Hospital Hill Apartments Open
Holly Angelo
The Republican
NORTHAMPTON - Where there was once was despair, fresh possibility
reigned yesterday on the sprawling grounds of the former Northampton
State Hospital.
Two brick buildings where hospital staff once lived while tending to
the mentally ill were the focus of yesterday's celebration, which
marked the grand opening of Hilltop Apartments. The buildings are
now divided into 33 affordable housing units, and are the first
finished development on the site of the old campus, now known as
Hospital Hill.
"This is a monumental day for the city," Mayor Mary Clare Higgins
told a crowd of state, local, development and financial officials
gathered under a white tent. "This is really the realization of a
dream that many people have had for a long time."
The 19th-century state hospital closed in 1993, but nearly two
decades before that the first committee had already met to study the
future redevelopment of the site. Over the years, plans were
proposed and plans were scrapped. But in the last few years, The
Village at Hospital Hill started taking shape as legislation and
funding fell into place.
MassDevelopment, a quasi-public state agency, is in charge of
developing the site, which is divided into two sections by Route 66.
The development plans call for a total of 476,000 square feet of new
and renovated office, retail and light industrial space, along with
207 housing units - 50 percent of them affordable - including rental
apartments, town houses, condominiums and single family homes, and
60 to 80 assisted living units. Fifteen percent of the housing has
been set aside for people with mental illness.
"It was the vision of many individuals dating back to the 1970s,"
said Elizabeth A. Sullivan, area director of the state Department of
Mental Health. "It's very meaningful to our clients, their families
and the community."
MassDevelopment and The Community Builders, a non-profit developer,
have formed a partnership to transform the 126-acre site into
a "smart growth" community. It is here that Angelique C. Kindel has
decided to raise her two children. She moved into Hilltop West on
Feb. 6 after her house in Enfield burned down in December.
"My grandmother used to work at the state hospital and she saw it on
the news and she suggested I take a look," Kindel said. "I love it.
I really like the location. Northampton is a safe, safe place."
The apartments were built by Aquadro and Cerruti, Inc. of
Northampton and designed by Dietz & Company Architects, Inc. of
Springfield. They are bright and clean and include one-, two- and
three-bedroom units. About six apartments are already occupied. The
project cost just over $8 million.
Currently, a mixture of commercial and industrial businesses are
being sought to fill the available spaces. The city has called the
Village at Hospital Hill its highest-priority economic initiative.
It's estimated 400 to 800 new jobs could be created once the project
is complete.
The bulk of the south campus, which includes 324,000 square feet,
won't be ready for building until mid- to late 2007 because
infrastructure work needs to be completed first. But, there are a
few industrial and commercial lots available now. "We're bringing
life back to this campus that was abandoned for many years," said
Richard C. Henderson, executive vice president of real estate for
MassDevelopment as he stood inside the hallway of Hilltop
East. "This is a great first step."
reigned yesterday on the sprawling grounds of the former Northampton
State Hospital.
Two brick buildings where hospital staff once lived while tending to
the mentally ill were the focus of yesterday's celebration, which
marked the grand opening of Hilltop Apartments. The buildings are
now divided into 33 affordable housing units, and are the first
finished development on the site of the old campus, now known as
Hospital Hill.
"This is a monumental day for the city," Mayor Mary Clare Higgins
told a crowd of state, local, development and financial officials
gathered under a white tent. "This is really the realization of a
dream that many people have had for a long time."
The 19th-century state hospital closed in 1993, but nearly two
decades before that the first committee had already met to study the
future redevelopment of the site. Over the years, plans were
proposed and plans were scrapped. But in the last few years, The
Village at Hospital Hill started taking shape as legislation and
funding fell into place.
MassDevelopment, a quasi-public state agency, is in charge of
developing the site, which is divided into two sections by Route 66.
The development plans call for a total of 476,000 square feet of new
and renovated office, retail and light industrial space, along with
207 housing units - 50 percent of them affordable - including rental
apartments, town houses, condominiums and single family homes, and
60 to 80 assisted living units. Fifteen percent of the housing has
been set aside for people with mental illness.
"It was the vision of many individuals dating back to the 1970s,"
said Elizabeth A. Sullivan, area director of the state Department of
Mental Health. "It's very meaningful to our clients, their families
and the community."
MassDevelopment and The Community Builders, a non-profit developer,
have formed a partnership to transform the 126-acre site into
a "smart growth" community. It is here that Angelique C. Kindel has
decided to raise her two children. She moved into Hilltop West on
Feb. 6 after her house in Enfield burned down in December.
"My grandmother used to work at the state hospital and she saw it on
the news and she suggested I take a look," Kindel said. "I love it.
I really like the location. Northampton is a safe, safe place."
The apartments were built by Aquadro and Cerruti, Inc. of
Northampton and designed by Dietz & Company Architects, Inc. of
Springfield. They are bright and clean and include one-, two- and
three-bedroom units. About six apartments are already occupied. The
project cost just over $8 million.
Currently, a mixture of commercial and industrial businesses are
being sought to fill the available spaces. The city has called the
Village at Hospital Hill its highest-priority economic initiative.
It's estimated 400 to 800 new jobs could be created once the project
is complete.
The bulk of the south campus, which includes 324,000 square feet,
won't be ready for building until mid- to late 2007 because
infrastructure work needs to be completed first. But, there are a
few industrial and commercial lots available now. "We're bringing
life back to this campus that was abandoned for many years," said
Richard C. Henderson, executive vice president of real estate for
MassDevelopment as he stood inside the hallway of Hilltop
East. "This is a great first step."
This article was
written by Holly Angelo
and published by The Republican
on Saturday, February 18