LYNN — The creation of a 30-acre park at the former Lynn landfill is closer to fruition after a land transfer agreement was reached between two companies.
Charter Development, the brownfield redevelopment affiliate of Charter Contracting, an environmental and civil construction firm, has taken title to four parcels of land, totaling 16 acres, that had been previously owned by National Grid.
The redevelopment of the former landfill into a public waterfront park is a key vision in the Lynn Waterfront Open Space Master Plan.
“We are pleased to have reached an agreement with Charter that will deliver an important open space project on the waterfront to the city of Lynn,” said Marcy Reed, president of National Grid Massachusetts.
The two companies announced the land transfer on Thursday, but terms of the deal, which was completed in late June, were not disclosed.
With the title transfer, Charter Development now owns the entire 30-acre parcel that will be transformed into the planned public waterfront park, and will work with city officials to move the project forward.
Charter Development acquired a 15-acre parcel that encompasses the former Lynn landfill last year through foreclosure from a defunct real estate trust, according to the announcement.
“We are thrilled to have completed this milestone land transfer,” said Charter principal Mason Sandell. “This successful outcome is the product of four years of planning and close collaboration with both National Grid and municipal and state stakeholders.
“It allows us to complete the first phase of the project, which involves capping the former landfill, remediating impacted parcels, and adding coastal resiliency measures that together enable the land to be put back into productive reuse as public open space for the benefit of the citizens of Lynn.”
The landfill capping project is expected to be completed in late 2023, which will allow for the implementation of the plan’s second phase, the design and construction of the future park, according to the announcement.
The 2019 Lynn Municipal Harbor Plan Amendment, approved by the City Council, anticipated that private and public stakeholders would form a public-private partnership to design, fund and build the signature waterfront park.
To that end, Mayor Thomas M. McGee said the city will be working with Charter Development throughout the process, which will also involve public discussions with people in the community, businesses and abutters to the waterfront, to determine the park’s final design.
It’s a little too early to say what that final design might consist of, McGee said, but he envisions exciting uses that will incorporate public access and add value to “this unique open space” near the Boston Harbor Islands and the city of Boston.
McGee said the park will be a key piece of the city’s plans to incorporate a total of 60 acres of open space along the entire 305-acre waterfront.
“Sixty acres of open space along that waterfront is really a game changer for our community,” said McGee, noting that much of the city’s waterfront from the former Beacon Chevrolet site to the Saugus River remains inaccessible to the public.
In addition to the signature park, other large-scale visions of the Waterfront Open Space Master Plan include connecting the entire waterfront with a promenade, or paved public walk, and linking the waterfront to the downtown.
The plan envisions a cohesive connection among the waterfront’s three major areas, known as South Harbor (where the former landfill is located), Central Harbor and North Harbor, or the former Beacon Chevrolet site.
“The best part of the whole project is what the end result will bring, having a signature location on the waterfront — having a place where future generations (can recreate),” said McGee.
