MASHPEE – The Cape Cod Commission has ruled Mashpee Commons eligible for a development agreement paving the way for an expansion.
Development agreements encompass large, mixed-use projects across multiple parcels.
Mashpee Commons officials hope to develop more than 180 acres for a community activity center which will include housing, businesses and recreation space.
The proposed expansion would extend the Commons footprint east of Great Neck Road South and west past Mashpee Public Library.
Mashpee Commons Managing General Partner Arnold “Buff” Chace said these types of development are becoming more common.
“People have identified these types of activities and this type of development as something they want as a positive rather than a negative,” Chace said.
Formal discussions between the Commons and the town about possible expansion started a couple years ago.
Chace said a major component of the development will be affordable and workforce housing.
“We want to attack the housing need, the dramatic housing need, that you have on Cape Cod, we have at Mashpee Commons and the towns around us,” Chace said. “We want to provide different housing types that don’t exist now.”
Commons officials hope the development will become a model for the region.
Eliza Cox, an attorney representing Mashpee Commons, said a development agreement would also eliminate the need to continually seek permits for new projects on the property.
“It will be particularly cumbersome to have to go to the Cape Cod Commission every time a development is proposed on this land, which is one of the reasons why we think the development agreement makes so much sense,” Cox said.
Cox said the combination of having a large amount of land under Commons control and a developer focused on smart, environmentally friendly growth presents an opportunity to do more.
The Cape Cod Commission’s Regional Policy Plan describes a community activity center as an area that includes mixed-use, multi-family housing, and diverse services, including shopping, recreation, civic spaces and job opportunities, along with adequate infrastructure and pedestrian amenities.
“We think that your designation of this area as a community activity center provides great opportunity for responsible pedestrian oriented smart development that can hopefully make significant strides to achieve and address issues facing our region,” Cox said.
Cox said the development would help with issues such as housing availability and water quality.
The Commons believes the vision for the property is consistent with the Commission’s community activity center designation.
Cox said retail trends will provide challenges, along with the cost of development and infrastructure and possible regulation and permitting changes.
The Commons will now work to complete a development agreement application.
Mashpee Commons is the largest tax revenue generator for the town.
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