About the Grove Street Site
Former Brockton Gas Works Plant. Photo courtesy of Bay State Gas Company.
Brockton's Brightfield will be developed on a 27-acre former manufactured gas plant site on Grove Street in Brockton. The site is about .33 mile from Main Street, downtown Brockton. There are two parcels on opposite sides of Grove Street. Of the total 27 acres, about 10 acres are developable. The remaining 17 acres are not developable due to slope, setbacks, easements and wetlands issues. The parcel on the northerly side of the street is known as "Plot 19" Grove Street, or Former Brockton Gasworks I. The other parcel is known as "Plot 55 Grove Street", or Former Brockton Gasworks II. The “Former Brockton Gasworks Sites” became contaminated from gas manufacturing operations performed over a 65-year time frame beginning in 1898 and have been abandoned since 1963. The City took ownership of the parcel known as “Lot 55” in 1976. Bay State Gas Company is the responsible party due to having purchased the Former Brockton Gas Works. Bay State Gas Company owns both parcels. It exercised a right to purchase “Lot 19” from LeBaron Foundry. The proposed Brightfield site is located along Grove Street, bordered both by commercial and residentially zoned areas. The City sold "Lot 55" back to Bay State Gas Company in December 2005. The site was listed as a Superfund site and remediation was performed from the 1990's through 2004. The permanent remedy was to cap materials below the surface, which severely limited redevelopment options available. Bay State Gas Company was very receptive about the Brightfield project from the first call to its environmental consultant in November 2000. The Company has provided funding to support consulting and landscape design fees during predevelopment, participated in numerous community and team meetings, and invested over $1 million in site improvements such as attractive landscaping and fencing. Its parent company, NiSource, provided a $5,000 grant to support development of an educational display. Barriers Encountered and Methods for Overcoming Barriers Phase I Proposal from Global Solar Team
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