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Methuen church may share its land with affordable housing

By Stephanie Chelf
Staff writer
Published: March 31, 2008

METHUEN — St. Andrew Episcopal Church wants to get into the business of affordable housing as part of its mission of community service.

The church at 90 Broadway is exploring the idea of building housing on its property by possibly demolishing its church rectory and moving its parking lot to accommodate new buildings.

"The parish has been on and off interested in the idea for a number of years. This church has a long history of serving people who need help," said Rev. Joseph Wilkes. "We see the housing problems and we asked 'is there a need for affordable housing in our area?' And it seems there is."

With a $7,500 grant from Episcopal City Missions, a faith-based group that promotes community development and other social programs, St. Andrew Church has hired an architect to draw conceptual plans and will soon begin a feasibility study to determine how much it would cost to build and what type of housing could be located on the site.

Wilkes said the feasibility study will look at the entire layout of the church's property — about 21/2 acres along Broadway and down Messer Avenue with rear parcels that abut the Spicket River — to determine where to build and whether the rectory or parish hall would be demolished.

Planning is in the early stages, Wilkes said, and the church needs to complete the feasibility study before any decisions are made.

Early estimates by an architect indicate that a "number of units" could be built on the church's land, Wilkes said, declining to provide a specific number.

"Whatever we do needs to be sensitive to the neighborhood and architecturally compatible with the church," Wilkes said. "This is new for us. The gift we do have is land that is not currently being used."

Karen Sawyer, community and economic development director, said the city is supportive of affordable housing at the church property.

"They want to provide affordable housing and we do too," Sawyer said. "The need is to help people in the area. We want to keep that parcel residential and recommend commercial development opportunities south (on Broadway) around Polartec."

The additional affordable housing would help the city get closer to the state-mandated goal of having 10 percent of residences be affordable.

At 10 percent, a city does not have to abide by the state 40B law, which allows developers offering affordable housing to skirt local zoning laws. The city needs 48 more affordable units to make the 10 percent goal, Sawyer said.

The ongoing foreclosure crisis indicates to Wilkes that there will soon be a greater need for more affordable housing opportunities.

"There's an appropriate and energizing sense of urgency to address that question of (housing) needs," Wilkes said. "It's not just a business question, but are we called to respond to God's mission in this way."

The main church was erected by millionaire Edward Searles in 1904. It was designed by well-known Gothic architect Henry Vaughn, who also designed the building that is now Methuen City Hall. The seven-room church rectory, also about 100 years old, is next door to the church.

The property is part of the city's Historic District and any new construction would require approval from the Historic District Commission.

"It's a very historic building and we wouldn't want to demolish any part of that," Wilkes said of the main church. "That's something we want to avoid. We love our church building."

The feasibility study would also have to address potential flooding concerns, because of the site's proximity to the Spicket River. Nearby sections of Broadway, including the Methuen Memorial Musical Hall, were the victims of significant flooding in 2006.

"They have the land, but they can't build closer to the river," Sawyer said.

Episcopal City Missions, a nonprofit faith-based group, has been behind affordable housing projects for decades and is supporting the feasibility study by the Methuen church, said Maria Plati, communications director of Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts.

"ECM has a history of housing for homeless and shelters, and it has morphed into affordable housing," Plati said. "The commitment to affordable housing is in line with goals of the diocese."

ECM provides grant money to develop affordable housing as well as professional guidance to help churches. The nonprofit also runs several affordable housing developments.

"A lot of these older buildings (are ones) parishes will do a feasibility study around," Plati said. "In some cases, it can be financially desirable to have an income-generating project. ECM can come help them make the assessment and (determine) where possibly affordable housing is a good option."

Wilkes could not say how much a development would cost or how much money the parish would earn in income. The church would look for a partner to help develop the property and seek additional grants from the Episcopal City Missions.

"There are a lot of steps to take and we want to include all of the stakeholders," Wilkes said.

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