A developer is seeking to convert the Brookside Mill in Westford into condominiums using his own funds, a loan and state money for distressed properties.
An old, deteriorated mill in Westford may finally be getting a facelift, after the town struggled to take over the abandoned property for a decade.
A local developer recently received town approval to redevelop the Brookside Mill into luxury condominiums.
Westford got another boost late last month when it was selected along with six other communities to receive a grant to develop housing for first-time homebuyers on distressed or vacant property.
The grants will be used for the condominium project. Westford is kicking in $149,200 in addition to the $360,000 provided by the state Department of Housing and Community Development to help create affordable units within the Brookside Mill project.
When finished, the Brookside Mill Townhouse Condominiums will feature 35 two-bedroom units, five of which will be sold to families at or below 80 percent of the area median income. The Westford Housing Authority will purchase three other units at a reduced price, which will be rented to income-eligible tenants.
The project is important, according to Town Manager Steve Ledoux, because it will preserve an important historical landmark that had fallen into disrepair and was targeted by vandals during the three decades it was empty.
At the same time, the town will increase its affordable housing stock, said Ledoux. Only about 2 to 3 percent of the bedroom community’s housing is available at below-market rate, he said.
“The alternative was to tear it down,” said Ledoux of Brookside Mill.
The Brookside Mill project will include a mix of two-bedroom townhouses and flats, ranging in size from approximately 1,000 to 2,000 square feet. The market-rate units will sell in the mid-$200,000 range. The units will be marketed to young single professionals, retired couples and young homebuyers priced out of the Westford market.
Westford, a bedroom community in the Merrimack Valley, has mostly detached single-family homes with prices that have escalated over the years.
The median price for all single-family homes sold in Westford through June of this year was $290,450, while the median price for condominiums was $337,950, according to Warren Information Services, Banker & Tradesman’s sister company. Last year, the median price for a single-family home was $297,500 and $277,00 for condominiums.
Just six years ago, the median prices for a single-family home in Westford was almost $70,000 less, or $229,000, according to WIS data.
Westford developer Gerard H. Boucher received planning board approval for the project two weeks ago. Boucher said he is waiting for approval from the state Department of Environmental Protection regarding a wastewater treatment facility that will go on the site.
Boucher said he hopes to launch the project after Labor Day. Ten units have already been pre-sold, according to Boucher, and the developer is in talks with agent from The DeWolfe Cos. to market the townhouses. A page describing the project within the company’s Web site – www.ghboucher.com – was posted in May.
Brookside Mill, one of five mill buildings in Westford located along Stony Brook, was the first fulling mill – a facility that cleanses, shrinks and thickens cloth through moisture and heat – in Massachusetts. Years later, the building was used as food storage facility.
The oldest part of the mill dates back to 1862, even though the site was used in Colonial times by William Chandler as a fulling mill. The mill is not a registered historial site but the town Historical Commission has applied to register the property, according to the Westford Museum and Historical Society.
The building was abandoned in the early 1970s and the town filed to take over the property about 10 years ago because of nonpayment of taxes. The town’s ownership of the property became final last September.
The town created a board to consider the redevelopment of Brookside Mill and eventually received three proposals. Boucher, a well-known developer who has done other renovations in Westford including converting a farm barn into luxury condominiums, had the winning proposal.
Boucher said he wanted to do the project because he specialized in renovation projects.
The town’s zoning laws include a specific bylaw provision for the conversion of mill buildings. The provision creates a mill overlay district that gives the planning board more flexibility in the conversion of the buildings.
Under the bylaw provision, 15 percent of the units – or in this case, five units – must be affordable. The developer agreed to eight affordable units as the town committed $149,200 to buy three affordable rental units within the condominium complex.
Westford officials tried to attract developers by offering various incentives. Besides providing money to buy three units, the town also agreed to reduce some fees and permit costs and make certain repairs.
The project is a big undertaking because the building has been neglected for years. The roof has collapsed and, among other repairs, the building needs new windows, according to Ledoux.
“It’s in pretty tough shape,” he said.
Boucher said the Brookside Mill project is the first to successfully go through the approval process under the special mill bylaw.
One developer’s proposal to put 180 units in another mill has been put on hold, according to Ledoux, and another developer is trying to fill up a different mill with start-up companies.
