WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The last couple years, there have been two constants in the deliberations of the Community Preservation Committee: a large number of applicants and a debate among committee members about whether the town should do more to build up a reserve of CPA funds.

 

The former will not be an issue this year.

 

The committee meets Wednesday to begin considering the two applications the town received for Community Preservation Act money in 2018.

 

The trustees of the town's Affordable Housing Trust are looking for $20,000 to help income-qualified residents purchase materials used to make needed home repairs under Northern Berkshire Habitat for Humanity's Critical Repairs Program.

 

The town's Conservation Commission seeks $19,000 to install a water treatment system to restore drinkable water at Margaret Lindley Park.

 

The combined $39,000 is less than 20 percent of the $196,501 sought by eight different applicants in January 2017. Ultimately, the CPC recommended all eight applications, some at reduced amounts, for an aggregate of $160,823; the eight were approved in separate warrant articles at town meeting.

 

The 2018 chair of the committee said last week she did not know whether the panel's past conversations about fiscal restraint had a "chilling effect" on potential applicants in the current funding cycle.

 

"Certainly, you could draw the conclusion that the committee made it clear there are limited funds, and maybe people rethought coming back," said Jane Patton, who fills the Select Board's seat on the CPC. "The other consistent message from the committee has been: Please don't keep coming back without doing your own fund-raising."

 

Patton is returning to the CPC after a couple of years off the committee. She said she was surprised to see only the two applicants for 2018.

 

The Community Preservation Act, as adopted by Williamstown in 2002, is funded by a 2 percent surcharge on property taxes, with the first $100,000 of valuation exempted.

 

There also is a match from the commonwealth, which was 100 percent at the time the town chose to participate in the CPA but which has fallen steadily. In 2017, communities like Williamstown received a 17.2 percent state match; communities where the local tax is 3 percent, the maximum allowed under the act, the state match came at a higher rate.

 

CPA money funds projects in three areas: historic preservation, open space and recreation, and affordable housing. The first decision for the committee each winter is whether each applicant satisfies at least one of those three areas.

 

The town is required to allocate a portion of its CPA funds to each of the three areas. For the next nine years, Williamstown satisfies that requirement with its payments on the bond to support the Cable Mills apartments. The Water Street development preserved a historic mill building, created recreational access to the adjacent Green River and set aside income-sensitive units, increasing the town's stock of affordable housing.

 

One frequent applicant in recent years has been the Williamstown Historical Museum, which last year received $5,000 after requesting $7,700 to help it preserve, conserve and display "historically valuable textiles."

 

The museum's executive director said last week that the organization's absence from the process is not due to any "chill" from past appearances before the committee.

 

"A lot of our energy was spent moving into our new location and getting settled in, learning how our new space works," Sarah Currie said, referring to the museum's move from the Milne Public Library to the former Little Red Schoolhouse building at the Five Corners in South Williamstown. "This year, I wanted to spend a quiet winter catching up on cataloging, which we're doing. Hopefully, that will be beneficial when we apply in the future, which we certainly will."

 

Currie said she thinks that the modest number of applicants this year will help the committee in its desire to build up reserves, but she did not think that desire influenced the museum's decision not to apply.

 

"I don't think that would have prohibited us from participating this year," she said. "If I felt there was something we absolutely wanted to receive funding for, we would have made the request."

 

In recent years, the CPC has added a couple of features to its application that hint at the committee's fiscal restraint.

 

Applicants the last couple of years have been asked to explain how they plan to match any CPA funds they receive. "The Williamstown CPC strongly encourages applicants to seek and secure funding for their projects from other sources. We will prioritize projects for which the CPC would participate with other funding sources," the application reads.

 

This year's application also notes that, "For Fiscal Year 2019, the Committee anticipates not recommending appropriations of Community Preservation funds in excess of $115,026 for all new applications."

 

In the fall, the CPC offered potential applicants the opportunity to meet with a few members of the panel to discuss the process prior to submitting an application. Patton said she did not know exactly how many people did, but she believed the number was fewer than three.

 

"It was fewer than I would have imagined, but that could go to the fact that a lot of the people who come to the CPC for funds know the lay of the land," Patton said. "I don't know who would have been a first-timer."

 

The small number of applications this time around probably will make for some short meetings when the committee does its review. While Patton said she won't complain about have a short committee meeting, she also would not have had a problem if this panel had a little more on its plate.

 

"This is my favorite committee," she said. "Often in town government, we're in a position to do very little and have to be more on the 'no' side than the 'yes' side. To do this, for me, has always been enjoyable."