Worcester nonprofit receives $4M for Greendale demolition, redevelopment

Timothy Doyle, Worcester Business Journal

Rockland Trust has provided $4 million in financing to New Garden Park, Inc., the nonprofit subsidiary of the Worcester Business Development Corp., to help fund the initial phases of the redevelopment of a 51-acre parcel of underused, former Saint-Gobain land in Worcester’s Greendale neighborhood.

Saint-Gobain transferred the land to New Garden Park in 2022 for redevelopment into pad-ready manufacturing sites with the goal of creating 1 million square feet of new manufacturing space in the city and providing 1,000 jobs. The project is part of the larger Greendale Revitalization Initiative in partnership with the City of Worcester.

As part of the initial phases of the project, New Garden Park will need to raze 10 buildings at the site, update infrastructure, provide environmental remediation, and update roads at the site to make them public.

In addition to the Rockland Trust financing, the organization received a $2-million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency’’s Brownfields Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup (MARC) Grant Program in July to fund cleanup efforts.

In 2022, the City and New Garden Park received $1.75 million Massachusetts One Stop for Growth program to put towards the project.