Best Practices
39
Community Engagement
During the physical evaluation of
the former Montgomery Hospital
in Norristown, Albert Einstein
Healthcare Network, the owner
of the hospital, hired a consultant
to work with the Norristown
community to determine a new use
for the site. Although the adaptive
reuse of the hospital itself was
determined to be infeasible, the
public process was a success. This
process helped the community
understand the development
process and the limitations of the
site and determined the future use
of the property, which will be new
senior housing.
An adaptive reuse task force may be charged with a number of responsibilities and
could include any or all of the following activities:
A. Engage Communities in Exploring New Uses
A task force can be the primary vehicle for completing an inventory of
institutional properties and engaging the public in exploring appropriate new
uses. Ideas for rethinking existing institutional buildings and grounds may be
solicited and discussed in a public forum or through a design charrette, creating
consensus in the community for a specific project.
B. Market Properties for Reuse
A task force may want to market properties to developers by hosting economic
development events, publishing available property inventories, and providing
guidance and instruction on development regulations. Marketing could be
targeted to a small number of properties or expanded to include multiple
planning regions.
C. Evaluate Municipal and School District Facilities
A task force can assist in evaluating the physical condition of former municipal
or school district facilities to determine the potential for reuse prior to sale. A
formal scoring system can be used in conjunction with community feedback to
help determine a compatible new use prior to the sale of the property and may
prevent premature demolition of the building.
III. FUNDING AND FINANCING
A. Funding Options for Acquisition and Environmental Remediation
Municipalities and developers can utilize the expertise and funding resources
provided by federal, state, and county authorities. The Montgomery County
Commerce Department, for example, provides aid to municipalities and
developers by applying to state and federal funding sources on their behalf.
Some of those sources include asbestos remediation funding from the EPA
and Keystone Communities Program funding through the Commonwealth. One
aspect of the Keystone Communities Program especially applicable to adaptive
reuse projects is funding for the acquisition and improvement of anchor
buildings at or near downtowns for commercial purposes.
B. Innovative Financing
There are a few innovative financing strategies that local taxing authorities
can use to incentivize investment in an institutional property when it relates
to the overall economic development plan of a community. These strategies
include Tax Increment Financing (TIF) and Local Economic Revitalization Tax
Assistance (LERTA) exemptions. Both of these programs can bridge a gap in
financing and are part of a larger redevelopment or revitalization planning effort
on the part of the municipality, school district, and county.
C. Conservation and Façade Easements
Local historic and community conservation nonprofits can offer opportunities
for purchasing a conservation easement from a developer or property owner. A
façade or conservation easement is a legal agreement that places limitations on
how a property can be altered or developed in the future and includes a deed
restriction which stays with the property in perpetuity.
Facility Assessment
A formal method to assess and
score the physical condition
of facilities is to use a Facility
Condition Index (FCI), as the
Philadelphia School Reform
Commission does. This index is
used to prioritize which properties
might be more expensive to repair
or maintain than to replace. An
FCI is calculated by dividing the
cost of repair, replacement, and
maintenance deficiencies of a
facility by the cost of replacing
the facility in full. An FCI above
1.0 signifies that the facility
might be a good candidate for
adaptive reuse.
