Forbes Park was supposed to be a cutting-edge sustainable urban development. Supported by funding from the federal stimulus package in 2009, the vision was to convert an old industrial area along the Chelsea River into over 300 luxury lofts equipped with a plumbing system running on recycled rain water, a fleet of electric cars, solar panels, and a wind turbine.
But the project stalled during the economic collapse as the developer ran up deep debts with lenders. The conversion was never completed, and the wind turbine never produced a significant amount of energy.
After compiling mortgages to the tune of nine figures, facing multiple liens and a lawsuit from the federal government, the partially completed development that sits on 17 acres was put up for auction last week. It wasn't sold, so it remains with the lender, Amalgamated Bank, which granted Forbes Park LLC a $94 million mortgage in 2008.
The bank, which is owned by the Workers United/SEIU labor union and based in New York City, also had granted Forbes Park LLC a $36 million mortgage in 2006.
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A small crowd of potential bidders showed up at the site for an auction held by Paul E. Saperstein Co. The bank ended up being the only bidder, with bidding starting at $5.7 million, according to auction officials.
Forbes Park LCC was established by Blair Galinsky, a Somerville developer who previously created the high-end condominium complex Davis Square Lofts at another factory site, on Elmwood Street in Somerville. A unit at that development — where seven lofts sold for an average price of $624,429 in 2012 — is listed as Forbes Park LLC's principal office, according to state records. Galinsky could not be reached for comment.
The Chelsea parcel, a former brownfield site, was purchased for $8.83 million in 2004, and multiple mortgages were taken out between 2005 and 2008 that totaled nearly $150 million, according to records from the Suffolk County Registry of Deeds.
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In November 2009, the development was awarded a $620,000 grant through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to operate the 600-killowatt wind turbine, which was built in 2008 but never produced a significant amount of energy.
On July 23, US Attorney Carmen Ortiz's office filed a lawsuit against Forbes Park LLC, demanding it return $372,411 of the grant, plus pay over $140,000 in fees and interest.
A review by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in March 2012 found the turbine failed to meet the minimum requirements of energy production for the federal grant program, and the government has been trying to get the grant money returned ever since, according to the lawsuit.
The federal treasury's Public Debt Bureau sent Galinsky a demand letter in May 2012, and a second letter in August, the lawsuit said. Since the second letter was sent, the treasury and private collection agencies it hired have attempted unsuccessfully to get the debt repaid, the lawsuit said.
The corporation also was hit with municipal liens in 2006 and 2008 for failing to pay utilities, and has faced multiple additional liens for allegedly failing to fully pay construction contracts, according to state records.
Jarret Bencks can be reached at bencks.globe@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @JarretBencks.
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