The Medfield State Hospital Planning Committee heard from Beth Murphy of MassDevelopment about her “carrier” redeveloping the Northampton State Hospital.  Fascinating insights from someone who has recently already done what we are about to undertake.

MEETING OF:

September 9, 2014

MINUTES

Committee Members:

Stephen J. Browne

Patrick Casey

Ralph Costello

Theresa James

Randal Karg – absent

Stephen M. Nolan

David Perini – absent

Kenneth J. Richard

Gil Rodgers

 7:00 pm: Beth Murphy, VP Real Estate, MassDevelopment, Springfield Office

Beth described MassDevelopment’s role in the redevelopment of Northampton State Hospital. She toured MSH prior to the meeting with Gil Rodgers. Her main points of advice are:

1. A thoughtful master plan is essential; allows the Town to be clear about what it wants from developers
2. Develop as a whole to get full value out of the site. The Town may decide to sell to one developer or multiple developers for different uses. Consider strategy as one developer might be able to underwrite the high cost of demolition and infrastructure prior to development.
3. Take the time to do a comprehensive job; five years is realistic
4. Don’t skimp on maintenance, security, and demolition; do demolition up front
   • Discussion on Mass Historical Commission’s position on demolition and the integrity to the historic designation versus use of state and federal tax credits for commercial redevelopment
   • Historic Preservation consultant as part of the planning process to identify the best development plan in concert with development plan
5. Manage community expectations; Citizen Advisory Committee held regular public participation meetings
6. Northampton was zoned using a “Planned Village Overlay District” special permit and each lot is subject to Site Plan Review by the Planning Board. The overlay removes dimensional requirements and allows flexibility in design to achieve the overarching goal of a walkable, dense community. Discussion of Northampton demographics and target market.
7. Despite the immense costs associated with redevelopment Village Hill is successful for the following reasons:
   • Increased tax revenue
   • Green building
   • Fits within the overall community
   • Elimination of blight

Gil’s extensive notes on Village Hill can be viewed here:

http://mshvision.net/downloads/notes-on-nsh-010914.pdf

Village Hill Northampton website: http://www.villagehillnorthampton.com/

Upcoming Events and Updates:

• Saturday, September 20, 2014 9:00 to 3:00 pm – Medfield Day
• Tuesday, September 23, 2014 at 7:00 pm – Lessons from Foxborough State Hospital
• Sunday, September 28, 2014 at 2:00 pm – Site tour of Foxborough State Hospital

Gil’s Foxborough notes can be viewed here:

http://mshvision.net/downloads/foxborough-comparison.pdf

• Saturday, September 20, 2014 9:00 to 3:00 pm
• Change regular meeting to first and third Wednesdays starting in October due to member conflict
• Alec Stevens will remain the facilitator of MSHVISION.NET but all info should be pre-written before given to him
• The History of Medfield State Hospital prepared by Richard DeSorgher and John Thompson was distributed to committee members
• Steve Nolan to schedule MSH building tour (tentatively for Friday, October 3, 2014 at 3:00 pm)
• Thursday, September 18, 2014 at 7:00 pm – RFP Subcommittee meeting (planning office)

Committee Organization

• Ken Richard nominated Steve Nolan as Chairman; Seconded by Steve Browne; The Vote: 6-0 (Nolan abstained)
• Notes will be prepared by committee members on a rolling basis

8:45 pm: Adjournment

Respectfully submitted,

Sarah Raposa, Town Planner