MASHPEE – Governor Deval Patrick was on hand Thursday when ground was broken on a $1.1 million expansion project at Mashpee Commons.
The Market Street Extension Project will see 382 units of affordable housing built at Mashpee Commons along with retail space. The project is partially funded through a Massworks grant.
The Town of Mashpee, the state and the private developer of Mashpee Commons are cooperating on the project.
The public infrastructure project, funded through a MassWorks grant, will extend Market Street southward to Job’s Fishing Road, allowing for the development of residential and mixed-use buildings along either side of the new roadway, making the area more attractive for current and future residents to live, work and play, Patrick said in a prepared statement.
“When we partner with cities and towns by investing in local infrastructure, we support economic growth and we strengthen communities where residents can live, work and play,” said Governor Patrick. “Through this funding, we are paving the way for future opportunities that will advance economic development in Mashpee and help build a brighter future for the Commonwealth.”
Mashpee Commons is the redevelopment of the New Seabury Shopping Center, a 1960s traditional shopping plaza consisting of 62,000 square feet of retail floor space and parking areas.
The Center was purchased in 1982 and has since been redeveloped under a master plan aiming to produce a mixed-use village center.
More than 100 retail stores and restaurants are located within a walkable street grid. Mashpee Commons is considered one of the first “re-invented” strip malls in the country, with its emphasis on re-creating an urban grid and putting a mix of uses on the site.
The project is funded by a $901,250 MassWorks Infrastructure Program grant awarded to the Town of Mashpee and $221,600 in private funds contributed by Mashpee Commons.
“We remain committed to working with local communities to support growth and spur regional development,” said Secretary of Housing and Economic Development Greg Bialecki. “I look forward to our ongoing partnerships with Mashpee and municipalities across the state to promote continued growth in every region of the Commonwealth.”
The MassWorks award will directly support Phase 1a of Mashpee Common’s Chapter 40B residential development, which is scheduled to start in spring 2015.
This phase will include 53 units, 14 of which will be deed-restricted affordable units, and 10,600 square feet of commercial space.
Phase 1a will represent $10.5 million in immediate private investment.
Future phases of development will result in the creation of a total of 382 units and 12,000 square feet of commercial space and will represent $120 million in private investment.
“This development will be an asset to the town of Mashpee—and serve as a ‘public-private partnership success story’ to the Commonwealth,” said Senator Dan Wolf. “I applaud the Patrick Administration, Mashpee Town officials and all who worked to make this project a reality.”
“I applaud the efforts of the Town of Mashpee and Mashpee Commons in the mixed-use development of Jobs-Whitings,” said Representative David T. Vieira. “This project will be successful in no small part to the Commonwealth’s MassWorks award which will help the town by mitigating engineering, earthwork and road construction costs related to the project. I am proud to have supported the grant application and look forward to the successful completion of the project.”
The MassWorks Infrastructure Program provides a one-stop shop for municipalities and other eligible applicants seeking public infrastructure funding to support economic development.
The MassWorks Program represents six capital budget programs that were consolidated by the Patrick Administration in 2011 and codified by the Jobs Bill signed by Governor Deval Patrick in August 2012.
