By Kim Siebert MacPhail
Selectman Margot Fleischman reported at the Selectmen’s meeting on Monday night that the Town’s Volunteer Coordinating Committee (VCC) has been “investigating the possibility of consolidating affordable housing committees because it has been such an ongoing and long-standing struggle to fill all the vacancies necessary for the three different affordable housing committees to make their quorums.”
The VCC conducted some background research and then took a consolidation proposal to the three groups—Affordable Housing, Fair Housing and Housing Partnership—where it was unanimously endorsed at their joint meeting in January. Consolidation would create a single affordable housing committee—to be called “The Housing Partnership— with a recommended membership of nine members.
“This will streamline a lot of these multiple responsibilities,” Fleischman said. “The draft proposal will be sent by Carol Amick [Chair of the Volunteer Coordinating Committee] to the Town Manager’s office. Carol has put together a background memo about how all these committees came to be. The plan is for [the Selectmen] to discuss whether to put this on the Annual Town Meeting [warrant].”
The Town’s legal counsel will weigh in on the issue before a public hearing is scheduled to solicit input for the Selectmen’s consideration.