SALISBURY — Soil testing at the Holley Place affordable housing site on Holley Street found contamination from old heating oil, but the situation is “not as dire” as initially feared, First Selectman Curtis Rand told the Board of Selectmen at its regular meeting Monday, Sept. 14.
Construction crews digging the foundation for Holley Place in June detected the smell of fuel oil and notified the developer, the Salisbury Housing Committee, a private nonprofit organization.
The development of the 15,000-square-foot, three-story complex at 11 Holley St. in Lakeville was abruptly brought to a halt upon the discovery, pending soil testing. The plans call for 10 one-bedroom and four two-bedroom apartments, with a garage beneath the building that will provide 22 parking spaces.
Rand said remediation is expected to cost between $165,000 and $175,000. The town will consider contributing toward the expense, he said.
“It’s on town property,” Rand said.
The selectmen also discussed two funding requests from the Affordable Housing Commission: $200,000 for the Dresser Woods development in Salisbury and $81,000 for a three-unit development on Bostwick Street in Lakeville.
Rand said the Dresser Woods contribution, if approved, would strengthen an application for a substantially larger state grant. The proposed development at 37 Railroad St. would have 20 rental units in nine one- and two-story buildings. Plans call for six one-bedroom, 10 two-bedroom and four three-bedroom units.
Rand said a local contribution would demonstrate to the state “that the town has skin in the game.”
The current town budget allocates $100,000 to the commission, Rand noted. After briefly discussing how the requests might be funded, the selectmen tabled the matter and agreed to revisit it at a special meeting Tuesday, Sept. 22, at 8:30 a.m.
