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Brockton's Brightfield will be developed on a 27-acre former manufactured
gas plant site on Grove Street
in Brockton.
The site is about .33 mile from Main
Street, downtown Brockton.
There are two
parcels on opposite sides of Grove
Street. Of the total 27 acres, about 10 acres
are developable. The remaining 17 acres are not developable due to slope,
setbacks, easements and wetlands issues.
The parcel on the
northerly side of the street is known as "Plot 19" Grove Street,
or Former Brockton Gasworks I. The other parcel is known as "Plot 55
Grove Street", or Former Brockton Gasworks II.
The “Former Brockton
Gasworks Sites” became contaminated from gas manufacturing operations
performed over a 65-year time frame beginning in 1898 and have been
abandoned since 1963. The City took ownership of the parcel known as “Lot 55”
in 1976. Bay State Gas Company is the responsible party due to having
purchased the Former Brockton Gas Works. Bay State Gas Company owns both parcels.
It exercised a right to purchase “Lot 19” from LeBaron Foundry. The
proposed Brightfield site is located along Grove Street, bordered both by
commercial and residentially zoned areas. The City sold "Lot 55" back to Bay State Gas Company in
December 2005.
The site was
listed as a Superfund site and remediation was performed from the 1990's
through 2004. The permanent remedy was to cap materials below the surface,
which severely limited redevelopment options available.
Bay State Gas
Company was very receptive about the Brightfield project from the first
call to its environmental consultant in November 2000. The Company has
provided funding to support consulting and landscape design fees during
predevelopment, participated in numerous community and team meetings, and
invested over $1 million in site improvements such as attractive
landscaping and fencing. Its parent company, NiSource, provided a $5,000
grant to support development of an educational display.
About the Grove Street Site
Why a Solar Brightfield?
Project Goals and Objectives
Project Partners
Project Steps and Timeline
Barriers Encountered and Methods for Overcoming
Barriers
Phase I Proposal from Global Solar Team
Lessons Learned
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