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Assembly approves sale of former Barnstable County Hospital property in Bourne to the town
Summary
Delegates voted to approve an agreement to sell the 60-acre former county hospital site in Pocasset to the town of Bourne for the appraised value included in the agreement; the proposal preserves a permanent conservation restriction covering most of the parcel and transfers existing ground leases to the town.
The Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates voted Sept. 4 to approve a purchase-and-sale agreement transferring the former Barnstable County Hospital property in Pocasset to the town of Bourne.
County Administrator Beth Albert said the 60-acre site includes roughly 50 acres subject to a permanent conservation restriction (currently held by the Bourne Conservation Commission), about 8.5 acres under a ground lease to a senior residential operator and a small parcel with a counseling center ground lease. Albert told delegates the town of Bourne has a statutory right of first refusal under Massachusetts General Law chapter 34, section 14, and that selling the site as a single parcel with the conservation restriction and leases intact preserves its limited market value while removing continuing county maintenance and liability costs.
Key figures: The materials provided to the Assembly included two prior appraisals (March 2018: $550,000; June 2021: $730,000). The proposed purchase price in the agreement referenced the 2021 appraisal amount of $730,000.
Public comment and questions: A public commenter asked whether a more recent appraisal might raise the parcel's value; several delegates from Bourne and neighboring towns said the site has been subject to long negotiations and that the town has used the parcel for trails and other community purposes. Counsel and administration staff said the conservation restriction will remain in place and that, if the sale proceeds, the conservation restriction will be conveyed in a manner that preserves protections (including Article 97 protections discussed in the hearing).
Vote: After discussion, the Assembly took a roll-call vote and the motion passed with the affirmative votes recorded (reported as 14 delegates representing 89.07% of the county population).
Next steps: The sale will proceed consistent with the purchase-and-sale agreement and legal requirements for transferring property subject to conservation restrictions and existing ground leases.
