Worcester courthouse sale
When Worcester officials had agreed last month to sell the former Worcester County Courthouse to New Hampshire developer Brady Sullivan Properties, city leaders rejoiced. The vacant courthouse was shuttered and Brady Sullivan's proposal to redevelop it into 115 market-rate apartments and 3,000 square feet of retail space was a resounding win for the Lincoln Square neighborhood.
But it wasn't long before a local labor group raised objections to the proposed deal. The Worcester Community Labor Coalition, representing the local construction industry, lobbied city councilors, seeking to ensure that Brady Sullivan adhere to a list of hiring demands drafted by the coalition.
What were local labor reps pushing for?
The list included a stipulation that at least half of the project workforce live in Worcester, plus requirements that at least 15 percent consist of ethnic minorities, and at least seven percent be female. The coalition also asked that all contractors hired on the project offer apprenticeship programs, which train new workers in the trades. And, the coalition asked the city to establish a penalty for any project contractors found to have violated wage and employee classification laws.
What was behind the latter request?
This stemmed from concerns about workers' compensation violations by subcontractors employed on two other Brady Sullivan projects, according to city spokesman John Hill. But Hill noted that Brady Sullivan itself has no history of such violations.
What was the response?
When the City Council unanimously approved the $1.2 million sale last week, most of the coalition's requests weren't fulfilled to the extent it was seeking. But the deal between the city and Brady Sullivan was modified to include a commitment from the developer to use its best efforts to spend 50 percent of the project's wage budget on local workers, or hire from companies with apprenticeship programs. According to Hill, the company is allowed some liberty here, because the contractors and subcontractors Brady Sullivan works with must have adequate labor available based on the construction timeline. But Mark Pinard, general counsel for Brady Sullivan, said the company has “every intention” of fulfilling these obligations.
In addition, Brady Sullivan has agreed to revise the language in contracts with contractors and subcontractors to reiterate that all companies working on the project must comply with state and federal labor laws.
Is the coalition satisfied?
“I think it's a better deal and it's probably all that we could have asked for,” said Frank Kartheiser, co-chair of the coalition. He said his group is pleased with the revised agreement, despite the fact that it falls short of the group's original goals.
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