Committee Hears Testimony on H.3324 to Transfer State Parcel in Brockton to Catholic Charities

The Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight heard testimony on H.3324, an act to authorize the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAM) to dispose of state-owned parcels at 782 Crescent Street in Brockton so Catholic Charities and a development partner can build social services and workforce housing. Representative Michelle DuBois and Representative Rita Mendez, Brockton Mayor Robert Sullivan, and representatives from Catholic Charities, the Metro South Chamber of Commerce and Brockton planning staff described the project and asked the committee to move the bill forward.

Why it matters: Witnesses said the site has been vacant for years after earlier plans changed and that the proposal would create community services and housing on land the state acquired for Massasoit Community College. Rep. DuBois told the committee the proposal would transfer roughly 2.8 acres to Catholic Charities for a nominal fee for a community center and roughly 30 units of housing and would place the adjoining parcel into DCAM’s municipal sale partnership for redevelopment and proceeds to benefit Massasoit Community College.

Key details from testimony: Rep. Michelle DuBois said the site originally was acquired in two parcels and that Massasoit Community College no longer needs the property now described in H.3324. DuBois summarized amendments she expects to file, including adding a second parcel to a municipal sale partnership and changing a traffic provision from a required (“shall”) to a permissive (“may”) turn-lane provision because DCAM officials said the intersection may be reconfigured as part of a larger, mult-million-dollar project. DuBois said the project discussed that morning is “a $40,000,000 project” that would house Catholic Charities’ program space and housing, and that DCAM staff were drafting amendments to reflect the fuller parcel treatment described to the committee.

Catholic Charities’ case: Larry Mays, senior vice president for government and community relations for Catholic Charities, outlined the agency’s services in Brockton and eastern Massachusetts and described a mixed-use building plan: licensed early education and care and program space on lower floors and workforce housing across upper floors. Mays said Catholic Charities currently operates programs out of rented space and would use the site for adult education, workforce development including a certified nursing assistant (CNA) training program, basic-needs services and a food pantry.

Local support and fiscal details: Mayor Sullivan and Rob May, Brockton director of planning and economic development, expressed local support. Chris Cooney of the Metro South Chamber said a UMass Donahue Institute needs assessment and local stakeholder engagement informed the plan. Testimony described the state’s prior purchases of the parcels (witnesses said one parcel was purchased in the early 1990s and another around 2015 for approximately $1.7 million, and that higher-education bond funds were used for earlier site work); witnesses said the parcel has not generated property tax revenue while vacant.

Concerns and clarifications raised: Committee members asked whether the proposal would deed land to a nonprofit versus a long-term lease. Representative Rita Mendez and other committee members urged exploration of long-term lease options; DuBois said DCAM staff and the parties would continue that discussion and that the bill language proposes a nominal transfer of a portion of the site while placing other parcels into DCAM’s municipal sale partnership.

Process: Committee chairs and staff repeatedly noted that no committee votes would be taken at this hearing and requested written testimony be filed for the record. Several witnesses promised to submit written amendments and planning documents to the committee staff.

Ending: The committee moved on after the panel finished testimony; no formal action or vote on H.3324 was taken during this session.