Liberty Mutual Redevelopment
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The former Liberty Mutual campus will be called “The Village at River’s Edge.” This first phase focuses on the 350,000-square-foot building at 150 Waumbec Drive (formerly Liberty Way), which is being transformed into a mixed-use space featuring 245 upper-floor residential units and ground-level commercial space.
Marketing has launched to attract retail, medical, and office tenants to the massive 585,000-square-foot lifestyle campus. However, any expansion beyond this first building will require further Planning Board review. The developer is still required to schedule a mandatory public charrette (community design workshop) to gather community input before moving forward with the second and third phases of the project.
Brady Sullivan Properties is redeveloping the former Liberty Mutual campus in three phases, starting with converting the 350,000-square-foot Dover West building at 150 Liberty Way into 245 residential units and commercial space. Future phases include redeveloping Dover East and constructing five new buildings totaling over 200,000 square feet of commercial space and additional residential units.
Why it Matters
Liberty Mutual was Dover’s single largest taxpayer, valued at $70 million. Then the company left Dover, creating a valuation deficit that needs to be replaced by Dover residents’ property taxes.
Liberty Mutual’s exit from Dover caused the property’s value to plummet from $70 million to $50 million. The City of Dover had to refund its tax premiums through an abatement.
It’s important for Dover taxpayers that we replace Liberty Mutual with property that delivers a proportionate valuation. The more value the redevelopment produces, the more favorable it will be for Dover taxpayers. Mixed-use property delivers a high value per acre (VPA) — higher than residential and higher than straight commercial.
The Big Picture
Redeveloping the Liberty Mutual campus addresses two issues. It replaces some or all of the value lost from Liberty Mutual’s departure and adds much-needed housing for Dover. Even better, attainable units will be included.