Swampscott board aims to polish property proposals

SWAMPSCOTT – Selectmen recommended revising proposals to entice the development of town-owned properties, prompted by Town Meeting’s approval for the town to purchase the Leon E. Abbot Post 57 and to remove historical restrictions on the former middle school.”The more we can do to get more people interested (in the properties) the better,” said Town Administrator Andrew Maylor at the board’s Tuesday night meeting. Revising a proposal “is not necessarily a panacea, but it will expand the developer pool.”Maylor said that the recent Town Meeting votes provided an opportunity for selectmen to review the inventory of property that it is looking to sell to developers. Property includes the former Temple Israel, which the town purchased in June 2006, the former middle school on Greenwood Avenue, the former Senior Center on Burrill Street, as well as the Abbot Post, the purchase of which will be completed hopefully by the summer, Maylor said. Maylor and Selectman Jill Sullivan also identified two schools – the Machon School and one of the three elementary schools that may be closed due to future consolidation – that are likely to be transferred from the school district to the town.Although Maylor said that “interest was not lacking,” specifically in the middle school and Temple Israel properties, getting the properties in private ownership, and thus on the town’s tax rolls, could be sped up by making minor changes to the “request for proposals” or RFPs sent out to developers.”If I get 30 letters of interest (from developers) I tell them to submit a proposal, whether for a golf course or condos or whatever,” Maylor told selectmen. “But a proposal requires investment in dozens and dozens of hours and developers want to know their investment (in the proposal) is worthwhile. And we want them to know we’re serious.”Sullivan noted that the Building Oversight Committee, of which she is a member, has already made changes to their request to potential developers to develop the middle school property. Rather than stipulate specifically what they wanted on the property – for instance, 42 condo units – the new request more generally suggests development compatible with zoning specifications and the surrounding neighborhood.Newly elected Selectman Barry Greenfield suggested that the town investigate a private-public partnership with developers if it found it could not sell the properties for the desired price. Although each scenario would be unique according to the property, proposed development and market conditions, Greenfield explained that the town could effectively donate (or sell at low cost) a property to a developer in return for a percentage of future profits. Developers who did not have the upfront costs, but would recoup their investment when individual units on the property sold or rent started accruing, might find this option appealing, Greenfield said.Maylor said that the Building Oversight Committee would review the individual requests and see how the town could “communicate how we want to be creative” in financing or other methods to entice developers to each project. The committee will submit the revisions to the selectmen in mid-June. The revised requests would be issued by late summer, Maylor said.