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An Act relative to the growth of the commercial cruise ship industry in the designated port area of the South Boston waterfront.
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Whereas, the deferred operation of this act would tend to defeat its purpose, which is to forthwith authorize, but not mandate, certain exemptions from regulatory and statutory provisions to permit the construction and use of essential public infrastructure, therefore it is hereby declared to be an emergency law, necessary for the immediate preservation of the public convenience;
Be it enacted by the Senate and House
of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the
same, as follows:
SECTION 1. Whereas, the operation, maintenance, improvement, and development of tidelands subject to public trust rights to serve maritime commerce in Boston Harbor is a proper public purpose that protects and promotes the public’s interests in such tidelands; and
Whereas, the proposed improvement and expansion of the public cruise terminal facility known as the Black Falcon Cruise Terminal and associated property on certain tidelands described herein will facilitate commercial passenger vessel operations, and the inclusion on such tidelands of integrated commercial uses will support and promote expansion of the public cruise terminal facility and the public infrastructure facility improvements in the South Boston Marine Industrial Park; and
Whereas, such improvements and expansion will provide substantial public benefits to the Commonwealth, including regional economic benefit resulting from the expansion of the public cruise terminal facility, the expansion of tourism and the employment and revenues associated therewith, and the increase of the region’s capacity as both a home port and port of call, and such substantial benefits to the public will, subject to the determination of the Secretary of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs as specified below, provide greater benefit than detriment to the rights of the public in said lands;
Subject to the provisions of Section 2 herein, and notwithstanding the provisions of Chapter 91 of the General Laws or any other general or special law, rule or regulation or license to the contrary, no waterways license or other approvals, agreements or consents required pursuant to said Chapter 91, or such rules, regulations or licenses under Chapter 91, shall be required for the Project defined in Section 2 on or above that certain land and water described herein owned, leased or licensed by the Massachusetts Port Authority, whether leased, subleased or licensed by said Authority to others, located in the South Boston Marine Industrial Park and on adjacent land of said Authority in the City of Boston, specifically comprising such land in said Marine Industrial Park and the Authority’s Black Falcon Cruise Terminal property bounded as follows: beginning at a point located at the intersection of the center of Drydock Avenue and the center of Design Center Place, thence easterly by the centerline of said Drydock Avenue, 1,943.18 feet, thence southerly approximately 496 feet to a line defined by the most outboard Black Falcon Pier structural or fender element, thence westerly by said line approximately 1943 feet to the extended centerline of Design Center Place, thence northerly approximately 496 feet by said line to the point of the beginning, containing approximately 22.1 acres. Further, the terms and conditions of the License for the Boston Marine Industrial Park, License Number 10233, shall not apply to the properties described above during the term of said Authority’s ownership, lease or license thereof.
Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, with regard to the existing master Chapter 91 License (as amended) for the South Boston Marine Industrial Park, License Number 10233, solely for the purpose of calculating any percentages thereunder, the exemption described herein shall not operate to reduce the total land use figures in the Buildout Matrix included within said License, so that such calculations shall be made as if the areas removed hereunder were still included and being used for the purposes permitted in the Buildout Matrix.
Further, with regard to the Department of Environmental Protection Chapter 91 License for the South Boston Transitway (Silver Line) the exemptions described herein shall not operate to decrease the public benefits provided by the Silver Line project in terms of function, character, duration, patronage or other relevant parameters.
Section 2. The exemptions from the applicability of Chapter 91 of the General Laws provided in Section 1 hereof shall be effective only if the Secretary of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (the Secretary) makes the following findings in his independent discretion, concurrent with the issuance of the certificate by the Secretary that any environmental notification form or environmental impact report prepared for such public cruise terminal, integrated commercial office and retail structures and uses, and associated parking facilities (hereinafter the Project) complies with the provisions of sections 62 through 62I of Chapter 30 of the General Laws (MEPA):
(a) the Project will serve a proper public purpose and provide a greater public benefit than public detriment to the rights of the public in those Commonwealth Tidelands, taking into account, among other things, the economic and operational benefits to the Port of Boston, and
(b) the Project provides benefits necessary to compensate the public for the use of Commonwealth Tidelands for the non-water-dependent portions of the Project, taking into account, among other things, the economic and operational benefits to the Port of Boston. The Authority shall include in its section 61 findings for the Project the benefits identified by the Secretary, and the Secretary may require that these benefits be provided as a condition of the development and operation of the Project.
Further, the exemptions provided herein shall not be construed to exempt from chapter 91 licensing any use or structure other than the Project. If there is a substantial change in a use or structure associated with the Project after the MEPA certificate is issued, such change in such use or structure shall be exempt from chapter 91 licensing only if a Notice of Project change is filed under MEPA and the Secretary makes a finding that such substantial change in use or structure meets the requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of this Section.
Further, the exemptions provided herein shall terminate as to any portion of the area described above which is no longer owned, leased or licensed by the Authority, and shall in any event expire if the improvements to the cruise terminal are not completed within five years of the effective date of the exemption hereby authorized, or the Secretary, for good cause shown, extends the construction period for one or more one-year periods. Notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph, the exemptions provided herein shall expire no later than December 31, 2014.
Section 3. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the contrary, the Massachusetts Port Authority and its agents and designees may utilize alternative methods for the procurement of design and construction services for the construction, reconstruction, uses or operation of any building, structure, improvement, associated public work and infrastructure or other facilities on the property described in Section 1 above without such procurement being subject to the competitive bid processes set forth in sections 38 ˝ to 38O, inclusive, of chapter 7 of the General Laws, section 39M of chapter 30 of the General Laws, sections 44A to 44M, inclusive, of chapter 149 of the General Laws, and sections 1 to 21, inclusive, of chapter 149A, provided however, such procurement shall be subject to the provisions of sections 26 to 27F, inclusive, of Chapter 149 of the General Laws.. The foregoing exemptions from the referenced provisions of Chapters 7, 30, 149 and 149A of the General Laws shall commence upon the effective date of this act, and remain in effect until the date five years following the effective date of the exemption authorized by Section 2 above.
Section 4. Nothing in this act shall be construed to alter or limit the Massachusetts Port Authority’s statutory or regulatory exemptions from the provisions of Chapter 91 of the General Laws.