Related: Massachusetts' Mini-City
And NOW they want you to give the land away for FREE, American taxpayers -- after you clean it up, of course!!!!!!
"Air base developers seek free land deal" by Emily Sweeney, Globe Staff | November 30, 2009
A private real estate company and a local redevelopment authority are hoping to persuade the US Navy to hand over more than 800 acres of the former South Weymouth Naval Air Station for free under provisions of newly passed legislation pushed by a local congressman.
The South Shore Tri-Town Development Corp. and privately held
The first homes in SouthField were slated to be built last spring, but none of the ambitious plans has come to fruition and the government still owns the bulk of the shuttered base. The real estate company and the development corporation have faced financial struggles recently....
In this case, GOVERNMENT means YOU, TAXPAYERS!!!
LNR and Tri-Town would like the government to pay for the environmental cleanup of the base and transfer the land for free, according to officials from the partners. That’s what they will propose when they meet with Navy officials and ask them to reconsider their price for the land.
Another cost of the EMPIRE and MILITARISM you are so proud of, America: ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION!
Where are the FART-MISTING GLOBAL-WARMERS when you NEED THEM?!
The meeting is “the first step toward getting this transaction completed,’’ said Kevin R. Chase, vice president of LNR’s Northeast region. The South Shore Tri-Town Development Corp. is the quasi-public entity that was to raise the money to buy the land from the Navy and then turn it over to LNR. But the agency hasn’t been able to obtain financing through the bond markets. It relies on LNR to fund its operations and pay the salaries of its six employees. Meanwhile, LNR also is facing financial difficulties. The Miami Beach-based company had its ratings downgraded to junk status by Wall Street analysts....
Actually, I'M GLAD this project is going nowhere!
WE do NOT NEED to be GIVING AWAY MORE TAX LOOT or LAND right now!!
If it gains control of the property, LNR plans to subdivide the base and sell off parcels to homebuilders and commercial developers that will construct the homes, offices, and other facilities that will comprise SouthField. As originally planned, SouthField would be a a community of 2,855 homes, shops, restaurants, a boutique hotel, a 14-screen movie theater, an 18-hole golf course, turf athletic fields, an Olympic-sized skating rink, and a movie studio complex.
Built in 1941, the air station once housed gigantic blimps that patroled the coast, looking for German U-boats during World War II. After decades of use as a military airfield, the government closed the base in 1997. LNR owns 540 acres of the former naval air station. It has been clearing and grading lots for future homes and is responsible for sewer lines, utilities, and other infrastructure, and turning the property into buildable lots that can be sold....
LNR has made significant efforts to drum up political support for the project. Between 2003 and 2009, the company paid $246,000 to John P. Burke and his firm, Burke Strategies, to lobby on their behalf on Beacon Hill. In return, according to records on file with the Secretary of State’s office, Burke helped secure a $250,000 grant for South Shore Tri-Town and $42.5 million in the state transportation bond bill to fund the construction of the East/West Parkway, a key roadway through the base.
The project has won the support of many public officials, including Governor Deval Patrick, who designated SouthField as a “municipal growth district’’ and allotted $15 million in federal stimulus funding to build the East/West Parkway.
Over the summer, Delahunt, a Quincy Democrat, sponsored legislation to authorize the government to transfer surplus military property to local communities at no cost if it helped create jobs and boost economic development. Similar language made its way into the FY2010 National Defense Authorization Act that was signed into law by President Obama late last month, allowing the military to offer surplus property at no cost, or at a lower price....
Here are some more goodies you got from Uncle Sam, Masser:
Massachusetts Militarizes Police Forces
--more--"
Also see: That's a Wrap, Plymouth!
Yeah, TOSS MORE TAX LOOT AWAY as you SUFFER, Bay Staters!!
