Pursuant to the authority of MGL c. 44, § 55C, there is hereby created a local municipal affordable housing trust to be known as the "Wakefield Affordable Housing Trust," hereinafter the "Trust," whose purpose shall be to provide for the creation and preservation of housing that is affordable in the Town of Wakefield for the benefit of low- and moderate-income households.
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Annual Town Meeting of the Town of Wakefield 5-15-2023 by Art. 14. Amendments noted where applicable.]
There shall be a Board of Trustees of the Wakefield Affordable Housing Trust, hereinafter the "Board of Trustees," consisting of nine voting members. The voting members shall be appointed by the Town Council and shall include a member of the Town Council, a member of the Planning Board, a member of the Council on Aging, a member of the Housing Authority, a member of the Finance Committee, a member of the Commission on Disabilities, and three other members, each of whom, to the extent possible, shall have a background or interest in affordable housing, finance, law (including land use and zoning law), real estate, and/or real estate development.
The Town Council shall appoint the Trustees for a term of two years, except that three of the initial trustee appointments shall be for a term of one year, provided that said Trustees may be re-appointed at the discretion of the Town Council. Any member of the Board of Trustees who at the time of his or her appointment as such was a member of another public body which is required by § 70-2, above, to be represented on the Board of Trustees (i.e., the Town Council, Planning Board, Council on Aging, Housing Authority, Finance Committee or Commission on Disabilities) shall be deemed to have vacated his or her position on the Board of Trustees upon ceasing to serve as a member of such other public body. Vacancies shall be filled by the Town Council for the remainder of the unexpired term. Any member of the Board of Trustees may be removed by the Town Council for cause after the opportunity of a hearing.
The Town Council is hereby authorized to execute a Declaration of Trust and Certificate of Trust for the Wakefield Affordable Housing Trust to be recorded with the Middlesex Registry of Deeds and filed with the Middlesex Registry District of the Land Court.
The Board of Trustees shall have the following powers, all of which shall be carried on in furtherance of the purposes set forth in MGL c. 44, § 55C, except that any exercise of the powers described in Subsections A, B, C, D and K, below, shall require a two-thirds vote of the Board of Trustees and prior approval of the Town Council:
A.
To accept and receive real property, personal property or money, by gift, grant, contribution, devise or transfer from any person, firm, corporation or other public or private entity, including but not limited to money, grants of funds or other property tendered to the Trust in connection with any bylaw or any general or special law or any other source;
B.
To purchase and retain real or personal property, including without restriction investments that yield a high rate of income or no income;
C.
To sell, lease, exchange, transfer, or convey any personal, mixed, or real property at public auction or by private contract for such consideration and on such terms as to credit or otherwise, and to make such contracts and enter into such undertaking relative to Trust property as the Board of Trustees deems advisable notwithstanding the length of any such lease or contract;
D.
To execute, acknowledge, and deliver deeds, assignments, transfers, pledges, leases, covenants, contracts, promissory notes, releases, grant agreements, and other instruments sealed or unsealed, necessary, proper, or incident to any transaction in which the Board of Trustees engages for the accomplishment of the purposes of the Trust;
E.
To employ advisors, consultants, and agents, including, but not limited to, accountants, appraisers, and lawyers as the Board of Trustees deems necessary;
F.
To pay reasonable compensation and expenses to all advisors, consultants, and agents and to apportion such compensation between income and principal as the Board of Trustees deems advisable;
G.
To apportion receipts and charges between incomes and principal as the Board of Trustees deems advisable, to amortize premiums and establish sinking funds for such purpose, and to create reserves for depreciation, depletion or otherwise;
H.
To participate in any reorganization, recapitalization, merger, or similar transactions; and to give proxies or powers of attorney with or without power of substitution to vote any securities or certificates of interest; and to consent to any contract, lease, mortgage, purchase or sale of property, by or between any corporation and any other corporation or person;
I.
To deposit any security with any protective reorganization committee, and to delegate to such committee such powers and authority with relation thereto as the Board of Trustees may deem proper and to pay, out of Trust property, such portion of expenses and compensation of such committee as the Board of Trustees may deem necessary and appropriate;
J.
To carry property for accounting purposes other than acquisition date values;
K.
To borrow money on such terms and conditions and from such sources as the Board of Trustees deems advisable, to mortgage and pledge Trust assets as collateral; any debt incurred by the Board of Trustees shall not constitute a pledge of the full faith and credit of the Town of Wakefield and all documents related to any debt shall contain a statement that the holder of any such debt shall have no recourse against the Town of Wakefield with an acknowledgement of said statement by the holder;
L.
To make distributions or divisions of principal in kind;
M.
To comprise, attribute, defend, enforce, release, settle, or otherwise adjust claims in favor of or against the Trust, including claims for taxes, and to accept any property, either in total or partial satisfaction of any indebtedness or other obligation, and subject to the provisions of MGL c. 44, § 55C, to continue to hold the same for such period of time as the Board of Trustees may deem appropriate;
N.
To manage or improve real property;
O.
To abandon any property which the Board of Trustees determines not to be worth retaining;
P.
To hold all or part of the Trust property uninvested for such purposes and for such time as the Board of Trustees may deem appropriate;
Q.
To make recommendations on proposals to Town Meeting, subject to approval by the Town Council, when such proposals create or support affordable housing for low- and moderate-income households; and
R.
To extend the time for payment of any obligation to the Trust.
Notwithstanding any provision hereof to the contrary, the Chair of the Board of Trustees is hereby authorized to execute and deliver discharges and releases of mortgages held by the Trust without a specific authorizing vote of the Board of Trustees provided that sufficient proof has been made to him or her that all underlying obligations have been paid in full without any amount remaining owed to the Trust, and any person may rely upon the Chair's notarized signature on such a discharge or release.
The Town of Wakefield Treasurer shall be the custodian of the funds of the Trust. Any income or proceeds received from the investment of funds shall be credited to and become part of the fund. The Board of Trustees shall provide for an annual audit of the books and records of the Trust. Such audit shall be performed by an independent auditor in accordance with accepted accounting practices and may be part of the Town's annual financial audit. Upon receipt of the audit by the Board of Trustees, a copy shall be provided forthwith to the Town Council.