Charlotte Forten Park Draft Conceptual Design 09-09-16LSP Findings
•Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and City
records show all underground storage tanks
were removed
•No Recognized Environmental Conditions
(RECs)
•As with most properties in Salem, urban fill at
shallow depths may contain contaminants
that will need to be managed during park
construction
Potential Partnership
Potential Partnership
Potential Partnership
289 Derby Street
285 Derby Street
Potential land transfer
to activate 285 Derby
Street
Harborwalk extension
Vision
Acquisition via Eminent Domain
Taking Process Overview
•Retain an appraiser to determine the property’s fair market value.
•Draft an Order of Taking.
•Perform a title search on the property to determine the property’s
owners and others who may have an interest in the property.
•Record the taking order at the registry of deeds where the property
is located. Once a taking order is recorded, it acts like a deed,
conveying the property’s title from the owner to the taking
authority.
•Send a notice of taking to the property owner informing the
property owner that the taking has occurred.
•Pay the property owner the taking authority’s opinion of the fair
market value, often referred to as the “pro tanto” payment.
However, where City and land owner agreed to fair market price
based on an appraisal, obtain a release from land owner releasing
City form any and all liability to land owner arising out of the
eminent domain taking of the property.
Financial Considerations
•$1.4 million acquisition cost: ~$86,000 annual
bond payment for 20 years
•Potential revenue of up to $450,000 from
owner of neighboring property
•$750,000 to $1 million state grant for park
construction
•Positive impact on area property values and
tax revenues
What the research says…
“Recent analyses suggest that open spaces may have
substantial positive impacts on surrounding property values
and hence, the property tax base, providing open space
advocates with convincing arguments in favor of open
space designation and preservation that can be backed up
with actual, dollar impacts. In some cases, the increase in
property tax from housing in close proximity to greenspaces
may equal or even exceed the costs of maintaining them,
representing a welcome net gain to a city's coffers.”
Measuring the Impact of Parks on Property Values
Sarah Nicholls, Ph.D Asst. Professor, Departments of Park, Recreation, Tourism
Resources and Geography, Michigan State University
What the research says…
“Parks provide a great benefit to citizens, both those who live nearby
and tourists. In addition to their many environmental benefits,
including preserving plant and animal habitat, decreasing air pollution,
and water filtration, parks create an economic benefit for both
governments and individuals. Creating well planned parks and
preserving sufficient land for them can generate financial returns that
are often many times greater than the money initially invested into the
project, even when maintenance costs are factored in.
Homebuyers prefer homes close to parks, open space, and greenery.
Proximity to parks increases property value, thereby increasing
property tax revenue. Research has shown that a 5% increase in
property values for houses within 500 feet of a park is a conservative
estimate of the change in property value due to proximity to a park.”
Pennsylvania Land Trust Association
Why We Should Do This
•Achieve the vision established over 100 years
ago for an accessible and active waterfront
•Continue momentum of South River
revitalization: Notch, Flatbread, City
Harborwalk
•Create amenity for benefit of future
generations and future area investment
•Seize this once in a lifetime opportunity to
connect downtown to waterfront
Let’s take advantage of this opportunity!
“Modern, alive cities with water frontage are realizing the tremendous advantages
–if properly developed –this gives them over inland communities… A hundred
cities in America and abroad have taken or are planning to take over and develop
their water fronts, arranging so that they are accessible for health and recreation
purposes, and at the same time of increased utility… [In Salem] it is just at these
points…where [there is] the least opportunity and more need than perhaps
anywhere else in the city, for the health and rest-giving effects and enjoyment of
the water.”
First Annual Report of the Salem City Plans Commission, December 26, 1912