Woodstock has taken a step toward addressing its housing crisis by hiring Albany-based Fisher Associates at a preliminary cost of $185,439 to produce designs for developers to build homes on town-owned land.
In response to a request for proposals issued in September, the winning bidder, Fisher, will be paid out of $199,000 in Covid-era American Rescue Plan funds. Supervisor Bill McKenna said he would make a proposal for the remaining ARP funds next month.
Seven town-owned parcels have been identified: the Mountainview and Rock City Road parking lots, two parcels on Zena Highwoods Road, 31 acres in Zena, the parcel at 2441 Route 212 known as Little Deep, and possibly open space at the Woodstock Commons development.
With the engineering and site plans for specific sites done, town officials hope, developers will find building affordable housing in Woodstock a much less risky proposition.
“Making town-owned land shovel-ready is just one party of a multi-pronged approach toward tackling affordable housing. Another prong is HomeShare Woodstock, which now in its third year has ten matches of homeowner and tenant.”
Woodstock started and abandoned a low-interest loan program for accessory dwelling units after programs like the Rupco-administered Plus One offered grants instead of loans. “The $175,000. In ARP money the town committed to the loan program will be used for another initiative to be determined.”
Fisher will collaborate with the town to determine the most suitable site or sites for housing. Site-selection criteria will include “access to goods, services and amenities that make a community livable, safe, all while enhancing the surrounding area,” its proposal stated.
The last major affordable housing project in town was Woodstock Commons, a 53-unit complex developed by Rupco and opened in 2013 after nearly a decade of effort, including some six years of opposition at the planning board from neighbors who now mostly agree it was a good fit for the community.
In the first stage of its work, Fisher will review schedules, budget and scope. A second stage will involve more detailed study of up to three potential sites. In the final stage, the design team will develop schematic site plans, including detailed boundary and topographic surveys, for up to two sites.
Councilmembers Anula Courtis and Bennet Ratcliff, housing committee co-chairs Katherine Tegan and John Huber, and Ulster County senior planner Kai Lord Farmer to score the RFP respondents. Fisher Associates came out on top.
Ratcliff called it a strong proposal. “I’m sorry it’s taken so long to get to this, but we’re here,” he said.
Fisher has experience with affordable-housing projects in Ithaca, Rome, Rochester and Utica.
Site plans are expected to be submitted to the town for review by late October 2025.
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