By Michael Coughlin Jr.
Last week, the Planning Department hosted a meeting to discuss the old A-7 East Boston Police Station at 69 Paris Street, during which residents shared their ideas for the building’s rehabilitation.
Scott Greenhalgh, a real estate development officer with the Planning Department, explained that the now-vacant former police station, which he described as historic, is undergoing a public disposition process for its adaptive reuse.
The building, constructed in 1912, added a third story in 1930 and is connected to the East Boston Division of the Boston Municipal Court at 37 Meridian Street.
“Tonight we’re seeking community input on the future use of this building,” said Greenhalgh.
As part of the disposition, the Planning Department begins by conducting due diligence on the parcel and providing background information about it, which is where it stands in the process now.
The Planning Department then begins request for proposals (RFP) visioning through meetings like this one to gather ideas from residents on what they would like to see at the site. Then, a draft RFP is crafted, and eventually, a final RFP is created and reviewed with residents.
Once the final RFP is released, developers can view it and submit proposals, which the community and the Planning Department will review. Afterward, a developer with the strongest proposal will be selected to build out the project.
Eventually, after permitting work is done and the developer receives final designation, ground will be broken sometime after that.
During last week’s meeting, Greenhalgh provided additional background information about the site and the process it would undergo for potential adaptive reuse.
For example, he noted that the site would have to be surplused for a disposition process that would involve it no longer being used for municipal purposes.
“It was serving a municipal use by being a police station, and it will also have to go through a concurrent process by which it is allowed to become a non-municipal use,” said Greenhalgh.
He also explained that there is some involvement with the state’s Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance (DCAMM), as it owns the aforementioned courthouse, which remains operational and is connected to the former police station.
Moreover, Greenhalgh indicated that there are multiple shared spaces between the courthouse and the former police station, and that work is being done with DCAMM to establish a property boundary. He also mentioned that the property boundary will likely be along the primary load-bearing wall.
Later, Greenhalgh shifted the conversation to the existing conditions of the former police station. He cited a 2022 public facilities assessment that indicated the building “needs some serious repair.”
Specifically, the building has water damage on its ceiling and floors, among other issues, and the electrical and plumbing systems need modernization.
Greenhalgh also pointed to multiple challenges prospective developers may face in rehabbing the building.
One challenge described was historic preservation, as the building is listed in the Massachusetts Historical Commission MACRIS database, which Greenhalgh says indicates it holds some historical importance.
“We are looking to retain the historical character of the building, especially the exterior,” he said.
Another challenge is flood resiliency as the building is located in the Coastal Flood Resilience Overlay District (CFROD) and a FEMA Flood Hazard Area. This impacts the potential use of the basement and requires the ground floor to be designed for flood resiliency.
Finally, the last challenge discussed was renovation, which related to the previously mentioned poor site conditions and the need for repairs.
Following the presentation, the floor was opened for attendees to ask questions and comment on what they would like to see at the site.
As the discussion began, it became immediately apparent that the prevailing desire from those in attendance was for this space to serve the community, whether that meant providing a space for the East Boston Community Soup Kitchen, gathering youth, or a place for any of the various community organizations in the neighborhood to use.
Additionally, there was a significant push among attendees to explore ways to utilize the site to accommodate multiple community groups, allowing for shared space.
“It would be great to have a coalition of organizations working together to create programming for the space and to share the space,” said June Krinsky-Rudder of the East Boston Artists group.
Reina Reyes, of the Healing Center Project and Eastie Youth, emphasized the need for space among community groups, a point that many others also discussed during the meeting.
“Just like ours, there are many other organizations that need space. That’s why we are trying to push this to be something collective and communitary for all of us,” she said.
Youth from the neighborhood also testified to the need for a community space. “This space would help out the community so much because it could help us [youth] relax, do our school work, and in general just chill and have a place where we can all be safe,” said Matias Rodriquez of Eastie Youth, who was also a fan of having the space be shared among different groups.
As the discussion continued, attendee after attendee reinforced the desire for the site to become a community space.
For more information about this process and to comment, visit http://bosplans.org/A7EastBostonPoliceStation. As of this meeting, the comment period is set to close May 14th, but Greenhalgh indicated it could be extended.
Additionally, a survey is available for individuals to provide feedback on what they would like to see at the site, located at http://bosplans.org/FormerA7EastBostonPoliceStationSurvey.
The next public meeting regarding this process is scheduled for sometime this summer, in which more RFP visioning will occur.