LYNN — Only one builder has expressed interest in redeveloping the shuttered Marshall Middle School.
The deadline to respond to the Request for Proposals passed on Friday. The sole bidder will be revealed at next week’s City Council meeting.
Ever since the school closed in 2015, the neighborhood and the City Council have been behind a proposal to transform the 172,500-square-foot property on Porter Street into senior housing.
Three developers toured the school, including Pennrose Properties, a Philadelphia-based property management firm with offices in Boston; the North Shore Community Development Coalition in Salem that focuses on distressed neighborhoods in need of development; and B’nai B’rith Housing, a Brighton nonprofit that builds affordable homes for seniors in Greater Boston.
Mickey Northcutt, CEO of North Shore CDC, said his company did not submit a bid, but he declined to comment on the reason. Charles Adams, regional vice president at Pennrose, said he loved the building, but the timing wasn’t quite right.
“It’s a great building and will be a fantastic project for someone,” he said. “But we’re in the midst of a handful of renovations now and the cost to restore it would be fairly high given the level of disrepair.”
Holly Grace, project manager at B’nai B’rith, could not be reached for comment.
During a public hearing last fall, there was consensus among neighbors for 100 units of elder housing with the possibility of a dozen townhomes that would not be age-restricted, as well as ground floor retail to serve seniors such as a beauty parlor, doctor’s office and grocery shop.
Last year, the School Committee added a provision to the sale of the facility that requires a developer to pay a minimum of $4 million for the property. The building is assessed at $9.7 million.
Mayor Thomas M. McGee and City Council President Darren Cyr did not return calls seeking comment.
