Northborough Brings White Cliffs Lease, Purchase, and Rezoning to April Town Meeting

Town Meeting · Meeting of March 10, 2026

Northborough will ask Town Meeting to approve a lease-to-purchase deal, a tax abatement, and a rezoning for the White Cliffs property at 167 Main Street. Town Administrator Stephanie Bacon outlined the terms in a recorded address, saying Elegant Banquets would lease the building starting from the Certificate of Occupancy date, with payments reaching $35,000 per year in years five through eight and a half and a 3 percent compound escalator thereafter. The negotiated purchase price is $2.5 million, subject to further compounding if the purchase is delayed past year eight and a half.

A seven-year Tax Increment Financing agreement would abate taxes on improvements only — the town begins collecting taxes on the building's current assessed value immediately upon signing. Bacon cited lead paint, asbestos, and mold as the environmental concerns Elegant Banquets has agreed to remediate. Town Meeting is April 27 at 6 p.m. at Algonquin High School; an open house at White Cliffs is set for April 16 from noon to 2 p.m.

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Source: the Town Meeting meeting of March 10, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.