GREENFIELD — After decades of vacancy, the former First National Bank building on Bank Row took one step closer to revitalization last Wednesday, when the Community and Economic Development Department published a request for proposals (RFP).
Community and Economic Development Director Amy Cahillane, in an interview on Thursday, explained that the city is eyeing a variety of potential uses for the building, including a retail space, food hall, indoor marketplace, a makerspace, offices, or an arts and innovation space.
Since the quasi-public Greenfield Redevelopment Authority acquired the building in 2017, two potential buyers have shown interest in redeveloping it. Although no bidders applied to develop the site in response to the 2022 RFP, Cahillane said projects that have since emerged across the city, such as the redevelopment of the former Wilson’s Department Store on Main Street into housing, may make the venue more attractive to developers.
“The landscape in downtown Greenfield looks a lot different and I think the future of downtown Greenfield looks different than it did at the last issuance of an RFP,” Cahillane said. “If you are a developer who is thinking about putting something into the First National Bank that is reliant on foot traffic, for example, you now have a downtown where there are two pretty large-scale housing developments — Wilson’s and 176 Main St. — that are getting underway, where you know that you’ll have an influx of new residents downtown, and that might change the interest for developers in this property.”
The former First National Bank building, which last operated in 1976, consists of 6,600 square feet on both the ground floor and basement levels, along with a 670-square-foot mezzanine. It still features several elements of its earlier days, including a circular check-writing kiosk, doors to the bank safe and a corner-office fireplace. The nonprofit Franklin County Community Development Corporation owned the building for approximately 15 years prior to the Redevelopment Authority’s acquisition in 2017.
The 1920s building has a historic deed restriction, preventing the developers from significantly altering its facade without approval from the state and the Historical Commission, Cahillane said previously.
While initial RFP discussions centered around the possibility of the building being converted into a performing arts venue, Cahillane said its access limitations would make it difficult to accommodate live performances.
“The last time around, I think the hope had been that this could be a performing arts space, and there are just some physical limitations that make that challenging, but it could be used for some sort of arts-and-culture-type space that isn’t just performing arts,” Cahillane explained. “You could have places where artists could drop in. Maybe there’s a throwing wheel for pottery, or a woodshop for people who want to do wood carving, or a 3D printer. There’s all sorts of different types of makerspaces. … Instead of it being just offices and people on computers or restaurants where you’re eating food, there’s some interactive creation of art.”
Prospective developers have until May 15 to respond to the RFP, which can be viewed at greenfield-ma.gov/bid_detail_T13_R14.php. Cahillane said that although the RFP’s publication stands as a step in the right direction, she is withholding her excitement until the city begins to see bidders.
“All that’s happened so far is we published some pieces of paper,” Cahillane said. “It means nothing until we have a bid that we accept.”