An eyesore no more
Iver Mills ready to undergo transformation, become housing
For nearly a century, the Iver Johnson Arms and Cycleworks called the city home. But, since the company’s departure in 1971, the multifaceted manufacturer’s industrial River Street property has sat fallow.
Luckily, through the work of Rich Darche and Aldo Mazzaferro, the property is set to be reborn.
Partners at Iver Mills Residences, Darche and Mazzaferro are set to transform the former manufacturing space into 80,000 square feet of highquality housing, including 44 one-bedroom, 15 two-bedroom and six studio apartments with “all the modern amenities” one could want. Further, they plan to do so within the “good bones” of the property that largely remain, a fusion of “old and new” that the two hopewill entice residents and have a lasting impact on the city.
Darche described the chance to bring the property “back to life” as a “can’t miss” opportunity and said he andmazzaferro were excited to take part in the city’s “revitalization.” Mazzaferro, a Leominster native, said he relished the opportunity to give back to the community.
“To bring back such an old facility, a place that has such fantastic architecture and brickwork, to the city of Fitchburg was an awesome opportunity,” Darche said. “is a place that has undergone a major, positive transition in the last few years, and we wanted to be a part of that.”
“The property was an eyesore, just sort of ugly and falling apart,” Mazzaferro said. “We saw an opportunity to do these historic structures a bit of justice andmake a huge difference inthe community as far as housing opportunities.”
Norwegian- born firearms manufacturer Iver Johnson foundedhis company inworcester back in 1871. 20 years later, Johnson moved the business to Fitchburg, into the space formerly occupied by thewalter D. Heywood Chair Manufacturing Company of latergardner fame, in order to expand operations.
And expand they did: beyond firearms, the company’s scope encompassed bicycles, motorcycles and even sporting goods. Both Darche and Mazzaferro said the historical component piqued their initial interest in the property.
“We saw a chance to keep a piece of that history alive, that’s what drew us in,” Darche said. “Just a great opportunity to make that space useful again and bring back some of that old ‘grandeur’ to the city.”
“It would have been a crime to tear down a place like this, so we jumped in before that could happen,” Mazzaferro said.
Unfortunately for the duo, the purchase came with some unexpected warts. Environmental concerns were “far beyond” what they expected. Coupled with a pandemic that “sent them back to the drawing board” and, as a result, significantly increased costs, it took years to truly get the project started after they purchased it in May of 2018.
“We didn’t know at the time (of purchase) what the extent of environmental cleanup was going to be,” Darche said. “It was a lot more involved than we had expected — and then, of course, you have a whole pandemic which threw a monkey wrench into everything.”
That said, the duo persisted. “Aldo and I have been in the business world a long time,” Darche said, “and we weren’t going to let a few surprises here and there stop us from working on what we believe is going to be an awesome project.”
“We’re persistent, we got through it and now we’re sort of on the precipice,” he said.
Now, the project has gained serious traction. While there is plenty of work to be done, the duo expect construction and restoration work to start soon and, barring further “monkey wrenches,” the property should be ready to occupy late in 2024.
“That’s sort of where we’re at right now and we’re very excited,” Darche said.
As an update on the project, Darche and Mazzaferro led multiple city and state leaders, including Mayor Stephen Dinatale and state Sen. John Cronin, on a site tour on Monday, March 6. For them, the theme was the impending transformation of the long dilapidated structures and, in a larger sense, a revitilization of the city
inatale, who said he has a “deep and abiding respect” for history, said he was glad to see the derelict space given the proper attention after years of abandonment and touched on the housing project’s potential to lead to further, commercial development in the area. Cronin, meanwhile, said he was excited to see the Darche-mazzaferro project “come together” with other recent investments to turn the city into a “destination.”
“There’s no city with a greater historical pedigree than Fitchburg,” Dinatale said. “Anytime we have the opportunity to preserve some of that history, we’re going to do what we can and we’re glad to see that being done here.”
“You put shoes on the ground and development, retail, commercial, whatever, is going follow. That’s what we want to see through this project, we believe it could really be a catalyst.”
“There’s a real unity of conception between the investments being made in downtown Fitchburg,” Cronin said. “And that’s exactly what we need — whether it’s housing, arts-and- culture, restaurants, bars, transportation, they have to come together to get the city where we want it to be and where it should be as a destination — and we’re seeing that here.”
Dinatale also thanked Darche and Mazzaferro for their contribution to a housing crisis that has continued to grip the city, state and country at large.
“We’ve made significant inroads in addressing the sort of housing deficit we’ve faced here in the city,” DiNatale said. “We’re doing what we can, chipping away and making every effort to address that effort and we can’t thank Rich and Aldo enough for adding their efforts to that through this project.
In turn, Darche and Mazzaferro thanked the city and those at the State House that have aided the project for their patience and cooperation. Darche said “we couldn’t say enough” about how supportive Dinatale and the city has been throughout the prolonged process, while Mazzaferro said he was “excited” to give back to the city to repay that support.
“That’s a huge motivation for us,” Mazzaferro said. “I’d like nothing better than to give the city something to be proud of here — I truly think we will and I can’t wait to see it once it’s complete.”