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NEWSROOM (CONT’D)
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Nonprofit buys 3 buildings
By MARCIA BLOMBERG
mblomberg@repub.com
SPRINGFIELD - Hampden Furniture auctioned off its three buildings and a parking lot on Main Street for $525,000 yesterday to the Caring Health Center, a non-profit organization.
Anne S. Awad, president and chief executive officer of the health center said the non-profit will renovate the three buildings on Main and Park streets at an estimated cost of $10 million to $12 million. "The location is wonderful for a permanent home for the health center," Awad said yesterday.
The center, which employs 135, will probably continue to occupy the space it rents right across Main Street in the South End as its headquarters and will maintain its clinic on Sumner Avenue, she said. "I'm so happy they got it," said Eugene Z. Baker, owner of Hampden Furniture. "They've been after it for so many years." Baker, who is in his early 70s, sold the building because he is hoping to reopen his furniture store in a smaller space.
Hampden Furniture has been located at 1049-1063 Main St. and 12-16 Park St. since the 1940s. The business was started in 1914 by Baker's father. While the property had been on the market at $975,000 for several months, bidding started at $250,000 and closed at $525,000. Baker said "in today's market, I guess it was a fair price." Awad said the price "was a good deal for us. It's affordable. We can pay this and then work on the financing for the renovation."
The agency will probably cobble together a conventional mortgage, grants, loans and historic preservation tax credits to pull together the financing needed to renovate the building for its new purpose, she said. "The building is absolutely beautiful," she said, noting its marble staircase, pressed-tin ceilings and other architectural elements.
The process of pulling together the financing and the renovations will take about two years, she estimated. The Caring Health Center will be able to add dental services and offer medical and nutrition programs in the 45,000 square feet in three buildings. The extra space will also allow the center to offer other services, such as child care and counseling, operated by partner agencies, she said.
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