Church donates houses for aff ordable housing
By Melissa Muntz Contributing Writer

Shrewsbury - In what St. Mary's Parish representative Joan Fouhy called a great act of synchronicity, the Shrewsbury Housing Authority has received a grant alert to apply for state money earmarked for low-income family housing just as St. Mary's was hoping to donate three properties to the Housing Authority for just that purpose.

The three homes located at 18 Summer St., 26 Summer St. and 630 Main St. are currently used to house families in transition, parish priests and nuns, however the homes must be removed to allow for the parish expansion project set to begin in 2009.

The expansion of the church and adjoining school initially required the buildings be razed, but the parish wanted to make sure that families in need were still able to utilize the homes.

"It fits with the social mission of the church to care for people in need," Fouhy said in a presentation before the Board of Selectman Sept. 24.

The value of the donated homes is roughly $750,000, and the value of the three lots being donated by the Housing Authority is $500,000.

Housing Authority Chair Anthony Cultrera said the $500,000 Housing and Urban Development Community Development grant the town is applying for would cover all necessary site improvements and the cost of transporting the homes.

The only cost to the town will be the donation of administration and engineering support.

"It's a complete win-win for Shrewsbury and the Shrewsbury Housing Authority," Cultrera said. "With the Catholic church handing us these houses, it would be foolish not to take them."

There is no timeline for the proposed relocation of the houses, however Housing Authority Executive Director Dennis Osborn said projects like these tend to take time. The Housing Authority is just now completing projects that they began moving forward with in 2002.

"These things tend to grind very slowly … [so] two years is probably optimistic," Osborn said.

The relocation of the three homes will add four properties to the town's 40B aff ordable housing list, in the form of two single-family homes and one duplex. Osborn said the Housing Authority's waiting list for aff ordable family units is quite long, and that local families will have preference for the properties.

"We currently have 17 family residences and it doesn't meet the need for the town," he said. "We just can't exhaust the waiting list."

If the town does not receive the full $500,000 grant, at least a portion of the project will be completed, Osborn said.

The application must come from the town rather than the Housing Authority, and the Board of Selectmen unanimously approved moving forward with the grant application.