Williams College proposed buying the lot at 59 Water St. to replace its existing Facilities Services building on Latham Street, the white building seen directly behind the lot.

WILLIAMSTOWN — A central town-owned property on Water Street that has long sat undeveloped received a single development proposal from a close neighbor: Williams College.

If accepted, Williams will buy the 1.27-acre lot at 59 Water St. for $500,000 and turn it into its new facilities services building and a parking development. The town put out requests this winter to develop the lot, which once had a town garage on it, and Williams was the sole inquiry by the April 15 deadline.

In its proposal released Wednesday, Williams said its new Athletic and Wellbeing Complex would then replace the existing Facilities Services building at 60 Latham St. as part of its “broader campus plan.”

Williams’ demand for an updated athletic facility is heightened by the 2023 closure of the Williams’ Towne Field House.

Besides the up-front payment, the offer also includes a 10-year, $50,000 annual contribution to the Mount Greylock Regional School District, beginning in fiscal year 2028.

With $500,000 plus another $500,000 in increments over ten years, Williams mentioned in its proposal that it is offering well over the property’s independently appraised value of $350,000.

However, the town’s RFP document and Community Development Director Andrew Groff said it was a priority to focus on creating a sustainable, commercial tax base from the lot in the Village Business District, which Groff called “central to this growing business hub at the tip of Water Street.”

In the RFP’s evaluation criteria, it said that “highly advantageous” ratings would be given to proposals that emphasize “the creation of commercial space and multi-family housing,” and “present a plan that will have significant positive benefits to the community.”

“That was a very high goal of the RFP and we left some carve-out for institutional bids like the college,” said Groff.

The Select Board, which ultimately decides if the town accepts the proposal, does not have to take the highest bidding price, has the right to reject the proposal or reopen the bidding process.

This is not the first time the town has tried to develop that land, the last time being in 2014 when the Select Board rejected a proposal for affordable housing developments at both 59 Water St. and 330 Cole Ave. — opting for another offer to build apartments at just the Cole Avenue property.

The decision prompted three members of the then-Affordable Housing Committee, which supported the proposal, to resign in protest.

Since then, the lot has sat vacant except for use as an unofficial parking lot, which Town Manager Robert Menicocci stopped in 2024.

As next steps, Groff said the town will form an evaluation committee that will judge the proposal. No timeline is set for that, he said, though he expected that to ramp after May’s town meeting season.

“I’m excited the college is interested and responded,” he said. “But more is more, right? We were hoping for a robust response. It would have been nice to see more interest, though, we’ll really take a look at this.”