BRUNSWICK — Revitalization efforts at the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority continued to surpass expectations in 2018, according to Executive Director Steve Levesque, as they reached 120 business between Brunswick Landing and Topsham Business Park, with a total of 1,800 full- and part-time employees between them.
The Redevelopment Authority oversees the re-purposing of the former Naval base that closed in 2011 and took thousands of jobs out of Brunswick. Over the past several years, the redevelopment authority has worked to rebuild much of the economy, and last year alone added about 15 new businesses and more than 300 jobs. Levesque estimates that by this time next year, they will have “well over 2,000” employees.
Another measurement of the redevelopment’s success is when the economic impact surpasses that of the base when it was operational, he said. At the base’s peak, payroll was about $130 million annually, he said. The redevelopment authority’s payroll is at about $100 million for fewer than 2,000 people. That, according to Levesque, shows that while there are fewer people on the property today, the jobs are better paying — the average wage is in excess of $50,000, he said. He expects it will not take more than another four years at most to essentially “break even.”
Brunswick Executive Airport
While Levesque said the redevelopment authority continues to hear from businesses interested in coming in and many of the existing spaces are expanding– “We’re running out of buildings,” he said– not all the growth has been swift.
There is still quite a bit of space available in the large hangars at Brunswick Executive Airport. The “world-class aviation facility” is in the midst of a 10-year, $40 million investment program with the Federal Aviation Administration, but as of last fall, about one-third of the airport’s 650,000 square feet remained unused.
“We’re getting there, we have a number of prospects,” Levesque said Wednesday. Despite the empty space, business at the airport continues to increase: 2018 saw a 15.5 percent increase from 2017, an airshow year, with more than 21,000 air operations. The next project in the pipeline for the airport is an aviation technician school to assist the growing business in Brunswick, which Levesque has said he hopes will be “totally operational” by August. The school conversations are still in the works, but the redevelopment authority intends to be a partner in building the school as opposed to bringing one in. The school would “meet the needs of the existing and future aviation business community in Maine,” which currently does not have such a school, he said earlier.
Only one or two businesses left TechPlace this year. Frosty’s Donuts, for example, consolidated facilities, but according to Levesque, as an area with many startup companies, some do not make as much money as they hoped or for whatever reason, do not see success, and close their doors.
Goals for 2019
There are still nearly 400 acres still held by the Navy, but PFCs and other contaminants continue to “substantially delay” the process, Levesque wrote in the director’s report for Wednesday night’s board meeting. The remaining property will not be given over until it is deemed environmentally sound, but full property transfer may occur this year, he said, which would bring the redevelopment authority up to 2,100 acres of the 3,100 of the former base. Roughly a quarter of that land is owned by the town of Brunswick.
Several items identified in the former base’s reuse master plan kicked off in 2018, like Cook’s Corner connector road, currently under construction and expected to be open this summer. The trail system is also growing with the hopes that the Brunswick Topsham Land Trust, which owns a portion of the land of the east side of the campus, will manage the trails.
There are roughly 250 housing units being either converted or constructed, which will hopefully go on the market in 2020. Additionally, they recently developed a purchase and sale agreement for a shelter and clinic with Midcoast Humane.
As the new year gets underway, Levesque said he is excited about how busy it has been and that while sustainability is always a focal point, the organization is in a good financial position.
“We’re just gonna keep on going,” he said.
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