Two-Thirds of Applicants for Amherst Community Homes Qualify for Local Preference

Report on the Meeting of the Zoning Board of Appeals, April 23, 2026

This meeting was held over Zoom and was recorded.

Present: David Sloviter (acting chair), David Ahlfeld, Craig Meadows, Philip White, and Hilda Greenbaum (associate member). Absent: Everald Henry (chair). Staff: Jacinta Williams (planner).

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Amherst Community Homes Nearing Completion
Under the special permit granted in March 2024 for the development of Amherst Community Homes — the 30 affordable homes off Ball Lane — Valley Community Development Corporation (CDC) was required to return to the Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) for approval of two conditions on the permit.

The first was approval of the affirmative fair marketing plan for the selection of income-eligible first-time homebuyers, a draft of the master deed, and a sample of an individual unit deed and bylaws. The second condition required that the deed and bylaws be approved by the town attorney as well as the ZBA, so acting chair David Sloviter requested an opinion from KP Law. The board received an opinion from attorney Shirin Everett stating that the documents submitted by Valley CDC met the conditions of the permit.

Jessica Allan, real estate development director, represented Valley CDC at the meeting. She said the documents were also approved by the state Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association (CHAPA), which will serve as the monitoring agent for the property. The ZBA unanimously approved the submitted documents.

Fifty-Three Apply for 30 Affordable Homes in North Amherst
ZBA associate member Hilda Greenbaum asked how many of the 72 total applications for the project came from Amherst residents, people who work in Amherst, or people who have children in Amherst schools. “I am particularly interested in knowing whether we are filling a local need or a regional need,” she said.

Allan showed a chart of applicants to the homebuyer lottery. Of the 72 applicants, 53 qualified for the lottery. Four applicants withdrew, and 15 did not qualify — most because their income was too high or because they held more than the $150,000 in assets allowed by the Commonwealth Builders Program.

Of the 53 qualified applicants, 36, or 67%, met the terms for local preference. Twenty-six were Amherst residents, one was a town employee, six worked for local businesses, and three had children in the schools. Seventeen — 47% of the local pool — were minorities. Allan cautioned that the statistics are based on self-certification and will be verified by CHAPA before homeowners are chosen. She also commended the financial consulting firm and local residents for their outreach to Amherst’s BIPOC community.

The criteria for selecting homeowners in the lottery are, in order: eligibility under the Americans with Disabilities Act, an appropriately sized household for the unit, a “disproportionately impacted” household under U.S. Census determination, and local preference.

Applications for the 30 units were due Feb. 24, but the appeal period is still open. The lottery will be held this spring, with the development expected to be ready for occupancy in July.

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Owner-Occupancy Requirement Removed from 43 South Prospect St. Duplex
The ZBA unanimously agreed to modify the 1984 special permit that created a two-unit converted dwelling at 43 South Prospect St., removing the requirement that the building be owner-occupied. Owner Robert Eaton said Pipeline Properties would manage the property and hire a resident manager to occupy one of the units. The barn at the rear of the property is used for storage and is not occupied.

The property is across the street from an Amherst College dormitory. Two parking spaces are in the driveway and two are on the street. No changes to the property are planned.

Eaton said he would instruct the management company not to name an undergraduate as resident manager, though his attorney, Tom Reidy of Bacon Wilson, said he was uncomfortable with that as a formal condition. ZBA member Philip White reminded the board that he began his undergraduate program at age 42, noting that not all undergraduates are in their teens and early 20s.

Eaton told ZBA members that he plans to move back to the area in about three years, though not necessarily to that house. “We expect to have a footprint in Amherst, if not in that house,” he said.