A task force studying elderly housing options for the River Road area will continue its work, despite a healthcare provider withdrawing its plans to develop the land of the St. Francis Retreat Center.
Previously, an official with Continental Wingate Development Company had presented plans for creating around 200 elderly housing units on the retreat center land. Wingate Healthcare owns a 135-bed elderly housing community on Andover Street and 18 other facilities throughout Massachusetts and New York.
The project aiming to develop the land helped spawn the town's Franciscan Overlay Task Force, which was charged with studying elderly housing zoning options for that area, according to the town. Since then, Wingate has decided not to pursue developing the retreat center land, said Arthur Friedman, task force co-chairman.
"Wingate might have been the thesis to start this, but it wasn't the focus of the task force," he said.
Now, the task force has an opportunity to create something independent of any pending proposal, according to Friedman.
"Does it make sense to create an elderly overlay district?" said Friedman. "Our goal is to look at the entire area and see if we can meet the needs of our elderly citizens with assisted living, independent care and nursing care."
The task force also is looking at other land in the area, according to Friedman.
"We're not restricting ourselves to one piece of property," said Friedman. "Potentially, the district might be bigger than the Franciscan property.
The task force is looking specifically "to put down on a piece of paper, what do we think should be in this district, and what we think the boundaries should be," said Friedman. "Then we'd propose that to the selectmen and, if that got traction, to go to a Town Meeting."
The task force could give selectmen its recommendations later this year, Friedman said. People with questions, thoughts or ideas on the subject are encouraged to contact Paul Materazzo, town planning director.
An official with Continental Wingate Development Company couldn't be reached for comment for this story.
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