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Date: 4/19/2022
HOLYOKE – Discussions on the historical importance of old factory buildings on 195 Appleton St. were the focus of the Historical Commission’s April 11 meeting, where they continued their March public hearing on demolition applications from applicant Devon Self Storage Holdings LLC.
Paola Ferrario, chair of the Historical Commission, began by going over the tour of the building taken by members of the commission. Ferrario noted how it was obvious due to the damage in some buildings, that they were no longer in usable condition. However, she noted, there were certain areas that the commission was still interested in preserving due to their historical importance to the city.
Commission member Luis Salazar said he felt the building reflected the city’s industrial heritage and there was value in preserving that. He opined that one of the remaining smokestacks was part of the skyline imagery that the Holyoke community has known for the last century.
“Every single thing of the structure is such an emblematic piece of history. I think this place is fantastic and magical in many ways,” Salazar said.
Ferrario had similar sentiments about the property’s historical relevance and called it a great example of industrial archeology.
“We are not asking it to be redeveloped or reused, but that smokestack would stay for the city skyline in recognition of the past,” Ferrario said.
Shannon Dodge from Devon Storage was in attendance to take questions from the commission on their demolition permit. He said Devon Storage was interested in the property due to the largest factory building being a good space for storage units. Dodge also explained that there was one location on the property that would serve as an office, while most of the other buildings would be demolished. The demolition plan had originally included the smokestack.
Ferrario asked if they could begin demolition with the buildings beyond repair and see where they were from that point before demolishing any more. Dodge said it was not that simple in terms of what he and his team wanted from this property.
“We have no interest in keeping anything additional. We are trying to limit the amount of funds being spent on the rehab of some buildings,” Dodge said. “I would love to say yes or no but the truth is we can’t. Keeping that and the smokestack as is, is not something of interest and should that be necessary it could become a deal killer for the entire project.”
The most significant plans would be to rehab the remaining buildings for a storage unit, office space and loading dock for the company, according to Dodge. Ferrario responded to Dodge by saying if he could balance the commission’s request for the smokestack that would be appreciated, as the commissioners were voting on significance.
Ferrario also asked if Dodge would be willing to compromise on the smokestack and another smaller building on the property if the commission could provide money on behalf of the city to help with its rehab. Dodge said he would bring it up to his fellow investors but that based on previous comments he felt the answer was no.
“There is no sense from investors in having a building or section of buildings to sit there and be vacant. Additional money on something not needed truly makes no sense,” Dodge said.
Commission member Chris Gauthier then asked if Dodge had any structure reports that the commission had requested during their last meeting in March. Dodge said while he did request that information, the architect he reached out to still had not gotten back to him with a completed report. Dodge still felt that the walk through was explanatory in providing why some of these buildings just had to go.
“If the building is collapsing, we don’t need an engineer to tell us it is not working,” Dodge said.
Salazar said while it may seem obvious from Dodge’s perspective, the commission has the perspective of making sure something is totally ruled out for its historic relevance before it is involved in a demolition project such as this. He added their job is always preserving the history of the city.
Ferrario said while it may seem like this property is old and damaged, that it is still a piece of the city’s history. She compared each city’s industrial history that still stands to that of castles of lords in Italy, her country of origin. She added the concept was that there are pieces of every community that may mean nothing to outsiders but represent so much for those still there.
As conversations continued, Dodge would not give up the smaller buildings but with some compromising he did say he was fine with keeping the smokestack up in its current condition. Dodge also added that he would be willing to try to keep an old boiler within one of the buildings as a display of the property’s history as long as a professional’s opinion approved it.
“Aesthetically we have no problem with that,” Dodge said.
The commission ultimately settled on voting to continue the hearing for their next meeting on May 9 after Dodge and Devon Storage returned with updated documentations and a re-mapping of the buildings in play for demolition on the property.