Harris Lot remains top candidate for downtown housing

The Select Board says that M&S Development of Brattleboro still has an interest in the parking lot behind the Gibson-Aiken Center on Main Street.

Town planners are continuing to look at Harris Lot as a possible housing site, while also reviewing several other municipal properties for future development.

On Tuesday, Planning Director Sue Fillion told the Select Board that M&S Development of Brattleboro still has an interest in the parking lot behind the Gibson-Aiken Center on Main Street. The company was originally tapped after the town issued a request for qualifications in 2022 to examine whether the site could support roughly four to six stories of housing along with an underground parking garage.

Fillion said the town still sees the location as one of its strongest options for new housing in the downtown area. She added that some available resources could help move the work ahead, although any project there would take time.

The property has long been viewed as a complicated but promising site. In its 2022 materials, M&S described the project as a way to add mixed-income homes in a walkable part of town with nearby services. The firm also said the development would help address a tight local housing market. At the same time, it noted that an underground garage would preserve public parking downtown but would add major cost and make the project less financially attractive.

Because the lot is hemmed in by surrounding buildings, the construction footprint would be limited. M&S also warned that the project would likely need subsidy support in order to include mixed-income housing and that it would not qualify for several major tax credit programs because it would be a new residential development rather than recognized affordable housing.

The firm has previously worked on major projects in Brattleboro and beyond, including the Brooks House redevelopment, 47 Flat St., the Putnam Block in Bennington and an apartment complex in Rhode Island.

The Harris Lot effort had slowed after changes in town management and because M&S was occupied with work in Bennington, Fillion said. Even so, she said the site remains a strong candidate for downtown development.

Town officials are also reviewing other holdings. Fillion said the Planning Services Department was asked to suggest parcels that might be developed or sold, and the town has created an online inventory of town-owned land at brattleboro.gov/town-owned-land.

Among the other possibilities she discussed was the Municipal Center. If town offices were moved elsewhere, Fillion said, the property could be considered for housing because of the size of the parcel and the flexibility it offers.

She said the town could potentially sell the building while retaining some land or parking space for the library. She also pointed to town-owned parcels on Wilson's Woods Road, where environmental and permitting issues could complicate development. In her view, those lots would likely make the most sense as one combined sale to a single developer, since a road would need to be built. She said the state’s Community and Housing Infrastructure Program, or CHIP, could help.

Another possible site is a 0.5 acre parcel next to the police station on Black Mountain Road. Fillion also said that if the Department of Public Works were ever to move from its Fairground Road location, that land would be well suited for redevelopment because of its proximity to the hospital and schools.

For now, however, she said Harris Lot is the town’s leading candidate because M&S remains interested in pursuing it.