NORTHBOROUGH – The future of White Cliffs was discussed during the Dec. 16 Select Board meeting.
Planning Director Laurie Connors previously went before the board. She sought a letter of support to apply for a grant to fund the architectural services to determine how to demolish the 1960s additions. This includes two kitchen additions along with the dance floor and second floor additions.
She learned that the town was not awarded the grant in October. When she spoke with the funder, Connors was told that the project was deemed ineligible because the end use of the property would not be affordable housing or leased for commercial space, resulting in jobs.
Connors asked DBVW Architects to update its estimates for project costs and applied to the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) for funds.
The project would include designing temporary infill that would stay in place and preserve the building for five to 10 years until a definitive plan could move forward.
Connors said the actual demolition of the additions would be very expensive, and she anticipates an updated cost estimate. In a 2020 report, DBVW estimated the work would cost $500,000, but that figure did not include mitigation of hazardous materials.
The CPC hearing for the application began on Dec. 5.
“There were certain members [of the CPC] who were very concerned about putting forward additional funds when the ultimate reuse of White Cliffs was still in doubt,” Connors said. “They felt strongly that Town Meeting would question this project and the wisdom of financing this project when there was no real direction for the reuse of the property.”
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The town purchased the White Cliffs property in 2016 and issued a request for proposals in late 2022 that resulted in three responses. The White Cliffs Committee recommended that the Select Board award a contract to Metro West Collaborative Development, which proposed constructing 52 units of affordable housing in the mansion and an adjacent building. Ultimately, the board decided not to move the proposal forward in mid-2023.
In June, the Town Offices Feasibility Study Committee recommended that Town Hall move to White Cliffs; no official vote has been taken. Select Board Chair Mitch Cohen said a Town Hall project may occur no sooner than the Peaslee Elementary School project.
Connors said the CPC asked her to return to the committee at its first meeting in February with feedback from the Select Board as to its long term vision for White Cliffs to help the committee decide whether to fund the project.
Select Board member Mike Tietjen said that while you want to respect Town Meeting’s decisions, 2016 “was a different world and a lot has changed in those eight years,” including economically.
“I do think, to be fair, we have to consider all options for this building because of what has changed since. That’s eight years and we’re stuck with the consequences of that,” he said.
Tietjen, who was not on the board when the affordable housing project was proposed, said he did not support the project.
“In hindsight, … it wasn’t popular, but it was a way to restore the building without what I think of as a large allocation of funds from Northborough taxpayers. It’s a hard needle to thread. I don’t know how you do that. Hopefully, we can move the ball forward and figure something out,” Tietjen said.
Cohen suggested issuing another request for proposals.
“Hopefully, we will get back something different and interesting,” he said.
Select Board member Lisa Maselli, noting the time, said the topic bears a lot of conversation and the board needed to get information about what the general public is interested in.
The Select Board asked Town Administrator Stephanie Bacon to take the next steps and come to the board for options at their next meeting.
