Gloucester City Council authorizes $3.32 million loan to rebuild St. Peter's Landing Marina

Select Board · Meeting of March 10, 2026

Gloucester City Council unanimously approved a $3.32 million loan order to reconstruct St. Peter's Landing and Marina, backed by a $2.6 million Seaport Economic Council grant awarded in January 2026. CFO Connor McCorkle opened the meeting with a preliminary FY 2027 budget gap forecast of $2.93 million, warning that labor, health insurance, school costs, and debt service are rising faster than Proposition 2.5 revenue growth allows, though he stressed the figure is a planning tool, not a final budget, with a balanced proposal due in early May.

The council also voted 8-0 to grant a special permit to Essex County Habitat for Humanity to convert a former Action Inc. office building at 47 Washington Street into three affordable homeownership units at 60 percent AMI, with a four-bedroom unit among them. Community Development Director Alex Kopelman presented housing data showing roughly 6,800 Gloucester households eligible for deed-restricted affordable housing against only about 1,100 available units. The council confirmed three appointments, Ashley Curley as city Assessor, Patricia McCarthy to the Gloucester Cultural Council, and Esme Rose Sarraf as a student alternate on the Human Rights Commission, all by 8-0 votes with Ward 2 Councillor Dylan Bentz absent.

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Source: the Select Board meeting of March 10, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.