Request for MassDevelopment Earle Street Lot 4CITY OF NORTHAMPTON
Mayor David J. Narkewicz
City Hall
210 Main Street Room 12
Northampton, MA 01060-3199
(413) 587-1249 Fax: (413) 587-1275
mayor@northamptonma.gov
November 9, 2015
Beth Murphy, Vice President Real Estate Development
144 Main Street
Springfield, MA 01103
Email letter: EMurphy@MassDevelopment.com
Dear Beth,
I want to follow up on our past conversations about MassDevelopment Earle Street Lot 4 (Northampton Map ID 48A-127). We want to see if MassDevelopment is willing to deed this parcel
of land to the city for no consideration.
As you know, Lot 4 has little or no development value by itself:
The initial slope from the road has 16±% slopes to an elevation 9± feet above Earle Street.
Once past that initial slope, the lot has slopes in excess of 10±% with drainage challenges.
If an expensive driveway was cut onto the site, there is virtually no developable land left.
To the west of MassDevelopment’s Lot 4, is the city’s Grove Street Inn, our year-round homeless shelter. This site includes some undeveloped land to the east of the Grove Street Inn,
bordering Lot 4. That site includes an unbuilt portion of the lot with 9±% slopes, but that same extremely street 8± foot initial very steep slope. By itself, this land also has no
development potential.
Our goal is to acquire Lot 4, merge it into the land we own, and create one small development site. The development costs are so high that we don’t expect to be able to sell the lot,
but we do expect to be able to eventually accommodate a very small business enterprise who could not otherwise come to Northampton. In the alternative, the land would be available if
we ever wanted to expand or redevelop our homeless shelter.
This is a project that will take several years. If the land is going to private development, we probably need to get corrective legislation because while we are planning to keep the
homeless shelter the legislation that limits our use of that site probably covers the entire property. We, of course, can’t go for the legislation or do any serious planning until we
either own Lot 4 or are certain that we will eventually own it.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
David J. Narkewicz
Mayor