The future of the former Worcester County Courthouse remains unclear after only one interested investor submitted the paperwork required to bid on the property.
The state’s Division of Capital Asset Management (DCAM) is working to sell the courthouse at 5 Highland St. (Route 9), built in 1899 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and another building at 2 Main St.
Qualifications of bidding developers for a January auction were due Dec. 17. Quincy-based Acorn Management Co. was the only company to submit documentation to DCAM. The state agency stipulated in its request for qualifications that it reserves the right to cancel the auction if less than three submissions were received.
The state body has not yet decided if it will cancel the auction, and is still reviewing the submission, said Kevin Flanigan, a deputy director for DCAM. The agency will notify respondents by Jan. 7 if they will be allowed to bid on the property.
"We did identify a number of interested parties," Mark Shear, president of Worcester-based Berman Auctioneers & Appraisers, which is handling the auction proceedings, told Banker & Tradesman. "I am confident that in the end we will have a successful sale and purchase of the courthouse, whatever form that takes. It’s still a process that is underway. It is a significant project and we’re all hoping that good things will come of it."
The property consists of approximately 4.47 acres of land, the approximately 110,000-square-foot courthouse, and another 70,000-square-foot structure. The historic courthouse building includes several multi-story courtrooms and many offices.
Worcester officials and historic preservation experts agree it would take a creative team of architects to plan an effective reuse of the site, especially if the buyer takes advantage of state or federal historic tax credits. Those require a variety of preservation recommendations found in the U.S. Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation and Guidelines for Rehabilitating Historic Buildings.
The city strongly encourages redevelopment of the historic structures. However, if the developer chooses not to take advantage of federal and state preservation tax credits, they can reuse the property in any way that the city and state historical commissions approve, unless DCAM includes specific restrictions with the sale.
