GA Blog: Salem

7.19.10 Housing in Old Salem Jail – Restaurant & Museum to Follow

After beginning in December 2006, the renovation of the Old Salem Jail in Salem, Mass is nearing completion.  According to the Salem Gazette, developer New Boston Ventures finished its renovation earlier this year and held its first open house a few weeks ago.  An estimated 3,000 people came to see the refurbished jail and within a little more than a week, 21 of the 23 available units had been leased out.

The original plan for the redevelopment was to turn the jail into condo units available for purchase, but the economic crash changed the plan to a minimum of 5-year rentals, with current residents having a right of first refusal to purchase their unit with part of their rent from their lease term being applied to the purchase price.  The condo units, which range in size from 800 to 2,600 square feet and rent from $1,200 to $2,600, have 12- to 15-foot high ceilings and views of the North River. There are 30 parking spaces included as part of the project’s footprint, mostly for use of the Old Salem Jail’s residents.

New Boston Ventures founder David Goldman said the restaurant on the ground floor of the building will be opening soon and will be called — appropriately — The Great Escape.  The restaurant, much like the condo building itself, will embrace the history of the jail, incorporating old jail cell doors and other historical decor throughout the dining area.

There will be a public museum open seven days a week that displays all of the history of the building that Goldman didn’t incorporate into the condos. It will have its own entrance separate of the residential entrance and the hours of operation have yet to be determined.  Also, some space in the building will be reserved to act as an artist’s studio, too.

Read the entire Salem Gazette article.

6.30.10 Beverly & Salem Housing Group Merger

Following-up on our post in February, the Salem Gazette is reporting that the merger between the Salem Harbor Community Development Corporation and Beverly Affordable Housing Coalition is expected to be completed by end of July.

The CDC has developed around 180 units of affordable housing since it was founded in 1979, but its high-profile development for buyers, the Palmer Cove Condominiums, was threatened with foreclosure and was converted into a rental property.  The CDC’s English for Speakers of Other Languages classes serve about 100 students each year through an active volunteer instructor program.

The smaller BAHC broke ground earlier this year on one of two new affordable housing developments in Beverly, the 43-unit Cabot Street Homes, and has secured funding for the 65-unit Holcroft Park Homes slated to begin construction in 2011. Founded in 2000, BAHC oversees about 70 affordable apartments, but hopes to have closer to 100 units by the end of this year.

According to David Jacobson, president of the Salem Harbor CDC Board of Directors: "The board is going to be a mixture of both Salem and Beverly, and we’re developing contacts and deepening the roots in both cities… We expect it to really be a good organization, one that will be stronger and better able to satisfy our clients.”

Read the entire Salem Gazette article.

5.27.10 North Shore Towns Amongst 35 Massachusetts “Green” Communities

The Boston Globe reports that Governor Deval Patrick designated 4 North Shore cities/towns amongst the 35 first official “Green Communities”, making them eligible for $8.1 million in grants for local renewable power and energy-efficiency projects.  In order to qualify, cities/towns must meet five clean energy goals, including:

• Adopting local zoning bylaws to encourage and speed up permitting for renewable energy projects
• Purchasing only fuel-efficient vehicles for their municipal fleet whenever possible
• Requiring all new residential construction over 3,000 square feet, as well as all new commercial and industrial real estate construction, to save energy by adopting new building codes.

Green Communities are eligible for millions in local aid under the 2008 Green Communities Act; they include Acton, Arlington, Athol, Andover, Becket, Belchertown, Cambridge, Chelmsford, Easthampton, Greenfield, Hamilton, Hanover, Holyoke, Hopkinton, Kingston, Lancaster, Lenox, Lexington, Lincoln, Lowell, Mashpee, Medford, Melrose, Montague, Natick, Newton, Northampton, Palmer, Pittsfield, Salem, Springfield, Sudbury, Tyngsborough, Wenham, and Worcester.

The communities’ deadline to apply for a piece of the $8 million is June 4; the grants will be awarded in late June.  Each community will also receive a Big Belly solar waste compactor to be delivered in time for the summer parks and beaches season.

Read the entire Boston Globe article.

5.3.10 Salem Seeks “Green Community” Designation

The Salem Gazette reported that Salem, MA is looking to seek the Commonwealth’s “Green Community” designation, which could provide access to $10 million reserved for eco-friendly communities that adopt at least five core criteria specified by the Department of Energy Resources:

1. Purchasing only fuel-efficient vehicles
2. Adopting an expedited permit application process for energy facilities
3. Establishing a benchmark for energy use and reducing that number by 20% within 5 years
4. Offering siting considerations for energy manufacturing or research facilities
5. Adopting a new Board of Building Regulations and Standards Stretch Code.

The so-called stretch code requirement –- a stricter building code for energy conservation –- may prove to be the most challenging for any municipality undertaking the process to become a Green Community.  Typically, Massachusetts building codes are established at the state level and there’s no ability for a local jurisdiction to supersede that. But in this case, the state is allowing local adoption of a stricter building code.

No city/town has yet earned the “Green Community” designation.

Read the entire Salem Gazette article.

3.12.10 Bridge Street Project in Salem, MA

The Salem Gazette reports with the completion of the Beverly bypass  road, renovations will begin on Bridge Street in Salem, MA.  Designed by the City of Salem, the renovation plan will take up to 1½ years, and willl be paid for through a state program, according to Mayor Kim Driscoll.  The end product should feature upgraded streets and sidewalks, “period” lighting and a connection to the bike path.

Read the entire Salem Gazette article.

3.1.10 South River Harborwalk in Salem, MA

The Salem Gazette reports that the South River Harborwalk in Salem, MA will be unveiled this June. The harborwalk has been in the works for at least a decade and is part of a larger effort to revitalize Salem’s waterfront. Since Mayor Kim Driscoll took office a few years ago, there’s been an additional push to move the project forward, aided by a $420,000 grant promised to the city in 2008 by the Seaport Advisory Council.

Last fall, workers began constructing the 1,100-foot harborwalk along the South River, by the Congress Street Bridge and Peabody and Lafayette streets. Officials expect the work will be done in the spring, around the same time as the abutting Peabody Street Park is finished.

The entrance of the walk will be at a small plaza on New Derby Street, near Beverly Cooperative Bank, where visitors can sit on benches. There will be flagpoles with “marine imagery” aimed at creating a higher point to establish a “visual connection to the downtown.” according to planning department director Lynn Duncan.

Read the entire Salem Gazette article.