Secretary Bialecki Announces $6 Million Massworks Grant to Help Revitalize Malden Center
Friday, December 19, 2014
At a press conference held today at Malden City Hall, Housing and Economic Development Secretary Greg Bialecki announced an additional $6 million in funding for a transformative development plan in Malden Center. The grant will enable the City to replace its municipal buildings across from the Orange Line T station with a mixed use development, reconnect Pleasant Street, relocate City Hall within the new development and build a new police headquarters. “This is an exciting plan for Malden Center,” said Secretary Bialecki. “We are pleased to make this strategic public investment that will not only trigger a major private investment, but also continue the effort to make downtown a magnet for those who want to live, work and play in a walkable urban neighborhood.”
The developer, Jefferson Apartment Group, plans to invest an estimated $100 million to purchase City Hall and the Police Headquarters and build 234 market rental units, 25,000 square feet of retail space, 42,000 square feet of office space, and 276 parking spaces on the site. “I applaud Governor Patrick and Secretary Bialecki for investing in Malden’s future through the MassWorks Infrastructure Program,” said Congresswoman Katherine Clark. “This funding will allow the City to continue to make targeted improvements in and around Malden Center. Downtown Malden is a vibrant community center with incredible economic potential, and I am confident that strategic public investment will make the City an even more attractive and exciting location for residents, businesses and developers.”
The City will purchase and use the office space for its new City Hall, apparently the first time that a Massachusetts municipality has located its offices in such a mixed use complex. The developer will also reconnect Pleasant Street, which was divided when City Hall was built in 1975. Secretary Bialecki announced the new $6 million grant under the MassWorks public infrastructure program to supplement the $3 million MassWorks grant awarded in November 2013. “This additional grant money continues to show the Commonwealth's commitment to and respect for the taxpayers of Malden,” said Representative Christopher Fallon. “This project is finally coming to a point of finality and I specifically congratulate all the local officials who committed so much effort to see this plan to its conclusion.”
Since mid-2013, the Commonwealth has worked closely with the nine communities in Metro North because of their potential to provide the live-work-play neighborhoods that are critical to growing the state’s innovative economy. In October 2014, the Commonwealth and Metropolitan Area Planning Council released a Land Use Priority Plan for Metro North that identified state priority development areas, including Malden Center, and state priority preservation areas. The funds will be used to help the City acquire, design, and construct a new police headquarters on a site along Eastern Avenue just east of Malden Center. Secretary Bialecki also announced that the Eastern Avenue corridor would be designated a Growth District to ensure that this and other sites are development-ready. Eastern Avenue will become the 23rd Growth District in the state.
Mayor Gary Christenson announced today that a preliminary agreement to acquire the Eastern Avenue site has been reached and that the City expects to obtain possession and start construction on the new police headquarters in 2015. “Each piece of this plan benefits the City and together they transform the entire downtown and help us revitalize the Eastern Avenue commercial corridor as well,” said Mayor Christenson. “By reconnecting Pleasant Street and creating lively edges along the street, we open up the entire downtown to one of our greatest assets, our subway connection to Boston.”
“This plan is the result of a lot of hard work and collaboration, and is a great example of the impact local and state government can have when working together,” said Councilor James Nestor. “This project will transform the downtown for future generations.” “The chosen site for the construction of a new Police Station on Eastern Avenue is a fantastic location one that is easily accessible to all points in Malden,” said Councilor Neil Kinnon. “It’s long been identified as a prime location for a public safety facility. Ward Six looks forward to having the Malden Police Station and the hard working men and women who serve Malden as part of our neighborhood.”
In addition to the MassWorks grant, the Mayor said the City was financing the plan, likely to cost over $30 million, through $12.5 million in local bonding, sale of the municipal buildings and other local funding. Through the MassWorks Infrastructure Program, the Patrick Administration partners with local communities and helps municipalities make targeted investments in infrastructure such as roadways, streetscapes, water, and sewer to facilitate and support new and sustained housing and economic growth throughout the state.
Administered by the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, the MassWorks Infrastructure Program provides a one-stop shop for municipalities seeking funding to support housing, economic development and job creation and placed a particular emphasis on assisting communities to advance multi-family housing development in the 2013 and 2014 rounds. The Patrick Administration has invested almost $300 million in MassWorks infrastructure and public improvements projects statewide since 2011.
City of Malden
