STM Fact Sheet

Posted on November 18, 2019 | Comments Off on STM Fact Sheet

The Town of Medfield has prepared the following fact sheet for the special town meeting (STM) tonight –

Medfield State Hospital (MSH) The Board of Selectmen has prepared this informational sheet to aid in the discussion of Article 2 TERMS MSH Campus Total Acreage for the campus North of Hospital Road is comprised of 89 acres and 36 buildings Zoning Zoning is a tool that municipalities can use to govern how land is used, the size of buildings, and how buildings relate to their surroundings. Zoning bylaws typically create districts that allow and prohibit certain uses. Zoning bylaws can also include dimensional requirements and design guidelines. Any change to zoning requires a 2/3 majority vote at Town Meeting MSHD Medfield State Hospital District is a proposed new district with zoning guidelines that will regulate the type and location of uses at the Medfield State Hospital Property Inclusionary Zoning Medfield has adopted inclusionary zoning which requires developers of new multifamily housing developments to also include affordable units in their project MSH Land Disposition Agreement Agreement between the Town and the Commonwealth that outlines the terms of the 2014 sale of the property and outlines all of the conditions of the sale. The document is recorded at the Registry of Deeds BI Zone The MSH property is currently zoned BI or Business/Industrial, which is not in line with the vision outlined in the State Hospital Master Plan DCAMM Commonwealth’s Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance RFI/RFQ/RFP Request for Information/Request for Qualifications/Request for Proposals TIMELINE 1892 State begins construction of an asylum for long term high need patients 2003 State closes MSH and transfers remaining patients to Westborough State Hospital and transfers control of the property to DCAMM 2008 Board of Selectmen (BOS) and DCAMM agree to a 440 mixed use residential plan of 440 housing units. DCAMM subsequently fails to obtain legislative approval for the project and project isn’t carried out. 2013 Town completes year long mediation with DCAMM which leads to the opening of the Charles River Gateway and discussions to purchase the property 2014 Town Meeting approves the purchase of MSH from the State for a price of $3.1 million to be paid over 10 years 2014 Board of Selectmen (BOS) appoints the Medfield State Hospital Master Planning Committee (MSHMPC) 2018 MSHMPC presents Master Plan to the BOS 2018 BOS appoints the MSH Development Committee to determine marketability of the master plan 2019 BOS call a Special Town Meeting to vote on the rezoning of the MSH property M S H C o s t s 2 0 1 4 t o D a t e $ 3 . 1 M i l l i o n P u r c h a s e P r i c e $ 7 4 1 , 6 7 3 O p e r a t i o n s a n d M a i n t e n a n c e $ 5 1 4 , 5 1 5 P l a n n i n g C o s t s $ 3 0 9 , 7 4 3 R e v e n u e Medfield State Hospital District Frequently Asked Questions What are we actually voting on? Currently the site is zoned BI or Business Industrial. Town Meeting is being asked to vote to rezone the MSH property to permit a development along the lines of the framework in the Master Plan which calls for mixed use of various types of housing, commercial, arts and cultural, open space, agricultural, and recreation/sports and reuse of the existing buildings. What are the next steps if the zoning is approved? The Town of Medfield owns the land so if zoning passes, the BOS will seek proposals from developers that are consistent with the MSH Master Plan and its District Zoning guidelines. If the BOS determines one of those proposals is in the best interest of the Town, then another Special Town Meeting will be called so that you can vote on the town’s land disposition agreement with the developer. That vote will also require a 2/3 majority vote. What are the next steps if the zoning is NOT approved? The BOS has not discussed nor voted on what they will do if the zoning does not pass. There is no official position or plan at this time. Why was a traffic study not done for this plan? Any development proposal will certainly impact traffic flow to and from the state hospital site. At this stage, there is no specific development proposal that would require a developer funded traffic study. If the Town paid for a traffic study at this point, it would be evaluating a hypothetical scenario. Reviewing developers’ traffic studies and ideas to mitigate increased traffic will be a key part of the Town’s due diligence when analyzing developers’ proposals, if the zoning is approved. If the zoning is approved, are there any uses of the land that the BOS could approve without Town Meeting Authorization? The BOS could only allow the use of the property for the municipal purposes that the zoning permits as of right. The BOS could continue to license the property for purposes like filming, car shows, and other specific events, as it has been doing since the town purchased the property. Why can’t the town solicit RFP’s first, before deciding on whether or not to rezone the state hospital site? The work of the MSH Development committee showed that potential developers have made it clear that they will not make the required investment to develop a proposal for the redevelopment of the MSH site without having the necessary zoning in place first, as a clear indication of the town’s support for redevelopment at the site. The Medfield Board of Selectmen would like to thank all of the committees, volunteers, town departments, and the legislative delegations that have worked on the Medfield State Hospital project over the years. The countless hours invested in this project have been invaluable to the Town in charting the path forward in our ultimate use of this site. Medfield State Hospital Reuse Committee Medfield State Hospital Environmental Review Committee Medfield State Hospital Mediation Committee Medfield State Hospital Advisory Committee Medfield State Hospital Negotiating Committee Medfield State Hospital Building and Grounds Committee Medfield State Hospital Master Planning Committee Medfield State Hospital Resource Committee Medfield State Hospital Development Committee20191118-MSH STM Information Sheet_Page_2

This entry was posted in Development, Medfield State Hospital, Select Board matters, Town Meeting. Bookmark the permalink.

Comments are closed.