Lets hope Massachusetts politics does not kill this like it did a large private redevelopment venture in Lawrence.
Baseless accusations of racist marketing being designed to bring white voters to South Lawrence killed a major mill renovation when the financing bank pulled out at the urging of a local community group.
Here is the rub. The mill was being renovated into a mix of high-end condos and shops. Wealthy minority business owners who had previously moved out of the city after coming into money were 80 percent of the people buying the pre-sold units.
A small fact everyone seemed to ignore when they lobbied to kill the project.
How can cities that are struggling financially revitalize their urban core?
Quincy, Mass., a city of 91,000, is entering into a unique public-private partnership that will help the city completely reconstruct their 50 acre urban center by adding $289 million of infrastructure and $1.3 billion of private housing, retail, office, and other spaces.
The New York Times reports that a private builder, Street-Works Development will foot the bill upfront for the public improvements.
Once Street-Works installs the utilities, roadways, parking and landscaping; builds a number of new buildings and leases 50 to 75 percent of the space, the city will assume responsibility for the infrastructure bill by selling general obligations bonds. Some income from the property will flow to the city to cover interest on the debt, amortize the principal and generate extra money for city coffers.
“We couldn’t afford to do this on our own, this quickly,” Mayor Thomas P. Koch said. But after 30 years of wanting to revitalize a downtown drained of businesses, shopping and housing by outlying neighborhoods, he said, “we’ve established a relationship of trust with Street-Works.”.
Of course the city is taking a risk on the project, but if it works out it would be an enormous boost to the city. It’s a fascinating concept. Could this urban revival strategy be a model for other cash-strapped cities?
