PEABODY — Questions are being raised in the city regarding possible irregularities in the application process of the 40B project at 40-42 Endicott St. known as the Residences at Endicott, a six-story, 68-unit condominium complex located in one of the most densely-populated areas of the city.
Councilor-at-Large Anne Manning-Martin has contacted the state Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) contesting the legality of an alleged site visit that is required under state law.
She claims that on March 24, 2021, MassHousing issued a Project Eligibility/Site Approval to the developer’s attorney, Jason Panos, on behalf of developer Pat Todisco. The letter states that MassHousing “performed an on-site inspection, which local boards and officials were invited to attend.”
Manning-Martin claims that no such invitation was issued.
“The site visit, as mandated by the regulation (760 CMR 56.04 (3)), at which local officials could attend, never took place,” Manning-Martin wrote in a Jan. 6 letter to MassHousing. “Contrary to the language in the Project Eligibility Letter signed by MassHousing General Counsel Colin McNiece, the site visit as contemplated did not take place ― that is, local boards and officials were not notified of the site as required by law.”
Mayor Edward A. Bettencourt Jr. said he was not aware of an on-site inspection taking place at 40-42 Endicott St.
“I checked with other city officials and boards to confirm, but we were never invited or informed that MassHousing was conducting an on-site inspection,” Bettencourt said in a March 26, 2021 email to Manning-Martin.
Bettencourt’s email referenced a letter from MassHousing dated Dec. 21, 2020, which stated that, due to COVID, “MassHousing staff have been directed to refrain from scheduling in-person meetings with external parties at this time and will conduct the site visit independently.”
“It appears that is what happened here; (it’s) very frustrating,” Bettencourt wrote.
Manning-Martin said that as a city official, she should have known about any site review taking place at Endicott Street.
“After much digging and public record requests, I have learned that MassHousing claims ― without any supporting documents, reports, photographs or notes upon which its decision was made ― to issue a Project Eligibility/Site Approval Letter, to have conducted a site review unilaterally on Dec. 30, 2020 without having notified any city official or the developer or property owner.”
Manning-Martin said when she first contacted MassHousing, “MassHousing admitted to ‘misstatements’ and chalked it up to ‘a clerical error’ and further explained that due to COVID-19, they were instructed to not have these inspections as directed by law and instead held the inspection ‘independently.’
“These site visits are not discretionary ― they are mandatory and required by law. This is a colossal error affecting every 40B application that has been managed under this misguided and misinformed direction.”
Manning-Martin went on to say the only evidence produced by MassHousing to prove a site visit occurred in accordance with state law was “an unsigned and unapproved request for Mr. (Mike) Busby for gas-mileage reimbursement.”
Manning-Martin called on the DHCD “to rescind the Project Eligibility Letter for this project” based upon the fact that the site visit was not made in accordance with state law “because it failed to invite local officials and it failed to incorporate facts adduced at the alleged site visit into its findings.” She cited a footnote in the Project Eligibility letter that states that “if any information is found to not be complete or truthful, MassHousing retains the right to rescind the Site Approval letter” prior to the issuance of a comprehensive permit.
The next scheduled meeting of the ZBA is Jan. 24. Manning-Martin said she “fear(s) a comprehensive permit may be issued and should not be issued as the statutory requirements for issuance have not been met.
“This neighborhood has been treated very unfairly throughout this process at every level. It’s been a horror story, be it the way residents have been treated by the City Council, the ZBA and the state, which have taken the path of least resistance at every step to the detriment of the people.
“This is an egregious example. I will do everything I can in my power to expose what’s happening to these residents. They have been wronged at every step of the way by people who are supposed to be looking out for them, but have not. I will continue to seek justice for them.”
