Braintree mayor: Foster School land won't be sold, new occupant sought for building
BRAINTREE – Mayor Charles Kokoros has taken the former Foster School property off the market and said any future sale would not include the adjacent open space.
"We were looking to sell the building," Kokoros told about 40 residents of the Braintree Highlands neighborhood during a meeting at the school Wednesday night. "We realize the value of the open space."
Kokoros met with about 40 residents of the nearby neighborhood and apologized for not consulting them before the property was put up for sale.
Before the meeting started, about three dozen children and parents held signs reading "Save Our Hill" on dead-end Foster Road leading to the school, a reference to the slope beside the building where neighborhood children sled during the winter. The 11.3-acre property also features a basketball court, a large open field and woods.
Kokoros said he sought bids on the property as part a review of all vacant town properties. The town is seeking a grant to study the feasibility of converting the former Noah Torrey School on Pond Street into housing for veterans and is looking at the former water and sewer building next to town hall as a site for a regional public safety dispatch center serving Braintree and Holbrook.
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The land was included in the offering to draw interest from residential developers, the mayor said. Without a zoning change, the only uses for the building would be for educational or religious purposes. Most of the land is zoned for open space/conservation.
He said the town must go through the public bidding process to sell or lease municipal property.
Kokoros and District 6 Town Councilor Lawrence Mackin, who represents the area, fielded questions from the neighbors on the proposal. Mackin said he played on the grounds of the school growing up.
"Something has to happen with this property," Mackin said.
Some asked if the school, which opened in 1953 and closed in 1977, could be reopened. Kokoros said it would not be needed with the construction of a new South Middle School, set to open in the fall of 2023.
Neighbors stressed the value of the open space.
Greg Cataldo, of Hillview Road, thanked Kokoros for pulling the property off the market.
"You heard us," Cataldo said.
He added that the land is "worth a heck of a lot more than any amount of cash."
Kokoros promised to involve the neighborhood in the re-use of the building.
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One group interested in using the building is the Massachusetts Albanian American Society. Sokol Lushllari of the group said they would renovate the building and use it for language classes and other cultural activities.
Since the school closed, the building has been used for special education programs. Earlier this year, it served as a police station set for the movie "Boston Strangler."
The single-story building has seven classrooms. a multi-purpose room, kitchen space and a few small offices.
This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Braintree's Foster School could be sold, land won't mayor says
