At a meeting last Thursday night, the Joint Boards of Selectmen (JBOS) agreed that it wants to be the interface with the state as plans are formulated for expanded housing at Devens. The monthly meeting was attended by two selectmen each from Harvard and Shirley, and four Devens Committee members. No representatives from Ayer were present. A proposal by Chairman Chip Guercio of Shirley led to a motion by Harvard’s Tim Clark to send a letter to Dan O’Connell and Tina Brooks of the governor’s Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development, inviting them to use the JBOS as their public forum as plans progress.
On October 4, O’Connell and Brooks presented a proposal for an additional 400 units of “work force” housing to address an estimated 1,640 new jobs “in the pipeline” for Devens. In the absence of any follow-up information from the governor’s office, the committee discussed ways to position itself for the next steps. “We could be the board they come to and work with,” proposed Guercio. “That would be more efficient than going to selectmen’s meetings in each of the towns,” Clark said.
Devens Committee member Mike Boucher suggested partnering with the state to create a schedule. “We should be more proactive and drive the solution,” he said, adding that they need to engage Devens developer MassDevelopment as part of the process. Harvard’s Lucy Wallace informed the committee of an invitation from MassDevelopment to attend its annual board meeting on November 8. “What would we like to discuss with them as a joint group?” Wallace asked.
She suggested some housing questions. Since the 400 units proposed for Devens are on Harvard land, she wondered about the status of previous housing plans for parcels of land within the Ayer and Shirley historical boundaries. “Are those plans off the table now?” she asked. Clark worried that the 400 units might be followed by second and third phases of housing.
Next on the JBOS meeting agenda was an update on disposition criteria review meetings. Each of the representative groups involved in the disposition outcome has been charged with submitting to JBOS the criteria which must be met before jurisdiction over land within their historic borders could be returned to the three towns. Previously, similar criteria were developed based on the creation of a new town at Devens.
Boucher wanted to know when Harvard would be ready to provide its updated criteria and the names of those who will serve on the joint subcommittee being formed to review the criteria from the different groups. “We are eager to start,” he said. Wallace informed him that she, Clark, and Selectman Bob Eubank have been drawing together the comments heard at a public hearing they held on September 26 and would be bringing the resulting document to the rest of their board for further input.
The committee reviewed a report that had been requested by Wallace on the status of $390,000 in funds originally budgeted for disposition planning and used by the Devens Disposition Executive Board in the initial phase of the process. Learning that $106,000 is available, Wallace expressed hope that some of these funds could be allocated to Harvard for an “original boundaries study” that would take a look at “jurisdictional issues.” Guercio and Boucher requested that Harvard provide JBOS with a scope of services for the study.
The Harvard representatives expressed frustration about their efforts to obtain useful financial information from MassDevelopment. “We are looking for direction from the governor’s administration on how to approach them,” Clark said. Representatives from the other communities seemed puzzled by the difficulties described by their Harvard counterparts.
Phil Crosby of the Devens Committee expressed his own frustration that five months have gone by since Harvard decided to study the impact of resuming jurisdiction, and nothing appears to be happening. Guercio suggested that there is not a good level of comfort between the Harvard representatives and MassDevelopment. “The request for information should probably come through JBOS,” he offered, “Maybe they think you’re off on your own.”
Wallace replied that they were very close to getting the meeting but were seeking an understanding with the administration and MassDevelopment on access to information about Devens that will help Harvard assess the impact of the return of jurisdiction. “We want the paths of the communication to be very clear,” she added.
