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The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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DEVAL L. PATRICK GOVERNOR
TIMOTHY P. MURRAY LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR |
Executive Department State House · Boston 02133 (617) 725-4000 |
Date, 2007.
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives:
Pursuant to Article LVI, as amended by Article XC, Section 3 of the Amendments to the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, I am returning to you for amendment House Bill No. 4185, “An Act Authorizing the Conveyance of Certain Parcels of Land in the City of Boston.”
This bill authorizes Department of Conservation and Recreation (“DCR”) land in Dorchester, protected by Article 97 of the Constitution, to Expressway Motors along Morrissey Boulevard for parking purposes. For several years DCR, with significant community involvement, has been developing a parkway restoration project to improve the area’s safety, traffic and landscaping needs. To ensure that DCR can achieve its long-range plan, leasing the land to Expressway Motors with ownership remaining in DCR, rather than an outright conveyance, will accomplish the objective of this legislation while preserving the community’s need and interest in the area in the future. Under the Article 97, the Commonwealth must protect and preserve its green spaces, and the no net loss policy requires that the Commonwealth and municipalities do not give up public open spaces without a guaranty that they are receiving equivalent land or compensation to replace the “lost” Article 97 land. As drafted this legislation does not ensure that Commonwealth is receiving land equal in value to the land it is losing.
I, therefore, recommend that House Bill No. 4185 be amended by striking the bill in its entirety and inserting in place thereof the following text:-
SECTION 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 40E and 40J of Chapter 7 of the General Laws or any other general or special law to the contrary, the commissioner of the division of capital asset management and maintenance, in consultation with the commissioner of the department of conservation and recreation, may lease, for a term not to exceed thirty years, certain parcels of state-owned land in the city of Boston to Expressway Motors LLC. Any lease shall be subject to such additional terms and conditions as the commissioner of capital asset management and maintenance in consultation with the commissioner of conservation and recreation may prescribe, to ensure that environmental impacts associated with the use of the parcels are addressed and that the lease results in a net benefit to the park system. Said parcels are located on William T. Morrissey Boulevard and are shown as 11,219 square feet more or less and 1,925 square feet more or less on a plan of land dated July 25, 2005, and drawn by Allen & Major Associates, Inc; further provided, however, that the lease shall contain a restriction that the parcels shall be used only for parking purposes, and that said department may terminate the lease as to all or a portion of the parcels in the event the department determines that all or a portion of the land is needed for any public construction project associated with the improvement of Morrissey Boulevard. The exact boundaries of the parcels to be leased shall be determined by the commissioner of the division of capital asset management and maintenance in consultation with the commissioner of the department of conservation and recreation after completion of a survey. The consideration for said lease shall be the net present value of the full and fair market value of the lease of said parcels as determined by the commissioner of the division of capital asset management and maintenance pursuant to 1 or more independent professional appraisals to be used in accordance with section 3.
SECTION 2. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the inspector general shall review and approve the appraisal required pursuant to Section 1. The appraisal shall be prepared in accordance with usual and customary professional appraisal practices by a qualified appraiser commissioned by the commissioner of said division. For the purposes of this appraisal, the full and fair market value of the area to be leased shall be calculated with regard to its full development potential as assembled with other lands owned or otherwise controlled by the Expressway Motors LLC. The inspector general shall prepare a report of his review of the methodology utilized for the appraisal and shall file the report with the commissioner of the division of capital asset management and maintenance, the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on bonding, capital expenditures and state assets. The commissioner of the division of capital asset management and maintenance shall, 30 days before the execution of any lease authorized by this act, or any subsequent amendment thereto, submit the proposed conveyance or amendment and a report thereon to the inspector general for his review and comment. The inspector general shall issue his review and comment within 15 days of receipt of the proposed lease or amendment. The commissioner shall submit the proposed lease or amendment, and the reports and the comments of the inspector general, if any, to the house and senate committees on ways and means and the joint committee on bonding, capital expenditures and state assets at least 15 days before execution of the lease.
SECTION 3. To ensure a no-net-loss of lands protected for conservation purposes in the commonwealth, the lease of the parcel may occur only if the grantee has mitigated the impact and conveyed, or caused to be conveyed, to the commonwealth land or an interest in land to be held by said department for said conservation purposes. Said land or interest in land shall be of greater value than as determined in accordance with section 2 and must be acceptable to the department of conservation and recreation, in its discretion.
SECTION 4. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, Expressway Motors, LLC, shall be responsible for all costs and expenses, including but not limited to, costs associated with any engineering, surveys, appraisals, and deed preparation related to the lease authorized pursuant to this act as such costs may be determined by the commissioner of the division of capital asset management and maintenance and related to the conveyance required under section 3 as such costs may be determined by the commissioner of conservation and recreation.
Respectfully submitted,
TIMOTHY P. MURRAY,
Acting Governor.