Hanscom hopes for evasion

The Bedford Minuteman
November 20, 2001

Hanscom hopes for evasion
Base closings could hit close to home

BY LAWRENCE PRUYNE
Staff Writer

The future of Hanscom Air Force Base is up in the air and hitting
turbulence.

" We expect to hear in the next couple of weeks if there will be a round of
base closings and if we do we’re gearing up to publicize that Hanscom is a
valuable resource. While many people don’t realize what goes on there at
Hanscom the base represents $4 billion in business, " said Karen Sawyer, a
senior vice president at the Massachusetts Development Office — the
instigating force behind a new group, the Build Hanscom Business Alliance.

A large group of local business executives and government officials met on
Tuesday, Nov. 13 for the first meeting of the BHBA. The 8 a.m. breakfast
meeting was a call to arms to oppose the very real threat that Hanscom Air
Force Base may close in 2003.

The timeliness of forming the alliance was confirmed the next day when
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld went public, according to a Boston
Globe article, with the Defense Department’s desire to shed military
facilities. According to Rumsfeld, one out of every four or five bases are
unnecessary.

" We believe that it is important when there are this many demands and this
many stresses… that we not be carrying around something in the neighborhood
of 20 to 25 percent excess base structure, " Rumsfeld said.

State and local legislators are alarmed. The meeting over coffee and eggs
drew Rep. Marty Meahan (D-5th District), Rep. John Tierney (D-6th District),
Rep. Edward Markey (D-7th District), State Sen. Susan Fargo (D-Lincoln) and
state reps. Jay Kaufman (D-Lexington) and Charles Murphy (D-Burlington).

Larry Zabar, senior vice president of the New England Council, which works
to influence federal policy relating to business in the maple syrup states,
commented that emphasis needs to be placed on the vital contributions coming
out of Hanscom.

" I don’t think you can overstate the contribution Hanscom makes to our
economy… The importance is almost incalculable to the region… and the
contribution Hanscom makes to our nation’s security as well, " Zabar said.

The future closing of some military bases around the country is being
decided on Capitol Hill. The U.S. Senate unanimously passed a defense bill
on Oct. 2 that included provisions for a round of base closings or
realignments. The Republican-led House of Representatives, however, voted
398-17 on Sept. 25 in favor of a bill that omits any mention of base
closings.

Rumsfeld notified the House that he will recommend to President Bush a
presidential veto of any bill that does not include base closings. One
benefit of the base realignment or closing process, however, is that the
general public can offer input into the decision-making process.

" The military can close bases on their own, if they want, but they usually
don’t… [So] we expect it to happen, " said Jim McCurdy, president and chief
executive officer of the North Surburban Chamber of Commerce.

The first meeting of the BHBA wasn’t convened to generate support, according
to Sawyer. It was more a convention for those who may be most affected by
closing Hanscom to see each other.

" This was less to show support and more for the people there to look around
and see what’s at risk… But we are looking for financial and in-kind support
to do the things we need to do, " Sawyer said.

Base closing rounds have been held in 1988, 1991, 1993 and 1995. A total of
97 major military installations were closed or realigned. Another 354
smaller facilities were also shuttered.

" The governor and Senator (Ted) Kennedy have tapped Mass. Development to do
the analysis and figure out what best we can do. The hour is at hand. Our
competition in Texas has been doing it’s homework, " Kealey said.

Even if a round of base closings is not legislated the group will hire
consultants, gather and review data on Hanscom’s contributions to the
region, and carry out public relations campaigns so that the importance of
the base is more widely known and acknowledged.

" The number one place Hanscom employees live is not even in Massachusetts,
it’s in New Hampshire. Nashua. So we’ll make the case that it’s not a state
but rather a regional issue, " Sawyer said.

The Bedford Minuteman
November 20, 2001

Base’s future tied to government time table

BY LAWRENCE PRUYNE
Staff Writer

The noose may close on Hanscom Air Force Base as early as July 22, 2003.
That’s when President George W. Bush will decide which bases will close in
the latest round of nationwide cutbacks in military real estate.

" We expect it to happen. It’s how the United States Air Force is dealing
with changes in their structure. Since the end of the Cold War there’s been
less need for some facilities… It’s the lean and mean mentality. They don’t
need structures that don’t serve a specific purpose, " said Jim McCurdy,
president and chief executive officer of the North Suburban Chamber of
Commerce.

According to McCurdy, the process of singling out bases for closing begins
in January with information gathering. The Pentagon will ask the
administration at Hanscom Air Force Base for particulars about what goes on
at the base and how the facility fits into the region.

" A variety of data interests the Air Force, information about the base
itself, what it does, what goes on there, to the externals, what goes on
around it… a full variety of information about the region and how it would
be impacted, " McCurdy said.

The data, gathered for a full year, will be fed to a nine member panel
called the Base Realignment and Closure Committee. Those nine panel members
will be sitting on political hot seats.

" They’ll name them on Jan. 24, 2003… But our key date is March 14, "
McCurdy said.

The initial list of bases ripe for closure will be made public on the ides
of March. The Build Hanscom Business Alliance was formed because the best
strategy is to avoid getting on the list at all.

" At that point if you’re on the list… it’s pretty hard to prove to them you
shouldn’t be, " McCurdy said.

The announcement is followed by three months of public hearings and
evaluation.

" March through June, that’s a time of intense discussion—read ‘intense
lobbying going on’—because these bases are key to local economies. [But] if
you’re on the list your chances of getting off the list are three in 10. It
becomes an immediate political football. After March 14… it’s a very
contentious period, " he said.

The period is so contentious that the last time it happened the president
was overwhelmed.

" It went to Clinton and he let it sit. I guess he was bombarded from every
corner, " said McCurdy.

The nine-member committee will make its final recommendations to President.
Bush on July 7, 2003. The president can reject or accept the entire list,
not parts of it, but must reach that decision in 15 days, by July 22. If he
rejects it the commission has until Aug. 18 to come up with a revised list.

" If it’s rejected again that’s the end of the process, " McCurdy said.

If Bush approves the list, congress has 45 days to ratify it, after which
military installations, each a cornerstone of its local economy, will begin
to pack up and move out.

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