is set to begin in 2022.
Rising Community & Housing Inc. Attorney Sam Vitali argued to the city council that there has been a demand in Ward 3 for senior housing, and that the foundation site would be better used for building this complex.
“We are not displacing anybody, we are adding more,” Vitali said to the council. “The site has been a misused auto-repair shop for many years.”
The city’s Principal Planning Director Aaron Clausen said that while he was in favor of more affordable housing, he was skeptical about the lack of details, cost and timeframe of when the building would be completed. As such, he spoke out against the permit during the meeting.
Ward 3 Councilor and City Council President Darren Cyr has supported repurposing the area at 119 Essex St. for over 16 years, and adamantly argued for the building of senior housing during the meeting despite Clausen’s objections.
Cyr said that Clausen should have alerted the council earlier if there were any problems with the plan, and said they should have been proactive.
“I have nothing against you, Mr. Clausen, but I just don’t like last-minute surprises,” said Cyr. “They should have reached out.”
City Councilor at-large Brian M. Field says that while he does support more affordable housing in the city, he urged the council to be careful of approving more votes. Field cited the recent increase of tax bills on residential owners due to the rapid growth of building more housing. He says that he doesn’t want the City Council to act rashly and increase more taxes on citizens.
“I just want to make sure that we have our eyes wide open about this,” said Field to his fellow councilors.
Cyr acknowledged Field’s concerns, but said that this project would help the community in the long run.
“I’ve been looking at this property for 16 years,” said Cyr. “This is what’s best for the community.”
