Category Archives: Medfield State Hospital

The Clark Building is now history.  Its former site is now flat, and there is a beautiful vista up to the 1890’s buildings on top of the gradual hill.  I never knew what we were missing – it is a spectacular sight.

Letter to Medfield Selectmen from DCAM Commissioner Carole Cornelison, received today –

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August 31, 2012

Ann B. Thompson, Chair, Medfield Board of Selectmen
Mark L. Fisher, Member, Medfield Board of Selectmen
Osler L. Peterson, Member Medfield Board of Selectmen
Medfield Town House
459 Main Street
Medfield, MA 02052
Dear Chair Thompson, Selectmen Fisher and Peterson,

I do apologize for the delay in responding to you; however please know that I was delighted to learn from your letter that you have appointed a Committee of local residents to formally join us in our collaborative process of taking a fresh look at the former Medfield State Hospital property. Reuse land planning is a creative dynamic process; we welcome your ideas, those of the new Committee and the Medfield residents at large.

Although I agree that overall the due diligence information you requested in your letter is reasonable and necessary for a potential buyer, the timing of that data gathering is likewise critical. At this time, DCAM continues to work diligently with the Executive Office for Finance and Administration to finalize the Municipal-Commonwealth Sale Partnership Model that would enable the Town of Medfield to purchase the property. We anticipate the final approvals by the end of September at which time we can begin our discussions with you. During these discussions we will be able to respond to your questions regarding the sunk costs and sales terms you referenced in your letter.
(item # 3 and 4)

I believe the outcome of our Sale Partnership Model discussions will, in part, drive the schedule and other decisions necessary to undertake the due diligence work of updating the building surveys you requested (item # I).

With respect to your request for a copy of the Comprehensive Reuse Study referenced in the Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) report (“Medfield State Hospital Market Analysis DRAFT dated April 20, 2012), I want to clearly assure you that DCAM has not undertaken a new reuse study as I believe this is ajoint collaborative project with you. The intent of referencing a reuse study in the JLL report was to indicate that the market analysis is the foundational report for the eventual task of commissioning a market driven comprehensive reuse study. Again, the outcome of our Sales Partnership Model deliberations with you will inform decisions regarding a comprehensive reuse study.

I remain encouraged that through these open lines of communication we will return this property to productive reuse in a manner that is highly satisfactory to the Town of Medfield and the Commonwealth.

As always, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,
Carole Cornelison
Commissioner

The MSH Redevelopment Committee penned a 7/17/12 memo to the Board of Selectmen with four suggestions for actions the selectmen should take right away:

1. Request DCAM to perform updated building surveys on a representative selection of buildings at the Property, including a detailed analysis of hazardous materials remediation requirements and an analysis of the possibility of renovation in accordance with National Park Service rehabilitation standards applicable to historic properties.
2. Provide to the Town a copy of the Comprehensive Reuse Study referred to in the recent Jones Lang LaSalle report entitled “Medfield State Hospital Market Analysis Report DRAFT” dated April 20, 2012.
3. Provide to the Town an accounting of the costs that DCAM would like to recover in connection with a disposition of the Property.
4. Explore with DCAM the possibility of granting the Town a transferable Option to purchase the Property within three years at a price to be agreed upon. The Committee recommends that the Town pay only a nominal price for the Option because there will be significant costs to the Town during the due diligence period, including costs to retain consultants to assist in the preparation of redevelopment standards and a request for proposals.

The SHRC circulated that letter yesterday afternoon, and neither Ann nor Mark had seen it when the Board of Selectmen met Tuesday, so the Board of Selectmen met again last night to act on the recommendation.  At last night’s meeting, the BOS voted to send the attached letter to Carole Cornelison, the DCAM Commissioner.  My addition to Mike’s draft of the letter was the part about reminding DCAM that they owed us the promised DCAM documents relating to sales of state owned properties to other towns.

Good article today in Commonwealth Magazine on the clean up of the Medfield State Hospital site differences the Town of Medfield is having with the state, and why the town is seeking more clean up than is technically required by state law.  Thanks Will for noting it to us.

DCAM last winter commissioned a Jones Lang LaSalle feasibility study of the former Medfield State Hospital site and DCAM this week released that study to Medfield.  No word as to why the study dated 4/20/12 had not been released until now.

This is the Executive Summary from the report –

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Jones Lang LaSalle has prepared a DRAFT Market Analysis Study for the Medfield State Hospital Site in Medfield, MA. The purposes of the study was to evaluate current market conditions for the major commercial real estate categories,recommend the most viable uses and mix of uses, and advise at a high level on the massing and form of future development as it relates to the market.

The study is intentionally limited to evaluating demographics and real estate market conditions. We have supplemented this infonnation in part with readily apparent observations of the location that will influence potential development demand. This study does not take into account possible constraints such as existing zoning regulations and roadway and utility capacity among others.  The study is intended to be the foundation document for a subsequent Comprehensive Re-Use Study which will take into account these other parameters.

There are two qualities of the location that influence potential demand across all property types; demographics and highway access.  First, the hospital property is located in a a suburban setting with above average economic demographics which should boost demand in all categories. Second, the property lacks convenient access to major roadways, which diminishes the opportunity for commercial office, industrial, and retail uses.
The most viable use categories include housing, recreation, health care, and continuing care retirement community which can be considered a combination of housing and health care. Within the housing sector, single family, condominium, and multifamily rental are all viable with multifamily being the strongest category currently due to current economic issues. The scale of the property, .L the strength of local demographics and the increasing demand for recreations space, both indoor and outdoor, make this use type one of the most interesting prospects. The aging of the population and the strength of the local demographics make the property an attractive location for healthcare related uses and continuing care retirement development.

Life sciences, institutional, and retail, are considered moderately viable use types. The strength of the life science sector in the region is a positive factor, but is offset by the lack of a local ‘cluster’ and the remoteness of the site. The site is well suited for an institutional use, especially for a retreat type use for daylong or multiday visits-but the demand for this category is limited. The local small establishment retail sector is strong with relatively high rents and low vacancy. The remoteness of the site, and lack of direct access to Rt. 27 are a hindrance and retail is likely to be viable only as a secondary or complimentary use.

Commercial office, industrial, and hospitality are the least viable use types. Of these offices space may have limited potential, in the form of a modest development catering to smaller businesses that cater to the local community. Lack of direct highway access will limit any industrial development to small , local scale only. The remoteness of the site limits opportunity for a hospitality use which typically desire higher visibility locations.

Massing of development on the property should be of modest scale, reflecting the suburban/near rural setting of the property. The location will not support structured parking. Generous open space should be included in any development type, and include walking and bike paths to take advantage of the setting.

Patch is running an article saying that the Medfield State Hospital site visit by DEP tomorrow has been cancelled by DEP.

I have been suggesting to DCAM for years that when they want a small town such as Medfield to deal with an issue as large as the development of the Medfield State Hospital site, that they should have provided the Town of Medfield monies with which we could do the planning necessary to respond.  Now, towns are making the similar statements with respect to the casinos, and the Gaming Commission is apparently listening.  See article here.