Latest news with #Ruggieri
Boston Globe
06-04-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Mass Audubon scores court victory in quest to turn old Chelsea factory into waterfront park
'It's a once-in-a-generation opportunity for folks to gain access to the water,' said Roseann Bongiovanni, executive director of local advocacy group GreenRoots and a lifelong Chelsea resident who is working with Mass Audubon. Advertisement Developers have tried and failed to repurpose the property in question, the old Forbes Lithograph Manufacturing site, for years. Most recently, a businessman based in Australia, Ken He, had acquired it in 2014 with the intentions of building housing there. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, disrupting his plans. A lawyer for He, John G.F. Ruggieri, called the proposed sale to Mass Audubon an improper taking at a liquidation price; his client filed an appeal the next day. (In a statement, Mass Audubon says the owner had neglected the property and had plenty of time to line up a buyer.) Chelsea city officials had begun the process of seeking a court-appointed receiver to take control of the run-down property when a massive fire hit in November, disrupting travel on the commuter rail tracks that run along the site. The receiver then took over, with the help of a $400,000 loan from the city to cover her expenses. She petitioned Nestor to approve the sale, citing the site's deteriorating conditions. Advertisement On March 25, Nestor agreed to the deal. 'What is needed in this matter is a certain and soon outcome,' Nestor wrote. 'This offer will repay the taxpayers of Chelsea, clean up the property, and provide a reasonable development for the site. Defendants have had ample opportunity to suggest a viable opportunity but have failed to do so.' For Mass Audubon, the site would fit in well with its newer mission of developing green spaces in urban areas. Mass Audubon, GreenRoots, and their supporters have already raised the money for the purchase price, though president David O'Neill said they would need to raise another $30 million to clean up the property and build a waterfront park and nature center. A portion of those funds would come from The Neighborhood Developers, a Chelsea-based affordable housing nonprofit that would buy a five-acre section of the property and build up to 225 units there. TND executive director Rafael Mares called it 'a transformative project' that's 'worth the wait.' Housing and land conservation, O'Neill said, are often portrayed as conflicting uses. 'In this instance, what we're saying is, 'Absolutely not,'' O'Neill said. 'This is an example of what can be done [with housing and conservation groups] working together.' But first the Mass Audubon team will need to get through He, who bought the property in 2014 for $11.6 million and remains its owner. Ruggieri, his lawyer, called the sale a 'completely ramrodded, behind-the-scenes deal.' His client, he said, has poured millions into the property, mainly for permitting, since acquiring it and was fielding interest from potential buyers when the receiver took control and fired his broker. The offers, Ruggieri said, were for well above what Mass Audubon has agreed to pay. Advertisement 'The owner of this property is absolutely apoplectic about this order,' Ruggieri said. 'We are very confident that the Appeals Court will not sanction [this] distressed sale. ... We're not enemies of the Audubon Society. However, they need to pay the proper price. They just can't take it clandestinely.' Jon Chesto can be reached at
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘There were people crying'; Central Illinois federal workers face unemployment, uncertainty
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — President Donald Trump is working to shrink the federal government, and it's coming in the form of sweeping federal worker layoffs. On Thursday, Trump's administration ordered agencies to lay off nearly all probationary workers. Those employees have generally worked for less than a year and aren't covered by civil service protections. Advocate groups rally at Illinois Capitol for Clean Slate Bill It could potentially impact hundreds of thousands of workers. It's already leaving uncertainty for some in Central Illinois. A.J. Ruggieri of Champaign walked into the office last week for what he thought would be a normal day. He'd been working for a sub agency of the USDA for nearly two and a half months when he learned that his job was cut short. 'I went into the office Friday morning, I looked at my email, and the previous night at 7:50 p.m. I had been sent an email that was titled 'Termination Notice Probationary Employee,'' Ruggieri said. People were emotional, Ruggieri noted. 'There were people crying,' he continued. 'No type of severance, just nothing other than thank you for your federal service.' Illinois bill would require schools to have more military recruitment events Progressive group Champaign County Indivisible rallied outside of Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski's office on Monday advocating for people like Ruggieri. Leadership said this is a tipping point for the country. 'We're at a crossroads,' co-founder Jeff Dougan said. 'If we keep going down this path, I am concerned that government of the people, by the people, for the people will perish from the United States.' Ruggieri said the termination letter he got said he failed to demonstrate that his work was in the interest of the public. He said that's a lie. 'I very much believe in the principles of America, but I also believe we're supposed to take care of each other,' Ruggieri said. 'This has been very challenging.' Danville Board of Education considers appointing interim superintendent Ruggieri said he's lucky that he did not relocate for his federal job. He plans to use connections in the community to figure out his next steps — something that has the added pressure of a family waiting back home. 'I'm married,' Ruggieri said. 'I have three kids. The idea of how we're going to maintain the level of life we've had is in question now.' Five unions for government employees have sued Trump and his administration over the firings, saying it's illegal and violates procedures for reducing the workforce. This could only be the beginning, however. Trump signed an executive order last week that told agency leaders to plan for more cuts on the way. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
