DEERFIELD — A six-member review committee for the senior housing project’s request for proposals was appointed Wednesday night, about two weeks before the April 17 deadline.

The committee will be tasked with reviewing any proposals the town receives for the creation of between 30 and 60 apartments for adults ages 62 and older, with all units affordable to households at or below 60% of the area median income, which is $46,020 for a single person and $52,560 for two people. The project will be sited on the former St. James Church parcel at 83-85 North Main St.

The group is comprised of ad hoc Senior Housing Committee members Lili Dwight and Kathy Sylvester, who is also a Community Preservation Committee member; neighborhood residents Gail Fitzpatrick and Tia Christiansen, also a Zoning Board of Appeals alternate; Thayer Street Associates owner Vern Harrington; and Selectboard member Blake Gilmore. A member of the town administration team will also serve in a non-voting, ex-officio capacity.

When the review committee holds its meetings, Dwight said public input is encouraged from all residents.

“We’ll get everybody’s voices,” she said. “This is a collaborative process.”

Dwight, chair of the ad hoc Senior Housing Committee, said the composition of the review committee covers numerous aspects of the project, including neighborhood residents, construction professionals and other town officials. Additionally, the inclusion of Sylvester covers a new town practice in which a member of the Community Preservation Committee serves on a review committee for a project using Community Preservation Act funds.

Deerfield residents at the 2023 Annual Town Meeting approved the appropriation of $420,000 in CPA funds to purchase the St. James Church.

“For larger projects, the new modus operandi, as in the 1888 Building, is to include a member of the CPC,” Dwight said. “So, you kind of get a twofer with Kathy.”

While the deadline for bidders is approaching in two weeks, Town Administrator Christopher Dunne said a single developer has reached out thus far.

“The RFP is out there. We have so far only received questions from one developer,” Dunne said. “It’s very possible we only end up with one proposal from one developer, which is not unheard of in western Mass.”

The review committee will review any of the proposals that come in and provide a recommendation to the Selectboard on which proposal to accept. Proposals will be evaluated on what the designs look like, how many units it can accommodate and the neighborhood impacts. The ultimate decision rests with the Selectboard.

Deerfield has retained the Franklin Regional Council of Governments to manage the RFP process and the community has also been working with the Massachusetts Housing Partnership throughout the process. The town also has looked at Sanderson Place in neighboring Sunderland, which worked with Rural Development Inc. to bring its senior housing project to life.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com.