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June 30, 2006

High court upholds Barrington affordable housing plan

PROVIDENCE -- The Rhode Island Supreme Court has upheld a decision by the State Housing Appeals Board granting approval for the construction of a 50-unit affordable housing development in Barrington.

The ruling, released to the public today, appears to clear the way for the East Bay Community Development Corporation, a Bristol-based nonprofit, to build the Sweetbriar housing proposal on the site of the former West Barrington Elementary School, off Washington Road.

In its ruling, the court instructs the Barrington Zoning Board to issue all necessary permits and approvals for the $9.8 million project, which has been in the works since 2003. But it does not prohibit the board from imposing conditions on the proposal.

It was the Zoning Board that initially turned down the application for the proposal, finding in 2004 that the housing proposal was not consistent with Barrington’s comprehensive plan. The plan recommended redeveloping the approximately 9-acre site of the school for commercial purposes, rather than housing.

-- Journal staff writer Alex Kuffner

Posted by Steve Peoples  at 5:19 PM | Permalink

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