Dellbrook Construction Chief Beneficiary of State’s Harbor Place Spending

WHAV News Staff By |

Harbor Place commercial building under construction at White’s Corner. (WHAV photograph.)

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A construction entrance at the west side of the property.

A construction entrance at the west side of the property.

The general contractor of the $68 million Harbor Place Merrimack Street project has, to date, been the largest beneficiary of the state’s investment in downtown.

As of last July 30, Dellbrook Construction of Quincy received $5.5 million from a $19 million MassWorks grant awarded to the city, according to documents obtained by WHAV.

Michael W. Fish, who took over the company following the death of his father Edward A. Fish in 2010, heads Dellbrook Construction. The company posted more than $150 million in revenue last year, according to its website.

Amounts paid to Dellbrook, as submitted in three reimbursement requests by City of Haverhill officials, include $4.5 million for site construction and related activities; $295,727 for environmental remediation, demolition and construction; and $699,112 for remediation.

Dellbrook was chosen as contractor for UMass Lowell’s $11.8 million Fox Hall renovation in 2009. Fish served as project manager. UMass Lowell will also occupy two floors in the Harbor Place commercial building. At the time, then-Chancellor Marty Meehan said the project would create 200 construction jobs.

Fish has made nearly $30,000 in political contributions over the past eight years, according to the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance. Local recipients of his campaign donations include Rep. Brian S. Dempsey, Sen. Kathleen A. O’Connor-Ives and former Sen. Barry R. Finegold.

The Greater Haverhill Foundation and related entities received separate reimbursements of $325,000 for site control and property purchases and $3.2 million for repayment of loans to Pentucket Bank and its own GHF Realty Limited Partnership.

According to a June 30, 2014 agreement between Haverhill and the state, the total project budget was to have been broken down along these lines:

Site Assembly/Acquisition 3,549,000
Site Remediation/Demolition 1,141,227
Boardwalk 3,352,499
Development Platform/Garage 4,240,638
Site Work/Access/Plaza 5,611,548
Streetscape Improvements 360,156
Contingency 773,607
Total $19,028,807

The contract also calls for all projects to be completed by next June.

6 thoughts on “Dellbrook Construction Chief Beneficiary of State’s Harbor Place Spending”

    • What most will miss is the RE-PAYMENT of money to the Greater Haverhill Foundation for it’s investments using the State Grant funds. That smells awfully ” fishy” to me ! So if I decide to develop a piece of property and can spread enough bull around, I can get ALL of my costs paid back to me by the state ?????? WHAT ? Is THAT what I am reading here Mr Coco ????