Ayer Affordable Housing Committee unanimously backs housing trust warrant article

AYER -- September 21, 2020, Ayer Affordable Housing Committee votes 3-0 to place housing trust article on October 26 town meeting warrant. Chair Janet Providakis presented a slide overview of the proposed Ayer Affordable Housing Trust, to be established under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 44, Section 55C, with an initial $30,000 seed appropriation from Community Preservation Act funds. The trust would fund rental assistance, property rehabilitation, and new affordable unit construction, governed by a seven-member board of trustees that must include at least one Select Board designee as required by state statute. A separate second warrant article requesting the CPA funds is contingent on town meeting approving the trust itself. Resident Pauline, attending by phone, noted a key statutory feature: unlike most municipal accounts, any unspent trust funds carry over year to year rather than reverting to the general fund, and the board of trustees holds sole authority over expenditures.