That must be some view. Usually mill conversion projects don't make financial sense, or so I have been told. What are (or will be) the going rates for units? Don't get me wrong, from a reuse standpoint, mill renovations are great, but I have heard from a financial standpoint it would usually be cheaper to tear the whole thing down and start again (which would, obviously, probably be prohibited in most locales).
Some of the mill conversions in New Bedford (and in places like Lowell, Haverhill, and probably Manchester, I assume) can do well enough as long as there's a market for the units (and there is a growing one). Many of these old mills haven't been out of use too long so they may not have to be torn apart as the most recent uses often have somewhat modernized the insulation, heating/cooling systems, etc. One of my favorites is the recently opened
Lofts at Wamsutta in New Bedford. It really beautified a HUGE chunk of the city (there's a major antique store there and a small museum inside as well). The units are great too.
Personally, I think it's a case by case basis. I mentioned the Riverside Landing development right near the Victoria mill conversion. That site was the Fairhaven Mills location. It was a big controversy when the developer said they wanted to take it down. It was deemed a historic site, but it just wasn't feasible to renovate it so they took it down and are now building a relatively large, three-phase, mixed use project. Wamsutta was financially doable while Fairhaven Mill (about 1/4 mile away from Wamsutta) wasn't. I like Wamsutta, but at the same time the Fairhaven Mill Complex was sprawling. The new development includes new streets (smaller blocks) and essentially a new neighborhood center along the waterfront. It's more pedestrian friendly and integrated with the neighborhood better than a mill complex can really ever be (most essentially turn their back on their surroundings).
New Bedford is lucky enough to grown as a seaport/maritime colonial city (as evidenced by the city's focal point, the
Whaling District National Historic Park) for a long time before industry came to town. Because of this, the old mills are a ways outside of downtown (where in industrial cities like nearby Fall River or Pawtucket, Haverhill, Biddeford, etc they are right in downtown). This means they don't really effect how the city's center functions or appears aesthetically.
Personally, I'd rather see most of them go, feasible or not. Wamsutta is great. I really like what's happening at Victoria (
here is the website, by the way) too since it's right on the river near another new project. Those two developments are an influx of over $100 Million in that small pocket of the North End that can go a long way. Still, old mills occupy a lot of space and I'd rather see that space used to tie back together the urban fabric of a neighborhood (like Riverside Landing) instead of just sprucing up a giant old dinosaur. Like I said, it's a case-by-case basis and some can be retrofitted nicely; but more often than not, I'd rather see them leveled.
I don't see the prices posted, but I think the rentals at Victoria are going to start at about $950 (1 bedroom) and the condos at about $250,000. I'm not sure at all what they're going for at Brick Mill.
