Lakeville Hospital proposal could impact town’s water supply, rural character, select board said

LAKEVILLE — The Lakeville Select Board raised concerns at a May 6 meeting that a proposed multi-family housing development at the former Lakeville Hospital property could impact the town's water supply and rural character. 

The project is a 200-unit mixed-income multi-family development that has been proposed by Rhino Capital at the hospital site at 43 Main St. 

The Select Board discussion was in response to a request for community input from the Massachusetts Housing Financing Agency as part of the approval process for the project. 

Ensuring that veterans are given housing priority and installing bus stops on site were other issues cited during the meeting.

Board members raised questions about the limits of the town’s water allocation from the City of Taunton and how much the proposed project would require. 

Select Board Vice Chair Lia Fabian said that the town is already approaching the gallons-per-day maximum it can receive from Taunton. “We’re down to the last 100,000 gallons,” she said as a ballpark estimate. 

Select Board member Brian Day stated that water is already allocated for the property and questioned whether any more would be needed. 

Select Board Member Maureen Candito voiced her desire that the project “keep with the rural Lakeville feel and [be] visually-friendly from the street. We’ve had an eyesore on that property for a long time.” 

Board members also wanted a bus stop on site for students who live in the complex. Select Board Chair Lorraine Carboni said that after going on a walk-through of the site, she realized that having a bus stop on Route 105 would be a safety concern because of heavy traffic. 

As far as who will live in the apartments, all of which will be rental units, Select Board member Brynna Donahue suggested giving priority to Lakeville veterans. “I think we should give preferential renting rights to veterans and families of veterans,” she said. 

“We can certainly add that comment to the request,” said Carboni. 

Carboni asked that the request for comments from the state be sent out to all town department heads for input. 

The 200-unit affordable housing component is only one part of Rhino’s master plan for the property. The project will also include senior living facilities, multifamily housing and age-restricted 55+ cottages, according to the developer. 

This proposal, which was pitched to the town in August 2023, is the last in a long list that have been presented for the site. Prior to that, Rhino proposed the construction of two 201,000 square-foot warehouses on the property, which was shot down by Lakeville residents at a Special Town Meeting in 2022. 

Lakeville Hospital has a long history in the town, where it has been located for more than 100 years. The structure opened in 1910 and closed in 1992. The buildings contain asbestos, as they were built before the United States restricted its use in 1989, which has led to still unresolved questions about clean-up.