APCC: Projects

APCC Current Projects

The Upper Cape Water and Wildlife Reserve

Communities Connected by Water/Watershed Advocacy Network

Cost of Community Services
Rapid residential growth in Cape Cod towns is straining natural resources and community infrastructure. Although Cape communities passed legislation in 1998 to establish a land bank to fund open space purchases, the expected revenues will not be adequate to preserve enough open space on Cape Cod to meet the goals of our Regional Policy Plan (link to Cape Cod Commission, Regional Policy Plan).

The Association for the Preservation of Cape Cod believes that information about the fiscal impacts of different land uses can help communities make better decisions about future growth options. APCC recently completed Phase I of a cost of development project that compared increases in growth to increases in town budgets in the 15 Cape towns.

As part of Phase II of the cost of development project, APCC is undertaking cost of community services analyses in three Cape towns, Brewster, Truro and Barnstable. These analyses evaluate the impact of different land use options on local budgets by allocating revenues and expenses in towns according to the type of land use.

The Upper Cape Water and Wildlife Reserve
Activities at the Massachusetts Military Reservation (MMR) over the past several decades have been responsible for the pollution of millions of gallons of groundwater, the source of our drinking water on Cape Cod. In 1989, the southern part of the MMR was declared a Superfund site. Clean-up of 14 contaminant plumes emanating from activities in this part of the base is underway at present (link to the MMR web site and to APCCs publications section).

The upper 15,000 acres of the MMR has been designated one of the most ecologically significant locations in the northeast US by the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species programs.

In the late 1990s, the US Environmental Protection Agency banned the use of explosives, propellants and lead-containing bullets in the northern 15,000 acres out of concern for impacts of military activities on potential water supplies.

The Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs established the Community Working Group to design a Master Plan for the entire MMR. The Master Plan, completed in September of 1998, called for preserving the northern acres for the management of water supply, wildlife habitat, and compatible and necessary military uses. Shortly thereafter, Congressman William Delahunt called for the creation of a wildlife refuge on the site and APCC spearheaded the formation of a coalition of organizations to work for permanent protection of the northern 15,000 acres of the Massachusetts Military Reservation (MMR). In 1999, the Governor issued an Executive Order calling for the formation of the Upper Cape Water Supply Reserve and House Bill 4814 was filed to make the designation permanent.

The Coalition, comprising 48-member organizations made much progress in 2000, despite our inability to get the bill passed during the recent legislative session. Congressman Delahunt and members of the Cape's legislative delegation to the State are working on new plans to introduce legislation during the coming year. APCC and the coalition will continue to work for preservation of this land.

The Business Roundtable
The APCC Business Roundtable (BRT) is a 22-member group of business, environmental, and civic leaders who meet regularly to address issues of regional significance. The Roundtable philosophy is based on the tenet that certain regional issues affect the quality of life of all Cape Codders, and that people from diverse backgrounds, possessing different talents and areas of expertise, can bring a fresh collaborative perspective to the search for workable solutions to these problems.

Recently, the Business Roundtable completed its discussion of the affordable housing dilemma on Cape Cod. Roundtable members identified affordable housing as a serious problem for many segments of the population that are not typically considered in need of affordable housing. These include seasonal employees and young families who, in this booming economy, no longer can find reasonable rents or low mortgage payments. Roundtable members share the conviction that adequate housing should be available for all Cape Codders and reached consensus on 14 mechanisms to increase the amount of affordable housing.

1. The Business Roundtable believes Cape Cod should strive for 10% affordable permanent (not all subsidized) housing stock.

2. To create higher density districts in appropriate areas, the Business Roundtable supports smaller lot sizes, housing over retail space, multi-family units, and in-law apartments. The BRT also supports public sewering in those areas to protect ground and surface water resources, provided that the sewer service is strictly reserved for the higher density district.

3. The BRT believes that increases in zoning density must be offset by reduced density elsewhere so as not to increase the total number of units that can be built in the future.

4. The BRT encourages the reuse and rehabilitation of existing buildings for affordable housing where feasible.

5. The BRT proposes that at least 20% of the housing permitted in higher density areas must be tied to affordable housing.

6. The BRT supports the exemption of all affordable housing units from town building caps.

7. The BRT believes the Cape should seek approximately ten million dollars annually from several sources that provide funds for both buying and renting units.

8. Potential sources of funds for affordable housing that are supported by the BRT include the Community Preservation Act, the County Housing Finance Authority, and the use of development agreements.

9. The BRT supports voluntary funding sources, including rounding up to the next dollar regular household expenses, such as mortgages, utility bills and the like.

10. The BRT supports the development of model programs for Employer Assisted Housing.

11. The BRT encourages banks and local housing authorities to collaborate on programs that would increase purchases of rental units by the authorities.

12. The BRT encourages municipalities to enter into tax stabilization agreements, tax treaties and other financial incentive programs to promote the development or redevelopment of affordable housing.

13. The BRT supports the Barnstable County Housing Land Trust, which provides affordable housing while preserving open space.

14. The BRT encourages local Boards of Appeal to mandate that units designated as affordable in a Chapter 40B development project be encumbered by a Chapter 184, Section 31-33 housing preservation restriction, so that units will retain their affordable status in perpetuity.

Communities Connected by Water/Watershed Advocacy Network
APCC believes that informed citizens are the key to resource conservation. To promote stewardship among the public, APCC has partnered with the Cape Cod Commission to put on a series of workshops about groundwater, coastal water and inland water quality issues. To date, 5 workshops have been completed, one on water supply, one on eutrophication of coastal waters, one on pond water quality, and two on wildlife habitats. Participants in the workshops automatically become part of the watershed advocacy network and receive brochures and other handouts that describe and discuss water supply and water quality issues. Three brochures have been printed and distributed. Participants also receive information about model by-laws they can take back to their towns to help their communities make better decisions about growth.

In the coming months, APCC will write and distribute fact sheets and brochures about watersheds (What's Your Watershed Address?), wetlands (Wetlands; Kidneys of the Earth), Estuaries (Our Bountiful Coastal Waters) and others. Our goal is the development and maintenance of a cadre of informed watershed stewards who, with knowledge of how our every day activities on land affect our water resources, will become effective advocates for resource protection.