Northborough selectmen clear the way for White Cliffs deal

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By Melanie Petrucci, Contributing Writer

Northborough selectmen clear the way for White Cliffs deal
The White Cliffs residence
(File photo/Bonnie Adams)

Northborough – Town Administrator John Coderre reported at the Sept. 25 Board of Selectmen meeting that the purchase of White Cliffs is almost complete.

“As part of due diligence for the purchase and sale agreement, we did some investigatory work and went in to look for any hazardous materials or issues that would prevent us from acquiring the facility,” Coderre said. “We discovered that an underground storage tank off the back of the property contained oil and had leaked so it was up to the seller to remediate that situation.”

The original closing date was Sept. 21, 2016, so it’s taken a year to get the remediation done and reports filed. A walk through recently took place and an inventory of historic fixtures that were removed (that will come back to the town) was also done.

A few tasks needed to take place at the meeting to move the process along for closing. The first was the approval and execution of the ‘Advance in Lieu of Borrowing’ so that funds can be wired for the property’s closing. This had been done earlier but had expired. Finance Director June Hubbard-Ward was on hand to take care of this detail which was approved.

Second was the acceptance and execution of the deed which the board also approved.

Selectman Dawn Rand questioned the bond amount of $1.7 million, noting that the price listed was $1.75 million. Coderre replied that Town Meeting approved $2.4 million for the overall project. $1.7 million would be debt serviced and the remaining will come from other sources.

Last, a Re-use Committee needed to be formed to move the project forward by exploring the long-term viability of the property; hiring consultants to determine baseline conditions, secure the property and provide ongoing management in the near term; and working with town staff and consultants to assess viable use by the town or third parties.

This committee is a two-year assignment and will present recommendations to the Board of Selectmen for consideration at the 2019 Annual Town Meeting.

Members of the Re-use Committee will include one representative each from the Board of Selectmen, the Community Preservation Committee and the Historic District Commission, and two to four at-large members, selected by the Board of Selectmen. The town administrator and town planner would also sit on the committee as non-voting members. It was recommended to have an odd number serve on the committee to avoid split votes. The consensus was to see what the applicant pool looked like before determining at-large members. Requests for applicants will be posted.

The board also assured residents that they would have input on usage of the facility at upcoming open meetings.

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