The sad-looking First National Bank building on Greenfield's Bank Row may be about to turn the corner. John Waite, Executive Director of the Franklin County Community Development Corporation (CDC) recently announced that Sebastian Ruggeri has signed an agreement to donate the building to the CDC. The CDC hopes to turn it once again into a centerpiece of downtown Greenfield. The historic building was built in 1929 and Mr. Ruggeri has owned it since the Bank closed in the late 1970s. The building, which has been empty for more than twenty years, has fallen into a state of disrepair and became so bad last year that the town erected a barricade around the building.

Mr. Ruggeri, a retired prominent Greenfield lawyer, offered to donate the building to the CDC, in the hope that it can be restored and used for the benefit of the community. According to Waite, the CDC will take ownership of the building pending a structural inspection and securing the necessary financing to rehab the building.

"The CDC is extremely grateful to Mr. Ruggeri for making this offer and hopes the building is still in good enough condition to be renovated," Waite said. "This building was a cornerstone of downtown and we want to work with other interested parties to bring it back as an important part of the revitalization of Greenfield."

The CDC was founded in 1979 and is involved in many economic development activities including business training, technical assistance and lending for small businesses and entrepreneurs. The CDC has been successfully operating a small business incubator at the Venture Center on Wells St. in Greenfield since 1989, and as we've talked about here in Valley Viewpoint, last year the CDC completed the construction of an $800,000 Food Processing Center on their property at 324 Wells Street.

"The main focus of the CDC is economic development, primarily small business development," said CDC Board Chair, Michael Bosworth. "Just as the construction of the Food Processing Center supports small and growing food businesses, the rehabilitation of the Bank building would provide space for new and growing small businesses in the heart of downtown."

Both Waite and Bosworth point out that even though Ruggeri is offering the Bank building as a gift, it cannot be accepted until the CDC is confident that it is a feasible project. "We need to be sure that the CDC does not lose money on this deal," Waite emphasized. "As a non-profit entity we don't need to get a high return on this project but since we have limited resources we need to know that if we take on debt we can eventually pay it off."

"We certainly hope that this is a feasible project," continued Waite. "Obviously it won't be easy given the fact that nobody else has been willing to take it on for 20 years. But part of the CDC's mission is to stimulate a more vital economy and help to maximize community control over its economic destiny. With CDC ownership, the community will now have control over an important part of downtown Greenfield."

In addition to his successful law practice, Sebastian Ruggeri also owns a good deal of real estate in Greenfield. Now 88 years old, he is not interested in redeveloping the building himself but would like to see it put to good use.

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