MDC passes over Selectmen
Published on August 14th, 2002
STONEHAM, MA - After three unsuccessful attempts to acquire a parcel of property on the Melrose/ Stoneham line with help from the board of selectmen, the Metropolitan District Commission has reached an agreement with the property owner to buy it using a more conventional method.
On Aug. 1, the Associate Com-missioners for the MDC gave it their go-ahead nod for the purchase of the 25,000 square feet of land that it failed to obtain through three previous attempts at an eminent domain transaction. Without the backing of the board of selectmen, the MDC had to go the more traditional route of acquiring the sought after lot for the purchase price of $675,000. Reportedly, the transaction may be completed within two weeks.
Perplexed at the new development, Board of Selectmen Chairman Tony Kennedy remarked, “They came three times to pitch why they should be allowed to obtain the property through eminent domain and three times we said, ‘We do not approve of this move, primarily because of the loss of tax revenue for the town of Stoneham.’”
The MDC boasts ambitions of acquiring and preserving open space, however this lot lies between the J.J. Grimsby & Co. Restaurant and Bugazia’s Super Petroleum gas station owned by Mike Bugazia, who also owns the lot in question. The lot, known as 2 Lynn Fells Parkway, is across the street from MDC owned property. The MDC, a state entity, pays no property taxes on its land, which accounts for about 30 percent of all of Stoneham land.
"You (MDC) own one-third of the land in Stoneham. You pay nothing in taxes. You pay nothing in lieu of taxes," said Selectman Cosmo Ciccarello at a previous selectmen meeting. "I can’t understand why you’re interested in 25,000 square feet..."
The MDC’s former attempts to acquire the lot through eminent domain sought to do so for two reasons. As in every transaction, the MDC wants to preserve open space and keep a larger development from purchasing the property and building on it. Many residents supported this idea as opposed to a fast food restaurant or coffee shop that would litter the neighborhood and congest nearby intersections.
The MDC is interested in developing the land into passive recreation space and granting an easement to neighboring J.J. Grimsby Restaurant for parking. The easement was proposed for J.J. Grimsby to use during their busy dinner hours.
The parking easement was a point of contention between the MDC and the selectmen who, according to Selectmen Chairman Anthony Kennedy, see no apparent relationship between the restaurant and the MDC. “It is a mystery why the MDC would pursue this purchase to allow for an easement for a neighboring restaurant,” said Kennedy. “What kind of relationship if any, between the restaurant and the MDC is unclear. If there is a relationship we do not know about it.”
Once the MDC purchases the property through a deeded transaction, the town of Stone-ham is at risk of losing revenue. The MDC would need a change in legislation to be able to charge a fee for the parking easement, which could then be used to reimburse the town. Such legislation was introduced by State Representative Michael Festa and supported by the MDC and the town. Whether the MDC acquires the land through eminent domain or by a deeded purchase, Kennedy said the purposed legislation could still bring some payment to the town from the fee the MDC would charge for the parking easement.
According to MDC spokesman Chuck Borstel, the town of Stoneham may also gain some lost revenue from a reassessment of the J.J. Grimsby’s property after the easement has been granted. Borstel voiced disappointment that the MDC needed to take the deed purchase measures, but the state entity realized they had no other choice.
“The motivation of this one Selectmen has festered into the entire Board being against us,” said Borstel. “But, you know, we don’t need them. Their whole argument is that we’re doing something the town doesn’t want, but, in reality, we’re doing something that four selectmen don’t want.”
“This isn’t anything that any of the constituents from Stoneham voiced opposition to,” added Borstel.
Neither the MDC nor J.J. Grimsby’s have submitted an appraisal representing the value of the parking easement, making its value to the town, still uncertain.
Bugazia, present owner of the land, is happy with the MDC offer, which he believes to be a fair market rate according to his research of similar property in Stoneham. According to Bugazia he would have received the same amount whether the land was taken by eminent domain or through this deeded transaction. “The price is the same so how it happened didn’t matter to me,” said Bugazia.
Bugazia runs a business on the property connected to the 25,000 square feet that the MDC is looking to acquire. Bugazia has leased the space for four years and bought the corner lot of 56,192 square feet at public auction in November of 2001, for $1,275,000, according to the assessor’s office. On the corner is a gas station/convenient market that Bugazia operates. The price Bugazia paid was $22.69 per square foot. Compare that to the MDC proposal, which is $27 per square foot for the 25,000 square foot section. The difference amounts to a $107,750 net profit for Bugazia. However computing the value of the lot the MDC is buying to that Bugazia is operating a profitable business on, is not an easy task. “They say they have an appraisal but they have not shared it with us,” said Chairman Kennedy. “We have nothing to go on for a value of that property.”
A special selectmen’s meeting was called on July 25,which resulted in the formal request for a legal opinion concerning a friendly taking of the parcel. Those requests to the Attorney General’s Office and the State Ethics Commission have not been answered. The right to purchase the parcel, granted by the commissioners of the MDC, ran out on July 30. A vote came two days later to seek the property through a deeded transaction, leaving the selectmen out of the process.
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