Worcester approves revised tax deal for student housing in Osgood Bradley building
Tuesday, March 17, 2015
By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
nicholas.kotsopoulos@telegram.com
The Osgood Bradley Building at 8-18 Grafton St., Worcester ((T&G Staff File Photo/CHRISTINE PETERSON))
WORCESTER — Redevelopment of the vacant Osgood Bradley Building behind Union Station into housing for college students is finally a go, after the City Council unanimously approved a modified tax-relief deal Tuesday night for the $32.7 million project.
The revised agreement will provide the developer with less in the way of exempted real estate taxes, and the developer has agreed that if it receives more in the way of state tax credits for the project than what is anticipated, then the amount of exempted taxes will be further reduced.
http://www.telegram.com/article/2015...79542/0/SEARCH
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Old Worcester courthouse sold
Thursday, March 19, 2015
By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
nicholas.kotsopoulos@telegram.com
WORCESTER — The city has reached an agreement to sell the former Worcester County Courthouse on Main Street to a New Hampshire-based developer for $1.2 million, City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. announced Thursday.
Mr. Augustus said Brady Sullivan Properties LLC plans to convert the vacant, historical courthouse near Lincoln Square into about 115 market-rate apartments, with 3,000 square feet of retail space.
He said the entire building will be preserved and renovated. The manager added that the company has indicated it has no plan to seek public funding for the project. He said the entire rehabilitation will be funded by private investment money provided by the company, potentially supplemented by historic tax credit incentives that may be available for the property.
http://www.telegram.com/article/2015...99641/0/SEARCH
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Sale of old Worcester courthouse stalled; labor group questions developer's record
Tuesday, March 24, 2015
By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
nicholas.kotsopoulos@telegram.com
WORCESTER — Plans to sell the former Worcester County Courthouse on Main Street to a New Hampshire-based developer hit a bump in the road Tuesday night, after a local labor group raised concerns about the company's track record.
Worcester Community Labor Coalition members also pressed for greater assurances from Brady Sullivan Properties LLC that at least 50 percent of the construction labor force used for the courthouse renovation project come from local companies or from qualified companies with apprenticeship programs.
"We find it amazing that our community is being asked to turn over this property to a developer with a spotty track record without the disposition agreement being available for review by the community and fully vetted by our elected representatives on the City Council," the coalition said in a statement.
http://www.telegram.com/article/2015...303249565/1116
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Winn Development set to buy Worcester's former Unum building
Friday, March 20, 2015
By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
nicholas.kotsopoulos@telegram.com
WORCESTER — Winn Development Inc. has entered into an agreement to buy the former Unum Group office building at 18 Chestnut St.
The company is eying the nearly 300,000-square-foot, six-story historic office building as potential college classroom/academic space and student housing, among other uses, according to Gilbert Winn, chief executive officer of Winn Cos.
He said commercial space will also likely be looked at as part of the overall development, along with market-rate housing.
"It's a great, safe location and has seas of surface parking right in the downtown, all available as part of the deal," Mr. Winn said. "It has easy access to highways and is central to all community and regional entities.
"It could be a perfect fit to meet the growth needs of area colleges and universities, while breathing additional life and vitality into the downtown," he added. "The building has a wonderful past and what I feel is a bright future."
Terms, price and conditions of the agreement are confidential.
http://www.telegram.com/article/2015...99644/0/SEARCH
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Lincoln Medical buys Liberty building in Worcester
Saturday, March 21, 2015
By Aaron Nicodemus TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
Aaron.Nicodemus@telegram.com
WORCESTER — Lincoln Medical LLC of Worcester has purchased an office building on Pleasant Street owned by Liberty Church.
Lincoln Medical LLC purchased the 13,780-square foot building at 101 Pleasant St. from Liberty Assembly of God, based in Shrewsbury, for $750,000 on Feb. 25, according to the Worcester Registry of Deeds.
The building has several dentist offices as tenants, including Pleasant Street Dental.
http://www.telegram.com/article/2015...09544/0/SEARCH
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First bet on downtown worth a little gratitude
Sunday, March 22, 2015
By Aaron Nicodemus ON BUSINESS
Aaron.Nicodemus@telegram.com
When it comes to development — especially redevelopment — no one wants to be first.
Developers have to answer to their financial backers. They have to justify loans to banks. And since their reason for existing in the first place is to make a profit, there is always that to consider, as well.
All of these factors are impediments to redeveloping areas that have seen better days. They explain why it has taken years for Worcester's downtown, and its vacant and underutilized properties, to reclaim their past glory.
Last week, purchases by private developers were announced for two of the downtown's white elephants — the former Unum Group/Paul Revere Insurance building at 18 Chestnut St. and the former Worcester County Courthouse at 2 Main St.
These sales may be the tipping point in the slow transformation of the downtown from a commercial/retail center into a neighborhood dominated by colleges, classrooms, dorm space and student-leased apartments.
If Worcester's downtown does become a hub of collegiate life, it is time to thank the man who was first, who stepped out in front of the others, put money down and placed a big bet on Worcester's downtown.
That man is Charles F. "Charlie" Monahan Jr., president of the Mass. College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences University.
http://www.telegram.com/article/2015...29964/0/SEARCH
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CitySquare financing amendments sought
Monday, March 23, 2015
By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
nicholas.kotsopoulos@telegram.com
WORCESTER — The CitySquare redevelopment project has so far generated more than $100 million in private investment, and about $60 million in public investment in the downtown.
With the next phase of the project poised to generate another $90 million in private investment and $35 million in public construction, City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. is asking the City Council to amend the financing program established for the CitySquare project.
The amendment to the District Improvement Financing program is intended to reflect modifications made to the development plan for the underground parking change since the project was originally proposed.
The garage was originally supposed to have 1,025 spaces, but has since been reduced to 550 spaces.
Also, the garage has been reconfigured so it does not encompass as much space within the project site.
The garage is being built under the area bounded by Mercantile Street, Front Street and the to-be-built Eaton Place. Part of the garage will also extend under a small section of Front Street into part of the development where a full-service, 150-room hotel is to be built.
known as "Parcel F" — above the site of the underground garage, bounded by Front Street, Mercantile Street, the Unum building, the St. Vincent Cancer and Wellness Center and the East Parking garage.
In 2005, the building had been approved as a multistory building, set back from Mercantile Street with a courtyard in front of it.
Under the latest revision, that building will now be located along Mercantile and Front streets.
http://www.telegram.com/article/2015...39586/0/SEARCH
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Reliant Medical plans walk-in care center on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester
Thursday, March 19, 2015
By Nick Kotsopoulos TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF
nicholas.kotsopoulos@telegram.com
WORCESTER — Reliant Medical Group wants to establish a "ReadyMED" center on the site of the vacant former Gallo Oldsmobile dealership lot at 366 Shrewsbury St.
Gary J. Vecchio, president of the Shrewsbury Street Neighborhood Association, said Thursday night he has met with the parties involved with the project and they authorized him to publicly release details about it.
He said the current owner of the property, Szeto Investments LLC, would maintain ownership of the 61,855-square-foot vacant lot, construct a multimillion-dollar, one-story building on it and then lease it to Reliant.
http://www.telegram.com/article/2015...303199493/1246
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