RiverMills Presentation

RiverMills at Chicopee Falls

Redevelopment of the Former Uniroyal and Facemate Properties

Chicopee Historical Society - April 18, 2012

Lee M. Pouliot - Planner & Administrator, Office of Community Development

H.E.A.L Chicopee

H.E.A.L Chicopee Health, Ecology, Activity, Legacy...

A Strategic Plan for Chicopee’s Factory Village Spring 2010

Cornell University

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Department of Landscape Architecture Student Team:

H.E.A.L Chicopee Health, Ecology, Activity, Legacy...

A Strategic Plan for Chicopee’s Factory Village

Lee M. Pouliot, Master Candidate Christian Gruber, Master Candidate Christopher Hardy, Master Candidate Christopher Horton, Master Candidate Declan Keane, Master Candidate Deni Ruggeri, Professor

Uniroyal Buildings 1-6 Demolition

Uniroyal Buildings 1-6 Demolition

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RiverMills Vision Plan

2 Story Office 21,000 SF

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e MAIN STREET

1 Story Retail 6,000 SF

Soccer Field

CITY OF CHICOPEE

RiverMills

2 Story Office 12,000 SF

V R

P

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New Parking

Existing Building Reused

Levee Wall

(or 69,000 sf + 52 residential units)

Recreational Fields

1 Soccer

Recreation Center

34,500 sf

Townhouses 8 Units Bikeway

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Senior Center

Existing Building 6,750 SF Retail

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±20,000 – 23,000 sf

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1 Story Retail 6,000 SF

131,000 sf

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2 Story Office 32,000 SF or Residential 27 Units

Chicopee Fire and Police Departments

Retail 9,000 SF

Terrace 0

150

300

Feet

May 05 2011

Note: The illustrative plan lan and massing views shown are conceptual.

Green

Existing Building Converted to Residential 50 Units

Gazebo

Massing View

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Recreation Center 34,500 SF

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Existing Building 6,000 SF Office

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2 Story Office 30,000 SF or Residential 25 Units

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2 Story Office 21,000 SF

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500 sf

1 units

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Soccer Field 2 Story Office 12,000 SF

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I C C H

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Note: The illustrative plan lan and massing views shown are conceptual.

Legend New Building

Massing View

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500 sf

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Soccer

BROAD WAY STREET

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1 Story Retail 3,000 SF

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2 Story Office 30,000 SF

131 units

Office

2 Story Office 12,000 SF

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Residential

Soccer Field

Senior Center

33,500 sf

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Commercial / Retail

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POTENTIAL PROGRAM (APPROXIMATE)

1 Story Retail 8,750 SF

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Residential 45 Units

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Perspective

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2 Story Office 21,000 SF

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I C C H

New Building e

Existing Building 6,000 SF Office

Townhouses 28 Units

Massing View

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Legend

GROVE STR EET

Existing Building Converted to Residential 50 Units

WE ST MA IN STR EET

Green

Visions for Redevelopment ST R

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Retail 9,000 SF

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I ET RE ST CH Chicopee Fire and Police Departments

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Conceptual Redevelopment Vision—Two

A RESOURCE GUIDE FOR DEVELOPERS

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2 Story Office 32,000 SF or Residential 27 Units

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BROAD WAY STREET

uilding Retail

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way

GR OV E STR EET

WE ST MA IN STR EET

Townhouses 8 Units

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1 Story Retail 3,000 SF

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Office 0 SF

Perspective

Existing Building 6,000 SF Office

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enter

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1 Story Retail 8,750 SF

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2 Story Office 30,000 SF or Residential 25 Units

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New Parking

Perspective

Brownfields 2011

Massachusetts City of Chicopee

Chicopee, MA RiverMills Properties

At ‘the Crossroads of New England...’

Ownership Status: City of Chicopee Asking Price: Negotiable Appraised Value: No recent appraisal Notes: Price will not be the sole deciding factor when considering developer interest

Sources: Chicopee wesbite & Wikipedia

Available Incentives - One-stop, fast-track permitting - BEDI - BRAC - Brownfields Priority Project - Brownfields Support Team Initiative - CDBG & Section 108 Loan Guarantees - CEDS - EDIP - EPA Brownfields Clean-up Grants - Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credits - MassWorks Infrastructure Program - Tax Increment Financing

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Site Assembly: Yes - Former Uniroyal Tire property - Other adjacent parcels

Characterization Phase I: Completed April 5, 2010 by BETA Group, Inc. Phase II: On-going since December 1, 2010

by BETA Group, Inc. - Other than surficial contamination associated with historic rail lines, the only other significant subsurface contamination identified to date is associated with the removal of 3 USTs slated for completion in April 2011.

Uniroyal

Vision Objectives

Estimated Cleanup Costs: Unknown Images: (top to bottom, left to right) 1. Chicopee City Hall (www.city-data.com)

2. Ames Privilege & Historic Canals (www.rent.com)

3. C-5B at Westover Air Reserve Base

Uniroyal Property

Facemate

Address: 154 Grove Street, Chicopee Square Footage: 1,219,680 Acreage: 28 acres

(www.city-data.com)

Ownership Status: City of Chicopee Asking Price: Negotiable Appraised Value: No recent appraisal Notes: Price will not be the sole deciding factor when considering developer interest

Environmental Connections: “...surround proposed buildings with a series of green spaces linked with pedestrian walkways, greenways or trails with connections to the Chicopee River...”

Existing Zoning: Mill Conversion and Commercial Center Overlay District Current Land Use: Vacant Surrounding Land Use(s): Residential, Commercial, Office and Civic Site Assembly: Yes - Former Facemate property - Other adjacent parcels

Neighborhood Connections: “...reintegrate the site into the surrounding neighborhood and enable new connections to Chicopee Center and Memorial Drive...”

View towards Uniroyal

Characterization Phase I: Limited Site Investigation completed March, 1991 by ECS Phase II: Comprehensive Site Assessment completed August, 1997 by ECS - Additional Phase II Investigations since 1998 by ECS, Gannett Fleming & GZA Phase III & IV: Under development Estimated Cleanup Costs: Unknown

Mixed Use Development: “...a diverse and complementary mix of uses that will directly and indirectly enhance the area as a place to live, work, shop, dine, visit and to connect with recreational amenities...”

Site Legacy: “...how the site’s industrial past can be incorporated into its reuse, remembering the site’s history...”

(www.westover.afrc.af.mil)

4. Fireworks over the former Chicopee High School

Major Water Bodies: - Connecticut River - Chicopee River

Main St.

t.

Chicopee is home to Westover Air Reserve Base, built in 1940. It has one of the largest runways on the east coast at 11,597 x 301 feet.

Existing Zoning: Mill Conversion and Commercial Center Overlay District Current Land Use: Vacant Surrounding Land Use(s): Residential, Commercial, Office and Civic

- RiverMills Development Brochure Facemate

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Chicopee adopted the motto ‘Industriae Variae,’ which means ‘Industry Varies.’ Chicopee was home to many types of industries including cotton mills, woolen mills, textiles, brass and iron foundries, paper making, leather products like boots and shoes, the first lucifer matches and ship building for the nearby South Hadley Canal, firearms company Crescent-Davis, which specialized in double barrel shotguns. The Ames Manufacturing Company made many machines and bronze cannons, and more swords than any other American manufacturer at the time. Ames cast Thomas Ball’s monumental bronze equestrian statue of George Washington, installed in Boston’s Public Garden. The Stevens Arms plant (later Savage) was responsible for most of the Number 4 Enfields manufactured for the British under Lend-Lease. Chicopee was home to the first gasoline-powered automobile made in the United States, Duryea.

Major Transportation Access: - Route 141 - Route 33 (Memorial Drive) - I-90 (MassPike) via Exit 5 - I-291, I-391 & I-91

Utility Services & Providers: - Cable: Charter Communications - Electric: Chicopee Electric Light (CEL) - Natural Gas: Columbia Gas of MA - Sewer: Chicopee Water Pollution Control - Telecommunications: Verizon - Water: Chicopee Water Department

“The City of Chicopee envisions the creation of a mixed-use, energy conscious, walkable community integrated within the historic framework of Chicopee Falls. With expanded business and job opportunities and new living options for residents, redevelopment will re-connect the neighborhood to its rich environmental context while re-forging links between Chicopee Falls and Chicopee Center…”

West Main

City History

Infrastructure

Distances to Major Cities: - Boston, MA: 91 miles - Hartford, CT: 31 miles - New York, NY: 146 miles - Providence, RI: 88 miles - Springfield, MA: 4 miles - Worcester, MA: 52 miles

Redevelopment Vision

Property Aerial

Uniroyal/Facemate

Fro

FY 2011 Tax Structure: - Residential: $14.66 / $1,000 assessed value - Commercial: $30.30 / $1,000 assessed value

At ‘the Crossroads of New England...’

Address: 5 West Main Street, Chicopee Square Footage: 609, 840 Acreage: 14 (2 parcels)

Government: Mayor/City Council Square Miles: 23.9 Population: 53,799 (2009) Labor Force: 28,029 (2011) Total Households: 23,038 (2009) Median Income: $44,295 (2009) Leading Employers: - Westover Air Reserve Base: 2,700 - Chicopee Public Schools: 1,212 - City of Chicopee: 750 - Walmart: 500 - Valley Opportunity Council: 400 - Covidian Products: 350 - Riverbend Medical Group: 312 - Callaway Golf Company: 300 - Avery Dennison Corp: 287 - J. Polep Distribution Service: 250

At ‘the Crossroads of New England...’

Facemate Property

City Statistics

Chicopee, MA RiverMills Vision Plans

Uniroyal

Green Development: “...support sustainable development practices...with respect to energy efficiency, materials, building systems, construction methods, long-term building operations and site planning...”

Effective Public-Private Partnership: “...with City, state and federal investments nearing $3 million, redevelopment should not place disproportionate requirements on City resources... RiverMills Development Brochure

Process The City of Chicopee plans to issue an official Request for Proposals (RFP) soliciting development proposals for the Rivermills site in late summer 2011.

Facemate UST Removal

Facemate UST Removal

Facemate UST Removal

Rails to Trails Project

Rails to Trails Project

Rails to Trails Project

Facemate Demolition

Facemate Demolition

Facemate Demolition

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes...�

- Marcel Proust