Stevens Mills, off Winter Street, will be redeveloped by Winn Development.
Mayor James J. Fiorentini.
“Slow, steady and managed growth” through redevelopment downtown, among other things, has brought the city of Haverhill its highest bond rating ever, according to Mayor James J. Fiorentini.
Fiorentini delivered his annual state of the city address during Tuesday night’s city council meeting.
“Tonight I can report that last year we finished with the highest bond rating in our 375-year history. And none of this happened by accident. It happened because we had growth. Growth is critical to our city. It happened because of Rep. (Brian S.) Dempsey and our legislative delegation’s help and it happened because we recognized that our first responsibility isn’t to compile wish lists and give everyone everything they ask for. Our first responsibility is to act as a gatekeeper to maintain strict fiscal stability,” Fiorentini said.
The mayor’s address focused, in part, on accomplishments in redevelopment in the downtown the past 12 years and he announced new plans by two developers to rehab the former Stevens Mills at Winter and Stevens streets, as well as the former Ted’s Leather Goods building at 24 Essex St., which Fiorentini called “the last of the vacant shoe factory buildings downtown.”
“This will be a $15 million redevelopment of 59 small, market-rate housing units geared towards 20 to 30 year-old ‘knowledge workers,’ the very type of young person that we’re working so hard to attract to this community,” Fiorentini said. “The developers hope to put in a restaurant with outdoor dining, or retail on the first floor.”
Fiorentini also announced plans, pending council approval of extending the city’s transit-oriented, Chapter 40R Smart Growth overlay district to Stevens Street, a $30 million redevelopment project at the former Stevens Mills building at the corner of Winter Street and overlooking the Little River falls at Lafayette Square.
“Last October, our worst nightmare came true and kids broke into the building in back of this and set it on fire. Only a truly great effort by the Haverhill Fire Department saved the Stevens Mills, the front building, from destruction,” Fiorentini said.
“I’m so thrilled to announce tonight the redevelopment of Stevens Mills by Winn Development. It will add 80 units of housing with a restaurant on the first floor. This has the potential to revitalize the entire Lafayette Square area. The new development will have a public park, a walkway, to open Little River to the public in that area for the first time in a century,” Fiorentini added.
The Stevens Mills proposal is from Larry Curtis, president and managing partner of Winn Development, Boston. Redevelopment of the former Ted’s Leather Goods building is proposed by Eric Chinburg, president, Chinburg Properties, Newmarket, N.H., according to Chief of Staff David S. Van Dam. Both were in attendance and introduced by Fiorentini during Tuesday night’s address.
Fiorentini added the Stevens Mills building, vacant since 2006 when it could not meet fire codes, intrigued him the most during his time in office and had kept a photo behind his desk at city hall “to remind me how important it was to redevelop.” He noted a “fascinating history” of the building constructed in 1798 and “mostly used for textiles.”
As to future development in the city, Fiorentini said ongoing projects including Harbor Place and new market-rate housing at the former Office Surplus building on Washington Street, will open later this year. He added he would introduce by early next year a proposed zoning rules amendment to encourage “low impact” development throughout the city to “respect neighborhoods, the environment and water supply.”
Former Ted’s Leather building, 24 Essex St., after redevelopment.
WOW This is managed growth? Balanced starts with new business that are ZERO BURDEN on services. Businesses pay higher taxes and are no burden to schools, trash pickup, police and fire. These new businesses attract middle and upper class home buyers. Apartments just dont pay off.
There may be a need to build at least 2 new schools in Haverhills future. Good luck taxpayers.
No mention of how this will impact schools? No mention of funding for another school to house all these additional children’s that all of these apartment will bring. We are already dealing with overcrowding and being forced to keep open small inefficient sub par schools like Crowell.
“we finished with the highest bond rating in our 375-year history.” – Who pays the rating agencies again? Just remember the disclosure (that no one reads) in regard to repay: The ability to tax.
“It happened because of Rep. (Brian S.) Dempsey and our legislative delegation’s help” – Of course it did, without the state aid, The City of Haverhill collapses as revenues come nowhere near expenditures. Haverhill simply issues more debt, which is pretty much what everyone has done during the era of ZIRP.
“responsibility is to act as a gatekeeper to maintain strict fiscal stability,” Fiorentini said. – Debt service, amortization, and interest payments is all that’s left until its inevitable mathematical conclusion.
“20 to 30 year-old ‘knowledge workers,” – WTF is that? Nice and vague, typical of pols. I’d love to hear the anti-liberty Mayor explain his definition of a “knowledge worker”. If I were a political strategist I would say Mayor Jimmy is insulting The Haverill Citizenry as being too dumb, so we need to go outside of Haverhill to attract these “knowledge workers.
“thrilled to announce tonight the redevelopment of Stevens Mills by Winn Development.” –
I’m sure the $54,970.00 paid in political campaign contributions to Beacon Hill pols, and the tens-of-thousand more paid to CONgress Members like McGovern, Lynch, Capuano, had absolutely no influence on the bid. Or was this like Harbor Place where there was no bid at all? Will LOCAL contractors get a taste, or will LOCAL Haverhill Citizens be locked out like The Fish Family did at Harbor Place?
As usual….no mention of the facts and realities of proposals like these.
There are going to be 59 and 80 units of new housing? How many children will that add to the already over crowded school system and how much money is that going to cost Haverhill taxpayers with increases in the school budget? The city will be lucky to collect $3,000.00 a year in taxes from ‘market rate’ housing like this. With the cost to educate each student being $16,000.00 per year in Haverhill, that means the taxpayers are getting stuck footing a $13,000.00 bill for EVERY child residing in one of these homes. But the costs don’t end there….they increase exponentially as more teachers are needed, the demand for staffing in fire and police services, and of course it’s Haverhill, so that means parking will be an issue. Haverhill is flat broke as a result this tax and spend mayor putting the city $100Million in debt and his answer is to add more cost to city services. This is how the mind of a fiscally irresponsible liberal democrat works. It doesn’t matter that taxes have doubled since this fraud has been in office….growing the size and cost of government is considered a success to looney liberals.