A former industrial lot will see signs of life this fall as the city prepares for demolition on two buildings before handing the site over to the Department of Public Works.
The city seized the lot – about the size of an acre on Webster Avenue near Inman Square – last May for more than $14 million. While city councillors said they would like to see affordable housing or another community use there eventually, Public Works will use the facility temporarily to address pressing operational needs.
“For more than 10 years, DPW has had a significant space crunch,” Public Works director Kathy Watkins said. “We are way over capacity in terms of operational space.”
The lot was sold to the city by Webster Avenue Ventures LLC, which combined multiple properties for the sale, including the former E&C Bottle & Can Return and the former Phil’s Tow lot, the latter of which blamed the city’s one-year street cleaning pilot program for its closing.
A sliver of the lot stretches into Somerville, which took longer to execute on, deputy city manager Owen O’Riordan said.
At the time of the purchase, councillor Patty Nolan was disappointed by the price of the parcel for the acreage the city got, and was skeptical of the lot being assembled by a third party.
Public Works is pursuing other, longer-term space options that would require more community outreach and input. One such parcel is 41 Bellis Circle, a former parking lot in Neighborhood 9 that the city bought last year for $8.3 million. The lot could be used for operational needs and potentially for stormwater management.
If Public Works plans to electrify its fleet, as detailed in the city’s Clean Fleet initiative, a long-term space will also be essential.
The department is in talks with Healthpeak Properties to receive a parcel on Mooney Street in Alewife, officials said. Healthpeak bought hundreds of acres in the Alewife region over the past several years, causing the city to place a moratorium on business development in the neighborhood while new zoning regulations were enacted.
The new regulations allow Healthpeak to build denser developments by aiding the city in different public infrastructure needs.
In the meantime, Public Works is welcoming any space that’s available. The Webster Avenue lot will begin demolition in the coming weeks at a cost to the city of less than $200,000, officials said. While a contractor is already aboard, the timeline has not yet been finalized. Once the timeframe is ironed out, the city will notify surrounding neighbors of the expected impact.
After the demolition, a basement will need to be filled to make the lot more stable, the ground will be paved with asphalt and trailers will be moved in for Public Works.
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