AHF worked with MassDevelopment to identify opportunities for adaptive reuse in Fitchburg’s downtown district. The area contains a dozen deteriorating historic buildings dating from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The number and concentration of properties present a challenge to local officials trying to maximize the impact of public investment. AHF developed a forced ranking tool to help the city prioritize their redevelopment focus. The tool assigned a score to each building, taking into account its condition, historic status, and potential to benefit the neighborhood. The system was intended to be user-friendly and replicable in other cities with at-risk historic districts.
