CPC Votes To Use $25K For Appraisal Of St. James Land

Last night the Community Preservation Committee approved using its funds for a $25,000 appraisal and study of the St. James Property, after hearing some bad, but perhaps anticipated news.

Town Counsel Al Robinson told CPC members that he had examined the Community Preservation Act and discussed it with Community Preservation Coalition Executive Director Stuart Saginor. Saginor, he said, didn't believe CPC funds could be applied to any buildings anticipated for the St. James Property.

The 8-acre site, which the Archdiocese of Boston is expected to put on the market, was the subject of the St. James the Great Alternative Land Use Study, which identified three potential uses for the land should the town acquire it: Recreation, Residential Development and Retail Development. The most popular of those options among residents is the recreation option, which includes a field, hockey rink and indoor pool. Robinson has been researching the possibility of using CPC funds for that project.

"I do concur. In my opinion CPA funds could not be legally, permissibly applied," to the buildings included in the plan, Robinson said.

Also attending the meeting at the Wellesley Police Department's Kingsbury Room were a group of town officials, including Selectmen Gig Babson and Ellen Gibbs, Planning Board members Don McCauley and Rose Mary Donahue and Recreation Commission Vice Chairman Andy Wrobel. A citizen comment period of the meeting had been scheduled, but no members of the public attended.

Robinson said CPC funds could be used to develop the field portion of the land, but any structures would have to be funded through another source.

CPC Vice Chair Tony Parker asked if the town could purchase the land with CPC funds and build there at a later date.  Robinson said if the town were to use CPC funds to buy the land, deed restrictions would hamper the town's ability to build anything there in the future.

As for the appraisal of the land, Parker said he assumed the town will end up bidding for the property against other buyers.

"I'm with you one hundred percent," Robinson said. He said the town should plan to make a competitive bid for the property, which has so far been estimated by Concord Square Development to be worth about $3.5 million. "We want to know who our competition is," he said.

The CPC ended the discussion with a unanimous vote to set aside the $25,000 for an in-depth appraisal of the land, this time with a focus on finding a figure that is likely to be competitive with other potential buyers. The funding will also support a feasibility study for plans on the land.