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July 26, 2005: Air base plans get the final approval votes Sept. 28, 2004: Tri-Town won’t hire consultant to review plan Sept. 24, 2004 The Patriot Ledger Home Page
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Jan. 26, 2005Use it or lose it, Tri-Town is toldNavy tells towns to come up with air base redevelopment plan by summer Navy officials have threatened the agency overseeing develpoment of the South Weymouth air base that unless a reuse plan is approved by early summer, they will take back the land and “consider disposal by other means.” In a letter to the chairman of the South Shore Tri-Town Development Corp., the Navy didn’t spell out what the alternatives are, but options could include auctioning the 1,405-acre South Weymouth Naval Air Station or placing it in the hands of a state agency. “It reaffirms what we’ve been telling people: that we can’t dilly dally on this,” Tri-Town board member John Rogers said. “We have to make a decision on this.” The early-summer deadline imposes pressure on a reuse proposal by master developer Lennar Partners. It includes building 2,855 houses and condos, and creating 2,533 jobs in three phases, finishing in 2017. Weymouth Town Councilor Kenneth DiFazio said it forces the three towns into a tough corner. “When I say pressure, I mean pressure to accept some form of the plan that’s on the table now,” he said. The Navy decided to close the base 1995, along with other properties. Ten years later, it is looking to close and realign more properties and wants to wrap up lingering parcels from 1995. Lennar’s plan is going through reviews by residents, local officials, Tri-Town and regional planning groups. Tri-Town and the Navy hope the towns will pass a revision of Lennar’s plan in late spring. “We appreciate the efforts of the board to date, and look forward to having (Tri-Town) finalize the plan in March and subsequently receive ratification of the plan by Abington, Rockland and Weymouth in the spring,” Wayne Arny, deputy assistant secretary of the Navy for installations and facilities, wrote in the letter. “Timely completion of these critical milestones is essential so that redevelopment can move ahead expeditiously and enable you to realize your vision for the property.” David Hall, Lennar vice president for Northeast operations, said the master developer is ready to work with Tri-Town and the three communities during the next four months to to get a plan approve. “We’re not going to slow this down at all,” he said. “We can meet this timetable.” Terry Fancher, general manager of the South Shore Chamber of Commerce, interviewed for Tri-Town’s top job last week and listed some options if a reuse plan doesn’t pass. Fancher, who is in the middle of contract negotiations with Tri-Town to become its next executive director, says they are worst-case scenarios but strong possibilities if the towns refuse to approve a redevelopment proposal. The Navy could auction the land, with Lennar being a possible bidder. Or the Navy could give responsibility to another group, such as the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency, a quasi-public real estate and economic development agency. MassDevelopment was close to reaching development terms with Tri-Town in early 2002, but talks fell apart and Tri-Town chose Lennar later that year. If the plan passes in two communities but not in a third, the towns could also try to find a solution by changing the state legislation about the air base. “You push to make sure it does go through all three so that doesn’t come up,” Fancher said. As for the deadline, Fancher says it was expected and understandable. Tri-Town Chairman John Ward agreed. “It’s consistent with what the Navy has been saying all along,” hw said. “They’re very serious about this process. They want to get this resolved and everyone is working toward that goal.” Mark Fontecchio may be reached by clicking here.
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MAPS: A before and after look
The result could be an eventual development that the three towns in which the base is located, Weymouth, Rockland and Abington, have little influence over.