Fall River committee refers single bid for former Sylvia School to review panel

The Fall River City Real Estate Committee on June 24 referred a single proposal for the former Sylvia School Annex to the RFP proposal review team after hearing a short public comment from a preservation advocate and a presentation from the prospective buyer.

The referral moves a single bid from Anthony Cordero of Cordero Properties into the city's formal evaluation process; the committee recorded the motion, a second and an "Aye" vote in open session.

The vote matters because the site — partially demolished after a recent fire — has been the subject of earlier preservation discussions and a 2024 RFP. Alexander Silva, 148 Purchase Street, identified himself as "president of the board of directors of the Preservation Society of Fall River" and told the committee he had provided suggested edits to the earlier RFP so redevelopment could include affordable housing and alternatives to parking. "I just wanted to, kinda, I guess, see what, is spoken about today regarding the RFP for the Sylvia School and what the city's, intention, I guess, for the property is," Silva said.

Interim purchasing agent Rebecca Ponce explained the procurement steps and confirmed staff had opened and verified the single bid. "I resealed these. So I opened these to examine to make sure that it is actually a valid bid before we waste anybody's time to make sure it is he to make sure it is a a responsible and responsive bidder," Ponce said. Assistant corporation counsel Kenneth Verdot told the committee the RFP timeline and procedures complied with state and local requirements, listing the RFP issuance and deadline schedule: issuance May 5, an on-site tour May 12, deadline for questions May 27 and a proposal deadline of June 6. "There's absolutely been compliance with the, laws of Massachusetts as well of any, local requirements in regards to the RFP process," Verdot said.

Prospective buyer Anthony Cordero described his development vision and said his team has financing and partners tied to other nearby projects. Cordero said the nearby Thomas Alva Edison building project is a $22,000,000 endeavor that will include 102 units and that his firm expects to deliver a separate 42-unit building on the Sylvia School site, with a mix of market-rate and affordable units. "We're gonna spend $22,000,000 there," Cordero said. He also said his proposal includes bringing "8 units into 1 side and 6 into another for affordable housing" and discussed a potential adult day care operator, Community Connections, as a tenant.

Committee members pressed procedural and feasibility points on the record. Ponce and other staff said the proposal will be reviewed against the evaluation criteria in the RFP by a review team composed of the mayor's chief of staff, city engineer, executive director of community development and members of the real estate committee; the RFP had previously indicated a historical commission representative but noted that requirement appeared to have been waived after partial demolition. Verdot emphasized that the city is not obligated to accept the single proposal and may reject it for reasons identified during the review, including bidder qualifications.

A motion to refer the proposal to the proposal review team was made and seconded in open session. "So I'll make a motion to, refer the, proposals proposal, to the proposal review team," a committee member said; another member said simply, "Second." The chair then called, "All in favor? Aye. So voted." The minutes do not record a numeric roll-call tally or any recorded dissent.

Officials described follow-up steps: the review team will evaluate the single submission using the RFP's evaluation criteria, the city engineer will assess feasibility and whether zoning or other approvals are required, and the review team will deliver a recommendation back to the real estate committee for further action. Cordero said his timeline calls for demolition "in 30, 60 days" unless prohibited by the preservation commission and that he has already engaged Costello Group for project planning.

The committee did not take a final sale or award action; it referred the proposal for review and left open staff and technical checks that could affect next steps.