By Adam Swift
The saga of the abandoned Forbes property took a major turn this spring.
In a letter to the city council earlier this month, City Manager Fidel Maltez stated that the receiver of the property approved a sale of the Forbes site to MassAudubon, who will be working with local groups GreenRoots and The Neighborhood Developers on the development of the site. However, the property owner has filed an appeal to that decision.
In 2019, the city approved a 585 residential unit project for the Forbes site, a significantly scaled back version of a plan first introduced by developers, YIHE Forbes of China, in 2015. The proposal also included some commercial development on the 17-plus acre site.
However, the international developer never made any significant progress with the project and the site remained unused for years.
Last year, there was a massive 9-alarm fire on the property. Following the fire, Maltez said the Chelsea Law Department petitioned for the property to be placed into receivership.
“The courts granted the petition and a receiver was appointed to address the concerns in the property,” stated Maltez. “The receiver has been working with our public safety teams to ensure that the property is in safe condition. The receiver has hired a company to board up the vacant buildings, and has hired a security company to complete patrols of the property.”
Maltez said the receiver has also been working on selling the property to a responsible owner.
“After showing the property to several potential buyers, the receiver moved forward with a motion to approve a sale to MassAudubon,” stated Maltez.
At this time, Maltez said it is unclear when the appeal from the property owner will be resolved.
Councillor-at-Large Roberto Jimenez-Rivera said the potential development is an exciting opportunity for the entire community.
“We are really going to be looking to do something with this property and open it up to not just the people who are going to be living there, if there are going to be housing developments, but also to the general public,” said Jimenez-Rivera. “We are going to be doing something with this property, which is one of the largest areas of open space we have in the city. I want to highlight how exciting this is for our city.”
Councillor-at-Large Leo Robinson said that the group will have the opportunity to develop the property, which should bring in a healthy amount of tax revenue for Chelsea.
Precinct 1 Councilor Todd Taylor said he is happy that the Forbes property has changed hands, but said there needs to be an appropriate plan for the site moving forward.
“I think that everybody likes open space and parks that everybody can use, and I do, too,” said Taylor. “But there has to be a balance with the financial. I look forward to seeing the plans, and I think people should be cognizant of the fact that this is the last big undeveloped parcel in Chelsea where we really need to make it count financially.”
Council President Norieliz DeJesus said she can see the Forbes property through her back window, and that she is glad for the people in the community who have endured the years of neglect on the site.