Victor Normand, former MassDevelopment executive and Harvard citizen, commented last week on the recent activities related to disposition of Devens. Normand said he was speaking not as a representative of MassDevelopment, where he worked until recently, but rather as a citizen and someone who, as a result of long experience at MassDevelopment, may have unique insights into the Devens disposition question.
On Devens disposition, Normand said, “This is a big, big decision; few communities in the commonwealth have been confronted with this,” referring to the management of political jurisdiction. “It’s a 100-year decision and there is no template. The consequences are great; there is a compelling need to come to a decision, but it’s just as important to make sure it’s the right one.”
[Devens disposition] is a 100-year decision and there is no template.
—Victor Normand
Normand began by stating that, in his opinion, “The Land Bank and MassDevelopment were primarily focused on accomplishing an economic mission. MassDevelopment was involved in the disposition from the beginning.” He said that Chapter 498 established interim “political governance, requiring MassDevelopment to develop a plan by 2032 which would then be submitted to the governor in 2033.” Normand said that Devens was unique because of the political jurisdiction issue. “Other military bases didn’t require special zoning and were not a political problem,” he said.
The towns can reach a disposition decision any time before 2033 and request that the legislature enact that disposition into law. He also pointed out that “housing was a low priority” at the beginning of the redevelopment process, stating that “initially, Devens was called the Devens Commerce Center.”
In Normand’s opinion, the state “has a huge investment in the infrastructure, utilities, and public safety” at Devens. He said that MassDevelopment has upgraded infrastructure, spent $120 million for capital improvements, and continues investment using reinvested profits. “For example,” he said, “the wastewater treatment plant was 50 years out of date and had to be fixed. The question now is, how do you maintain it? You need reserves to do that.”
“Education is a major variable,” Normand said, “and the number of houses has to be decided before you can figure out education expense.” He suggested that Harvard do a sensitivity analysis to determine the point at which the town can provide all required services. Once those factors are in place, a transition period can begin.
Asked about using South Weymouth Naval Air Station disposition as a disposition model, his assessment was that “we are beyond that now, we can’t go back. The South Shore Tri-Town Development Corporation didn’t have to take away political jurisdiction at South Weymouth. They left it with the three towns. There is a huge residential development down there. They didn’t have to deal with who is going to provide police protection, who is going to provide fire protection, who is going to educate the kids. I believe it’s somewhere in the range of 2800 units of housing. The state just approved a new highway exit; they have extended rapid transit lines; it’s a lot closer to Boston; and there is a commercial component to it (office, not industrial). From where we in Harvard are now, it doesn’t make sense.”
“From MassDevelopment’s point of view, the only way out is by an act of the legislature,” Normand said. In his opinion, “Devens was a high-cost operation by design. But someday it needs to end; there are limits to how long a redevelopment project can stay in place.”
He said that, “At the end of the day, the decision will be economic.”
“Transition needs to happen in two steps,” he suggests. “Determine the boundaries and then specify when the actual disposition happens.”
Normand said he believes that “zoning was done correctly at the outset.” Both the Army and MassDevelopment used Vicksburg Square for offices, so when initial zoning for Devens was set, the target market was “start-up companies and incubator space,” he said. Over the years it has become apparent that there is no market for such space and Vicksburg Square has, for the most part, remained unoccupied.
Normand pointed out that this space could be rezoned easily to residential space because it is “adjacent to an existing residential zone, was originally used for barracks, and is across from Colonels Row,” characteristics which zoning officials look for. “Rezoning would need to start with a redevelopment plan for residential housing. It would have to be market-driven and would have to preserve the aesthetics of those buildings,” Normand said. Expressing concern for the current state of repair of Vicksburg Square, Normand said, “There are very effective historic preservation laws, but there is no law against neglect.”
“People who live at Devens are uncertain about their political status,” Normand said, adding that this is a “major factor in the marketing of residential properties. No one wants to buy a residence in a politically unrecognizable situation. Harvard’s recently-established education contract provides some stability,” he noted. [Until disposition, Devens residents can vote as citizens of the town in which they live—Harvard or Ayer—and pay taxes to MassDevelopment rather than to the town.]
Normand pointed out that “Devens is more urban than Harvard,” and that it has “geographic integrity.” He said that Devens “was built as a fort with, intentionally limited access.”
Cleanup is the responsibility of the Army and MassDevelopment. Cleanup of areas contaminated during the Army’s occupation of Devens “is a big concern,” in Normand’s opinion, but, he said, “cleanup information exists” and cleanup projects are actively continuing.
“There is a former Superfund site there and the Army spent $110 million to clean up the base before it was closed,” Normand said. The Army used pesticides under housing at the fort and there was petroleum product contamination around Cold Spring Brook and at other locations. At some point, all sites need to be declared clean by the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
Normand concluded by saying that “Harvard is changing. Every year, Harvard gets a little closer to Boston.”