On June 28, the Local Housing partnership heard a conceptual plan for this development presented by Dr. Emil Reinhalter of Alexander Way. The property is located at 70 Bow Street, which contains 8.92 acres. Reinhalter bought this land in 2009. He also owns 56 Bow Street, which he purchased in 1995.

While there is not currently a formal Chapter 40B application filed with the town, Local Housing Partnership Chair Diane Bartlett said Reinhalter showed his plans to the committee out of courtesy and to obtain its endorsement since there is an affordable housing component to the plans. Known as the anti-snob zoning law, Chapter 40B is a state law that allows builders to bypass local zoning laws and town committee reviews when developing land, provided that 25 percent of the housing units are kept affordable. Chapter 40B is used in towns that have less than 10 percent affordable housing.

Bartlett said the Bow Street land is primarily upland although it has a quarter of an acre of wetlands and it abuts wetlands at the North Hill marsh area. The conceptual plan shows house lots that range from 5,360 square feet to 20,000 square feet. A conventional one-acre lot contains 43,560 square feet.

Local Housing Partnership member George Wadsworth reported to the planning board Monday night that the plans showed three separate designs for single-family homes. There are no rental units.

Bartlett said the homes are between 1,500 to 1,600 square feet in size and are designed in a Nantucket cottage style with cedar shakes. The houses have full basements and garages.

The plans show a 20-foot road consisting of two 10-foot lanes into the property. The buildings cover approximately 13 percent of the land and there is 75 percent open space, said Bartlett. A community garden is also listed on the plans, she said.

Bartlett said the Local Housing Partnership had issues with the plans, including density and the number of affordable units, which members wanted to see increased.

“Density was of great concern,” said Bartlett. “Also, we really wanted the affordable units increased to 35 percent, which would be 10 units instead of seven, because there is a need for affordable housing in our town.”

The Local Housing Partnership also recommended that the development be made 70 percent local preference, which would give eligible Duxbury residents first chance at the majority of the affordable housing units, said Bartlett.

The Local Housing Partnership voted five to one with one abstention to write a letter endorsing the Bow Street 40B if Reinhalter increased the number of affordable units to ten. Wadsworth said he voted against the endorsement.

Bartlett said Reinhalter wanted the letter because he will try to get financing from Mass Housing and that agency looks for local recommendations.

Bartlett noted that her committee did not hear any input from neighbors to the project. She also explained that the Bow Street project is not a Local Initiative Project, or LIP.  This is a state housing program established to give towns more flexibility in providing affordable housing. LIP projects are also known as “friendly 40B’s” because they are submitted under Chapter 40B, but the developer is supposed to work co-operatively with town officials during the comprehensive permit process. Under the LIP, endorsement by selectmen is the first step in the process.

The Chapter 40B project for Bow Street is the second proposal at this location. Reinhalter applied to the planning board for a conventional subdivision in August 2010 but withdrew his plans that same evening after learning that the board favored a residential conservation cluster (RCC) plan for the land.

The conventional subdivision plans showed six house lots each over 40,000 square feet, as well as a road, a bridge, a 20 to 30 foot retaining wall and a 50-foot circular turnaround, according to Town Planner Tom Broadrick.

At the time, the planning board endorsed the cluster subdivision with six  20,000 square foot lots and dedicated open space.

Developers of Chapter 40B projects apply to the Zoning Board of Appeals, which has the primary jurisdiction under Chapter 40B, although the ZBA can ask for recommendations from other town committees during the approval process.

There has been talk around town about multiple Chapter 40B applications coming forward, including two on South Street, the Bow Street project and an expansion at Bay Farm.

Bartlett said that until Duxbury reaches the bar of having ten percent of its housing considered affordable, then it will be subject to Chapter 40B developments.

“Until we hit ten percent we have to deal with 40B. Our hands are tied,” she said.