Mayor Domenic J. Sarno joined with State Representative Bud Williams, City Councilor Malo Brown, Director of Disaster Recovery Tina Quagliato Sullivan, CAFO TJ Plante, Building Commissioner Steve Desilets, and other city, state and neighborhood officials for the announcement of Phase I demolition cleanup at the former Massachusetts Career Development Institute (MCDI) site.
The MCDI closed in 2013 and the owner abandoned the property. In 2016, a devastating arson related fire occurred at the property that took over 40 hours to extinguish and damaged more than half of the building.
The property, 140 Wilbraham Avenue, was foreclosed by the City for the non-payment of taxes in 2019, and the City has worked expeditiously to secure the funding to perform this demolition and cleanup. The demolition is slated to proceed in two phases.
The first Phase will include removal and disposal of all fire-damaged debris. This cleanup is being conducted by J.R. Vinagro of Rhode Island at a cost of $230,000. Once cleanup has been completed, the City will release the bid for Phase II, which will include demolition of the remainder of the building.
Mayor Sarno stated, “This blighted private property has been an eyesore for the neighborhood ever since it was ravaged by a fire back in 2016. To complicate the matter, the property had been tied up in court for years due to a host of complicated issues including, delinquent taxes, numerous building and code violations, and issues involving the previous owners existing only on paper. The city filed a claim with the courts to foreclose on the property so that we could seek out potential developers and begin the cleaning up process. Due to the condition and size of the parcels involved, it is not going to be cheap to clean up, but it is the right thing to do.”
“In the name of improving the quality of life for our residents and the business community in the neighborhood, my administration and I are committed to getting this monstrosity down for the betterment of the area – no family should have to live next to this mess,” Mayor Sarno added. “I am very happy that we have not only been able to follow through on this quality of life issue, but just as important redevelop this property into a positive asset for this neighborhood. Neighborhood projects will continue to be very important to me.”
State Representative Bud Williams added, “There is a lot that goes into getting these projects to this stage. Today is a great day for the city, and a great day for the residents of Mason Square. This area is not only the heart of the Mason Square neighborhood, but the heart of the whole city. We’re going to transform this neighborhood”.
City Councilor Malo Brown stated, “First, I want to extend my thanks to the Mayor for all the work he has done to move this process forward. I had pledged to work hard on this project during my election, and it has been an honor to work with my mentor, Representative Bud Williams, under Mayor Sarno’s leadership, to bring changes to this neighborhood and see this project through. I promised my constituents – the residents of this neighborhood – that our community and neighborhood could look like other neighborhoods in the city and today we come a step closer. With that, I want to extend a thank you to all the residents who have been involved to help get this done. I am looking forward to continuing to witness the transformations taking place here.”
The demolition work will be completed utilizing City Bond funding. All work is being coordinated with the construction of the new DeBerry Park, which is adjacent to the property. Work began on November 11, 2020 and will continue at the site through the spring 2021.
Environmental oversight of the project is being performed by ATC of West Springfield.
