Dive summary:

• Waste Management has secured the purchase of the former Boston Globe printing plant in Billerica, Mass. for an undisclosed amount.
• In addition to buying the building, Waste Management has said they plan to invest $5 million to update the building.
• The Globe said they had a particularly difficult time selling the building because it was built in 1970 specifically to house a printing plant and therefore, had particular oddities that wouldn’t be useful for other business sectors.

From the article:

A May 2011 municipal lien certificate shows the property has seen a steady decrease of tax revenue for the town over the last four years. When the Globe announced in 2008 its plans to close the plant, the property's value began falling as the amount of abatements, or money the Globe did not have to pay Billerica, started to climb.

For fiscal 2009, taxes initially totaled $447,000 but fell $88,000 after abatements and exemptions. The following year's taxes totaled $392,000 but fell $53,000 with abatements.

For fiscal 2011, with no abatements, taxes amounted to $325,000.

Chief Assessor Rich Scanlon said earlier this week that selling the building was no small feat. Records show it fetched $2 million in September 2011. ...