City initiative to repurpose state property, generate revenue

Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker announced plans Monday to repurpose unused state property by leasing it to private investors, businesses and developers through the state’s new Real Estate Asset Leveraging Strategy.

Through partnerships with departments including the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and MassDevelopment, the initiative seeks to increase revenue, improve affordable housing and create recreational open space, according to a Monday press release. Many of the properties in question are owned by the MBTA and MassDOT.

“We are excited to invite the private sector and community partners to participate in this process and look forward to unleashing their creativity and innovation to better use public land for the good of the Commonwealth,” Baker said in the release.

More than 40 properties were identified to take proposals including redevelopment, investment in retail spaces, green projects and various collaboration efforts, according to the release.

An inter-governmental group will work on the strategy and will be led by the Executive Office for Administration and Finance, the release stated.

Brendan Moss, a spokesman from A&F, said the revenue would be used on a case-by-case basis and specific examples are yet to be determined.

A portion of the income, probably 50 percent or smaller, would go to the department that owns the land, Moss said, and the other portion would go toward the state’s general fund.

Gregory Vasil, CEO of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board, said this is not the first time Massachusetts has made use of state land. Vasil, who used to work in state government, said a similar program existed when Bill Weld was governor.

“If you look at some of our successful projects that are out there, some of our state hospital sites like Northampton [and] Lakeville, those were all state surplus land that were disposed of through that process,” Vasil said. “So there is a track record of putting state land out in the marketplace.”

Vasil said he is optimistic because similar programs have seen success in the past.

“It will potentially allow and make land available to developers and to people in the real estate community that can use that land to create things that we need as a society, whether it’s affordable housing or other types of development,” Vasil said. “It makes all the sense in the world.”

Several residents said they look forward to the economic impact the strategy will bring, but shared varying opinions about how the money should be used.

Marika Galea, 22, of Fenway, said the strategy would bring in revenue in a way that benefits both the state and the property owners.

“I think that’s a really good source of revenue for the state,” she said. “It would be a good, dependable source of revenue for them that goes right back to the people.”

Marika also had a few ideas regarding how the generated revenue could be used.

“I would say really good snow removal and ice [removal] for people,” she said. “And then just improving the homelessness issue I think is a big thing that could be addressed better here.”

Viets Pho, 28, of Allston, said more money could go to the MBTA for improvements.

“That’s been in the news a lot, about how there’s no way to get money to fund the T so if they’re trying to find new ways to help then that’s good,” he said.

Leyna Cameron, 36, of Allston, said other departments and initiatives should be considered instead of transportation.

“I mean it’s an interesting idea about a way for the city to raise money that the City [of Boston] needs,” she said. “I just don’t know if the MBTA is the best place to put it. I mean they definitely need the money, but I feel like we’re just constantly focused on the T and nothing really seems to be getting fixed.”

Olivia Quintana contributed to the reporting of this article.