Town boards review Plymouth Rubber study

Town officials convened on Tuesday to discuss the Plymouth Rubber site. (CCTV photo)

The developer of the 40-acre Plymouth Rubber property on Revere Street is willing to spend up to $7 million on environmental cleanup and infrastructure improvements at the former industrial site in exchange for the right to build 348 homes — a project that will impact nearly all town departments, according to the findings of a recently completed independent study.

The study, prepared by attorney Mark Bobrowski and his team of real estate and financial experts, was outlined as part of a super board meeting on Tuesday night. Held at the library before an audience of approximately 50 residents, the meeting included the Board of Selectmen and representatives from the Planning Board, School Committee, Conservation Commission, Finance Committee, and Council on Aging.

Selectmen Chairman Bob Burr said it may have been one of the more important meetings of the year, and he hopes to call a few more of these informational sessions before the town decides whether to recommend the project for rezoning at a future special town meeting — not at the upcoming May town meeting as originally planned.

Based on the information presented Tuesday night, the project is expected to have implications for nearly all town departments as well as the town’s housing inventory. Bobrowski and his team analyzed the amount of environmental cleanup that is necessary, as well as traffic and drainage issues and potential school and municipal service impacts.

The following are some of the highlights presented at the meeting by Bobrowski and his team as well as Bernard Plante, project manager for Canton Holdings LLC, a subsidiary of the Napleton Company:

* The developer has reduced the density of the project from a high of 650 units in 2007 to their current proposal of 348, which includes 64 two-bedroom townhouses (for-sale) in 15 buildings; 204 one- and two-bedroom apartments in six buildings; and 80 age-restricted units (for sale or rent) in two buildings.

* Canton Holdings has committed to restricting 51 of the 204 apartments to households qualifying as affordable income. If the owners and the town agree to a pact under Chapter 40R, it could net the town a one-time payment of $962,000.

* The project will not be a guaranteed cash windfall for the town. The proposal will generate as much as $891,000 in property taxes but create additional costs for the fire and police departments as well as for the schools. Judi Barrett of Bobrowski’s team said between 48 and 64 new children can be expected to enroll in the Canton Public Schools. She said if the number of school children is at the low end, the project will have a net positive fiscal effect, but if the number is at the high end, the fiscal impact would fall “slightly in the negative.”

* Barrett estimated that the project will generate 150 short-term and 178 long-term jobs and result in an estimated $10 million spent on goods and services from Canton businesses.

* The project is expected to impact traffic at the intersection of Chapman, Spaulding and Everett streets, probably necessitating a new traffic signal. Selectman Victor Del Vecchio said the project will also have an impact at Washington and Chapman streets, and Planning Board member George Jenkins wondered about the project’s impact to the Revere Street railroad bridge and the future impact to the expanded commuter rail service to Taunton.

* Canton Holdings has committed to saving the historic Revere Barn and Rolling Mill while also building many walking trails for use by the public. The company is only interested in residential use and has rejected plans for industrial, office space, or retail use.

* Commenting on the financial feasibility of the project, Mike Jacobs of Bobrowski’s team said any redevelopment of the site must include an apartment component because it is the easiest to construct and finance in today’s real estate market. He was also positive about the townhouse component. However, the age-restricted component, he said, is not currently feasible but could be “viable in tomorrow’s economy.”

He concluded that the 348 proposal represents a “reasonable amount of density for the site given the standards governing economic return on the investment.”

* The one unclear aspect of the project is a 48-unit assisted living structure to be built on the grounds of the former Plymouth Rubber parking lot. Planning Board Chairman Chris Connolly said the project has stalled because the applicant has not found an operator for the site. However, several town officials questioned the traffic and population density impact to the surrounding area.

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Posted by Mike Berger on Apr 11 2013. Filed under News, Schools, Town Government. Both comments and pings are currently closed.