Housing
Authority, town, environmentalists collaborated
By Faith Tomei
Tuesday, July 1, 2003
"The true test of a democracy is not to give more to those who
already have, but help those who have less." These words, made
famous by President Theodore Roosevelt a century ago, continue to have
significance in Ipswich, where people are meeting the challenge, Sara
O'Connor said Thursday.
As vice chairman of the Ipswich Housing Authority Board, O'Connor was
speaking at the dedication of the Raymond M. Daniels Home for People
with Special Needs. Gathered at the ribbon cutting were town officials,
mental health activists, board members and employees of the Housing
Authority, environmentalists and others who collaborated to make the
group home a reality.
The new building sits on the land across from Bruni's Marketplace on
Essex Road where the old White Lion Restaurant once stood. Town Manager
George Howe said that the White Lion was "suffering from
mange" during its final years. Giving a brief history of the land,
he said that the restaurant's owners abandoned the property in the late
1980s.
The building languished for years; the property was an eyesore.
"Taxes exceeded the value of the land," Howe said, and the
town took the property for back taxes. At the same time, the Housing
Authority was negotiating for a four-acre stretch across from Doyon
School on Linebrook Road to build 20 affordable housing units.
The deal on the Linebrook Road property stalled as the $2 million
state grant for the project was frozen. Neighbors questioned how a large
development would affect the water supply of the Bull Brook reservoir.
Sewer lines didn't extend to that area; a septic system to serve the new
development could present problems.
O'Connor said the project might have been held up for 10 years due to
financial constraints. The Housing Authority, under the leadership of
former director Ray Daniels, approached the town with the idea of a land
swap.
The town would get the Housing Authority land on Linebrook Road, and
the Housing Authority would get the White Lion property on Essex Road.
Talking to board members of the Cape Ann Habitat for Humanity,
Daniels worked out an agreement where a group home for special needs
adults 55 and above would share the Essex Road acreage with Habitat
homes for low-income families.
Voters agreed to the swap at Town Meeting four years ago.
Since then, one Habitat home has been built through the efforts of
volunteers and donors from Ipswich and surrounding towns. Work on the
second and third homes will soon begin.
The group home, which includes two identical living areas with two
bedrooms, a kitchen, bathroom, living room, and patio, will house four
residents. The single-story home is fully accessible to the handicapped.
The Department of Mental Health will staff the home, which will serve
people with anxiety disorders and other manageable disabilities. The
goal will be to help the residents move on to independent living. Mental
health professionals will be on site during the day, but none of the
residents will require 24-hour supervision, O'Connor said.
Naming the group home after Ray Daniels is fitting, O'Connor said, as
a 35-year housing professional in the business of making life better for
those less fortunate. "He has been a tireless, dedicated individual
in Ipswich for 16 years. His accomplishments have been numerous. He is
our unsung hero for the folks that sometimes fall through the cracks in
our society," she said.
O'Connor thanked the many people who contributed to the effort. She
singled out Will and Beth Fields and the contractors who built the home,
and Peter Phippan and his crew for their innovative "smart
drain" that will preserve the water supply and serve as a model for
others. (See related story.)
Also speaking at the dedication was Ray Frieden, director of the
Massachusetts Bureau of Housing and Construction, who congratulated
those assembled for their collaboration in making the home a reality.