By Jennifer Myers, jmyers@lowellsun.com
LOWELL -- The first phase of the $800 million Hamilton Canal District revitalization project will break ground tomorrow, made possible by a $43 million investment by insurance giant MetLife.
Assistant City Manager and Director of the Department of Planning and Development Adam Baacke said MetLife's investment is being brokered through Redstone Capital Partners, the private equity arm of The Redstone Companies, a Houston-based investment firm.
A ground-breaking ceremony marking the $57 million transformation of the Appleton Mills into 130 affordable artist live/work spaces over the next 18 months, will be held at 11:30 tomorrow morning at the site.
Gov. Deval Patrick, Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Greg Bialecki, state Sen. Steve Panagiotakos, state Reps. Kevin Murphy, Dave Nangle and Tom Golden, City Manager Bernie Lynch, as well as other city officials and representatives from developer Trinity Financial, are expected to attend.
"We have been talking about this project since 2003, so for construction to be on the verge of beginning and making this a reality is very satisfying," Baacke said.
The entire $800 million Hamilton Canal project, slated to take 10 years, is expected to result in the rebirth of the desolate 15-acre site nestled between the city's Acre neighborhood and downtown into a neighborhood of 350,000 square feet of commercial/office space, up to 50,000 square feet of retail space, a mix of up to 700-800 market-rate and affordable-housing units, 400 new permanent jobs and $4 million in annual tax revenue to the city.
This story appeared in the Lowell Sun on Wednesday, November 11, 2009