Katama Meadows receives town support

A housing project in Edgartown is getting support from the town’s select board after extensive discussion, though environmental concerns were raised.

Katama Meadows, formerly known as Meeting House Place, was once a development for a nearly 300-bedroom building, but after coming up against some roadblocks in the past six years, they now are planning to build 52 single-family homes instead — located on Meetinghouse Way. 

In the new iteration, 14 lots will be donated to the town of Edgartown for a future affordable housing project of their design, and 12 lots will be built by the developer and then sold through a housing lottery to year-round residents. The plan also seeks to preserve about half of the land, with about 30 acres developed and 25 conserved of the 54 acres total. 

The Katama Meadows developers are now moving through the municipal process with this new design. Some town officials still have their doubts about the project, but others said it will add much needed housing stock to a largely under-represented cohort of the local community — the “missing middle.”

In a select board meeting on Monday, Robb Moriarty, the lawyer presiding over the project, presented to members. The agenda item was for the town to accept the gift of the 14 lots, according to those present, but the discussion veered in a different direction. 

“This is going to provide housing for 26 Island families that wouldn’t otherwise have it,” Moriarty said. “It’s a good project, and much improved from where it was.”

Melissa Vincent, the chair of Edgartown’s affordable housing committee, agreed. The housing committee reviewed the amended plan in June and agreed to send a letter of support to the Martha’s Vineyard Commission on the project’s behalf, stating that the gift of the lots to the town and the income bracket that the development would be serving would be beneficial. 

“The affordable housing committee met with the town and the goals are … to try to take care of … the ‘missing middle,’” Vincent said. “We do believe that if the project overall is seen as a benefit outweighing a detriment to the town of Edgartown, then what we’ve laid out here would be beneficial to ‘missing middle’ and moderate income folks.”

But some in Monday’s select board meeting called on the board to review the project based on its environmental impacts, especially due to the land’s proximity to Edgartown Great Pond. 

Emily Reddington, executive director of the Great Pond Foundation, said she’s been studying the pond for a decade. The foundation has done a few studies on the health of Edgartown Great Pond and others across the Island, and has found that developments add nitrogen to watersheds. She said it’s where developments happen that matters from an environmental perspective, and the proximity of Katama Meadows to housing developments like Meshacket Way and Slough Cove in that location make the situation especially dire. 

“What I can tell you is with current buildout, the nitrogen load that is already in the watershed is the tipping point for the health of this pond,” Reddington said. “So you’re talking about affordable housing — that middle — I agree with you, that’s necessary. We’re gonna miss a huge part of the community if we don’t meet that. But you also have the obligation of dealing with nitrogen.”

According to the Martha’s Vineyard Commission’s water quality for nitrogen, Katama Meadows’ previous plan abided by the outlined wastewater and nitrogen limitations for a project of its size. 

Julia Livingston, a planning board member who has previously spoken against this project, but most recently was supportive of the plans, reversed again and doubled down on her opposition. 

“From an environmental point of view this doesn’t make it better. From a traffic point of view it’s not better,” said Livingston.

Livingston then addressed the select board: “I would just encourage you not to just accept something today that is so unformed and has so much opposition.” 

Select board member Art Smadbeck countered her point, and spoke in support of the project. He clarified that the motion on their desk was to accept the gift of the 14 lots to the town of Edgartown, not approve the project itself. 

“The idea that this doesn’t address a housing need we desperately want is the issue we’re dealing with. The issue that you’re dealing with, you get to deal with. You’re on the planning board. It comes to you. You can decide about the big project. We’re not talking about that. We’re not deciding on the big project. What we’re here to talk about are these 14 lots that I think would be great if this project is approved by you … and the commission,” Smadbeck said to Livingston.

Both he and Livingston addressed the parallels between the Katama Meadows development and a “missing middle” development by Rob McCarron that was built on Jernagen Pond Road in Edgartown a few years back. The McCarron development had positive feedback from the town for housing essential workers and Islanders making moderate incomes. Smadbeck said that the model of housing development was an “excellent one.”

“This fills the need for the nurses and the firefighters and the policeman and the people who serve the community. They serve you. They serve me,” Smadbeck said. 

The select board decided to write a letter of support to the planning board and the Martha’s Vineyard Commission, citing its potential to address locals who are housing insecure, but make too much to qualify for other affordable housing initiatives. 

In an interview with the Times, Moriarty said he’s grateful for the support of the boards. He said there’s a lot to look forward to with Katama Meadows. And he said the timeline they’re looking at for this new plan will culminate in October. It will be filed before August 27th, with a hearing at the planning board scheduled for September 16th. Then, they’ll go to the Martha’s Vineyard Commission. 

“It’s clear that the Edgartown select board and affordable housing committee are in favor of housing for 26 hard-working Island families,” Moriarty said. “We are grateful for their support of the planned donation of 14 lots squarely deed-restricted for the ‘missing middle,’ and the 12 lots that will be sold by my client for $295,000 each that will also be income and year-round occupancy restricted for the missing middle, forever.”