A divided Planning Board has approved the use of a parking lot at the St. Patrick School building for senior housing.
In a 4-3 vote, the board approved Southwestern Community Services’ site plan to construct a three story, 24-unit senior housing complex, under the condition that more landscaping is added to the front of the building.
The lot sits on one side of the school building, which is empty.
“If we deny this project, we will lose the rabbit,” said board member Don MacIsaac, one of four to approve the site plan. “I think that there is a workable solution here.”
Much of the angst surrounding the project is the projected height of the building and its relation to other nearby buildings.
Board member Tim Gordon, who motioned to deny the project, said the three-story building would look out of place in town. Gordon had asked if SCS had considered other locations, or making the building two stories instead of three.
“If you look at the scale of the project, it isn’t going to blend in with the surrounding buildings,” said Gordon. “My objection is that I don’t see a plan for the entire site.”
Those in favor of approving the project agreed that it would be a boon for the future of Jaffrey.
“This project is a magnet that will attract other things to the area,” said Owen Houghton, who was representing the United Church. “I think this project will provide an exciting opportunity for the town.”
Tuesday’s meeting was likely a make-or-break meeting for the project happening this year, as Thibault said he needed to have town approval in place so he could submit an application for grant funding by the end of the month.
Thibault said he was willing to speak with his architect about adding some trees and doing other minor changes that could reduce the visual impact of the building.
“If it is a condition of adding trees or doing things like softening the roof, that’s something we can achieve,” said Thibault. “But if we have to downsize the building or change the number of floors, maybe we can’t make this work.”
With town approval in place, SCS is now working on securing funding for the project. The hope, according to Thibault, is to cover the project two-thirds by equity sources like the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority and one-third by grants such as community development block grants.
Thibault said he should know by October as to whether the project is viable.
Nicholas Handy can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 235 or nhandy@ledgertranscript.com. He is also on Twitter @nhandyMLT.