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City officials outline $92M public works resiliency campus; new LDC to finance remainder
Summary
City staff told the Committee on Community Development that a proposed 470,000-square-foot public works resiliency campus on about 59 acres has a $92 million estimate; the city has a $10 million state commitment and a local development corporation will bond for the remainder.
Trevor Griffiths, the city’s economic development coordinator, told the Committee on Community Development on April 21 that the city is advancing a proposed public works resiliency campus to replace aging facilities and boost emergency preparedness.
Griffiths said the project would create roughly 470,000 square feet of facilities on about 59 acres after the city acquired properties at 250 Bates and 1000 Bailey. He estimated a combined cost of about $92,000,000 for phases 1 and 2, with phase 1 estimated at $57,000,000.
The city formed a local development corporation (LDC) on April 1 to serve as a financing vehicle for the project, Griffiths said. He told the committee that the state has committed $10,000,000, split in two $5,000,000 disbursements (the first to cover property acquisition and the second to cover design, site infrastructure and the salt barn). A draft grant disbursement agreement is expected in June; the LDC will bond for the remainder of the cost, he said.
Griffiths said staff plan pre-construction work this year, including schematic design and a brownfield remedial investigation, and that construction and remediation are anticipated to begin in the first quarter of 2027.
Council members pressed staff on community engagement and financing. One member asked that outreach not be limited to the Lovejoy neighborhood and requested citywide briefings; Griffiths said an informational meeting for the Seneca–Babcock community is scheduled for April 29 at the Peter McNica Community Center and that staff distributed flyers in nearby neighborhoods and will provide counts on request. Another council member said he had publicized the meeting on social media and that constituents had contacted his office about the site.
Committee members also raised questions about long-term uses of a large campus — including whether it could accommodate impound or drop-off functions for tires and electronics — and about how the project would be financed. Griffiths repeated the $92 million estimate, said the first $10 million is a state commitment, and said the LDC would issue bonds for the remaining amount. He also said staff will seek additional state funding.
After discussion the committee moved to send the report on the DPW campus to the full council without a committee recommendation; the motion was seconded by Councilmember Everhart.
Next steps: staff expect a draft grant disbursement agreement from the state in June, continued pre-construction work this year, and a community engagement meeting on April 29.
