EASTHAMPTON — A site long recognized for its abandoned, dilapidated mill buildings is on the rise as a private developer continues renovations of the 1 Ferry St. mill complex while the city makes road and utility upgrades to the area.
The $45 million project to redevelop the 310,000-square-feet mill complex at 1 Ferry St. — bolstered by the city’s improvements to the area’s roads — “completes the Mill District,” said Easthampton Mayor Nicole LaChapelle. “It’s kind of the capstone of the Mill District.”
Over the summer, part of the complex, known as 3 Ferry St., opened for commercial and residential tenants and is now fully leased, according to developer Mike Michon. Next in line for redevelopment is Building 5, which will have 43 residential apartments, a fitness facility and covered parking. Michon hopes to see construction start in the spring.
Michon has also detailed plans for another building composed of 80% residential and 20% commercial space; a fully commercial building; and two sites that will be prepared to host 60,000 square feet for mixed-use buildings. Overall, the redeveloped mill buildings at the property are set to include 152 housing units. Plans for the project, called One Industrial Lofts, also include office and commercial spaces, massage and yoga areas, and a rooftop solar power system.
The city has been discussing the renovations with Michon since 2018, and LaChapelle said that the project is mutually beneficial for both parties.
“It stabilizes an environmentally very fragile site that has been an issue over the decades,” she noted this week, adding that the buildings “sit next to Arcadia and the Manhan River, so it’s super important to protect that water source. It generally improves property not only for the neighborhood, but the city.”
At one point, the number of buildings on the property were in the double digits, according to LaChapelle, but some of the smaller structures were taken down due to safety concerns. LaChapelle was not certain how many buildings will ultimately be renovated as part of the project, noting that the developer will continue to assess which structures should come down and which will be renovated.
Michon previously developed and owns what is now the Mill 180 building on Pleasant Street. The building, which formerly housed National Nonwovens, sat vacant for several years before Michon picked up the project in 2010.
Looking at the 1 Ferry St. property, Michon saw a “need to do something for these buildings,” he said.
“We try to revitalize historic properties and repurpose them,” Michon said. “We definitely felt there’s a need in Easthampton for that, and the city has been very helpful in working together for a public-private venture.”
The project received a financial boost at Wednesday night’s City Council meeting, where members approved a 30-year tax break for the developer, enabling LaChapelle to send the city’s report back to the state for approval. The agreement was key to the project moving forward, according to City Council Vice President Dan Rist.
The tax break, in addition to saving the developer money over the 30-year period, will also “help us manage our performance for the entire project without the possibility of being over-assessed,” Michon said
The city originally hoped to see the project completed within six to seven years, LaChapelle said, but supply chain concerns and other challenges, some posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, will likely stretch this schedule to 10 years, despite remaining on track so far.
“There’s a lot of moving pieces, and that’s why we say there will be work being done there for a long time,” LaChapelle said.
“There are always variables in a project this complex,” she added, noting that it includes “many unknowns for public health and safety” that could lengthen the process.
City Planner Jeff Bagg described the redevelopment of Ferry Street as a 10-year project currently in year two, and fitting into a vision the city published in 2002 aimed at revitalizing the Mill District.
“Redevelopment of Ferry Street is one of those final pieces for that 2002 vision to come complete,” Bagg said. “What we’re looking at now, and what we’ve already been looking at, is what do we do next.”
These coming improvements will focus on the area of the Ferry and Parsons streets intersection, according to Bagg.
In the surrounding area, the city has rolled out other improvements: In November, the city reopened a portion of the street from Pleasant Street to Emerald Place that had been closed for road renovations since May, and recently installed two sets of electric vehicle charging stations.
The $5.1 million roadwork project, which involved installing an intersection at Ferry, Lovefield and Pleasant Streets and rerouting of the Manhan Rail Trail, was covered in part by a $3.5 million MassWorks grant awarded to the city in 2018.
The city also received funding from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, the state’s Green Communities and Electric Vehicle Incentive programs, and an Eversource program that covered the installation of underground wiring for improvements to the area.
In addition to eliminating the site’s derelict structures and accompanying environmental hazards, the improvements to Ferry Street “give a strong signal to businesses in the city that Easthampton gets things done,” LaChapelle said, “and that Easthampton invests in housing and invests in businesses, and we know how to make projects work.”
Jacquelyn Voghel can be reached at jvoghel@gazettenet.com.