At former Archer Rubber factory, Milford officials unveil reuse plan. What they envision

MILFORD — The former home of Archer Rubber on Central Street could see new life as a business park.

The Planning Board recently voted unanimously in support of rezoning multiple parcels from industrial to a business park district. The affected parcels include the former Archer Rubber site at 213 Central St.

Then, on Aug. 28, Select Board members unanimously voted to approve an article proposing the rezoning for a special Town Meeting on Oct. 30.

Town Planner Larry Dunkin said the rezoning should help someone redevelop the site, as its current owner is not a development company. He said the rezoning is a part of Milford's 2003 comprehensive plan, which sought to remove industrial zones along the Charles River.

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"It's misleading to have the zoning map look the way it does," Dunkin said.

If Town Meeting representatives approve the motion, the site will be rezoned, paving the way for redevelopment.

Select Board Chair Paul Mazzuchelli said he remembers seeing Archer Rubber as a vibrant manufacturing business.

"It was one of the biggest employers in Milford," he said. "They were notable for manufacturing rubber coating products for soldiers in World War II. They also made body bags for the Vietnam War."

Mazzuchelli said the area surrounding the site is mostly residential, and called the potential rezoning a step in the right direction. The former Archer Rubber site has been reduced to fenced-off concrete slabs.

Town officials recently toured the site with the Charles River Watershed Association. Robert Kearns, a climate resilience specialist with the association, said in an interview that there's potential for a park or open access due to the Charles River flowing through the site.

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The Archer Rubber site is among many in Milford along the Charles River that have a long industrial history — and not offering a lot of access to the river.

"It's a unique spot with character and history there," Kearns said. "There's always interest in making sure there's an opportunity to provide public access."

Town working with environmental concerns

In addition to being among Milford's biggest employers, Archer Rubber was also one of its biggest polluters. The factory building that was razed nearly seven years ago was built in 1875.

Assistant Town Administrator and Economic Development Director John Charbonneau told the Daily News that it's been an initiative to tweak the zoning map to make it more modern.

"We're working with the property owner, the ball is totally in the owner's court in terms of where the property goes," he said.

The building was the target of several state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fines and orders. In 2008, the company was fined more than $8,000 by the DEP for violating hazardous waste regulations. The year before, it sustained a $26,500 EPA fine for a Clean Air Act violation.

The DEP has eight monitoring wells on the property, the last of which was installed in October 2017.

Mazzuchelli said that during his time on the town Board of Health, there were concerns over contamination of the site.

"Right now, we're assessing the status of the site to see where it stands," said Charbonneau. "We're taking it one step at a time."

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Archer Rubber has changed hands twice since 2006. In November of that year, the company merged with Uretek to create the Uretek Archer Acquisition Corp., which is listed as the co-owner of the property along with Reverence Capital Partners, a New York City-based private investment firm.

In November 2014, the company was bought by Trelleborg, a Swedish engineering company. Trelleborg — which was leasing the building from the merger entity — announced in June 2015 that it was closing the location in April 2016, putting 65 people out of work.

After hazardous materials were removed, the factory building was demolished in January 2017.

David Sloane, a director of finance with Reverence Captial Partners, told the Daily News that the company is "excited to speak with the town regarding the proposed change in zoning and we're happy to explore options that benefit the town."

The property was last assessed at $407,300, according to the town assessor's database.

The Special Town Meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Oct. 30 in Upper Town Hall.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Milford seeks to rezone site of former Archer Rubber factory