Mattson Development has yet to fulfill the requirements of a conditional approval from the Newcastle Planning Board for the Newcastle Harbor House project. If the company does not fulfill the conditions by this Friday, Dec. 3, Newcastle will not issue a building permit and may instead pursue litigation against the company.
Crews, including a large crane, were at work at the site Nov. 30 – a possible cause of concern for Newcastle Town Administrator Ron Grenier. “We certainly didn’t approve anything,” Grenier said in a Nov. 30 interview at the Newcastle Town Office.
According to Grenier, under the Newcastle Land Use Ordinance, the owner of the property does not need a permit to repair or demolish a structure. The town does, however, charge a demolition fee of $5 per square foot or a minimum of $50.
The crews “removed the steel beams so they can be refabricated,” Bob Martin, Chief Operating Officer of Mattson Development, said. The beams were left exposed after Mattson Development did not complete a previous project at the site.
The larger issue is Mattson Development’s failure to meet the conditions of planning board approval with the deadline imminent. The conditions include the provision of a $300,000 letter of credit and a letter from the Dept. of Transportation approving the placement of two handicapped parking spaces on Main Street in front of the site.
Mattson Development would place $300,000 in an escrow account as a guarantee that they will complete the exterior of the project within a year. If, at the end of the year, the project remains incomplete, Newcastle can access the account and finish construction.
“Come Friday, if these requirements are not met, there is no permit,” Grenier said. “We’re hopeful they’re going to meet them – the town very much wants to see them complete the project.”
“I believe we already have [met the conditions],” Martin said. “We are in discussions with [Newcastle Town Attorney Peter Drum].” Martin declined further comment on the negotiations.
Mattson Development did not complete a previous project at the site. “There was no performance guarantee,” Grenier said, and “The town was left with an eyesore” in the form of an exposed concrete foundation and an elevator shaft.
After the abandonment of the project, “The applicant kept telling us he was going to take down what was left behind,” Grenier said. “He didn’t do it.”
Three times, representatives of Mattson Development agreed to remove the project’s remains and each time the company did not follow through. “The third strike, he was out,” Grenier said. “The [Newcastle Board of] selectmen decided to pursue litigation to make the contractor take it down.”
“While we were waiting [for a court date], the applicant came in with this new project,” Grenier said, referring to the proposed Newcastle Harbor House, a three-story building billed as the future home of the Newcastle Publick House restaurant as well as office and apartment space.
“With the best interests of the town in mind, the selectmen decided to put that litigation on the back burner,” Grenier said.
If Mattson Development does not meet the Fri., Dec. 3 deadline to fulfill the planning board conditions, Newcastle “can exercise its legal right and bring the suit that was on the back burner onto the front burner,” Grenier said.
“What the selectmen want is to see a good project come to fruition,” Grenier said. Nonetheless, “The town will not give up the performance guarantee. It needs that for its protection.”
“[Grenier] has his facts wrong,” Martin said. “Mr. Grenier would be well-served to administer the town and both [The Lincoln County News] and [Grenier] need to stop micromanaging this project. Can you spell micromanaging?”
The limbo of the Newcastle Harbor House project is not the only local issue for the troubled developer. The Lincoln County News reported in its Nov. 11 issue that Newcastle Publick House, LLC, the owner of the Newcastle Harbor House site and the Newcastle Square property at 52 Main St., owes Newcastle nearly $26,000 in back taxes.
At the time, Mattson Development Chief Operating Officer Bob Martin described the failure to pay the bill as an oversight, but the bill remains unpaid.
The bill includes taxes from 2009 and 2010. “Their 2009 taxes are now in a lien process,” Grenier said. “The next step – a year from now – would be foreclosure.”
Martin said Newcastle Publick House, LLC – not Mattson Development – owns the properties and described Mattson Development as an investor in Newcastle Publick House, LLC, declining to reveal Mattson Development’s share in the company.
Newcastle, however, sent the tax bills to Kevin Mattson, President of Mattson Development. “[Mattson] is the last person we have on record as the owner of the property,” Grenier said at the time.
“You don’t need to call me every time a truck pulls up and you don’t need to call me every time Mr. Grenier says something,” Martin said. “If you want a story, do a story, but this is silly.”
