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To address the state's housing shortage, Massachusetts officials are looking at a Cape Cod military base for answers.
MassDevelopment issued a request for proposals for a consultant to identify areas for development on a 7,000-acre site at Joint Base Cape Cod, according to a press release.
The military base is in parts of Bourne, Falmouth, Mashpee and Sandwich.
The consultant would conduct a two-year planning process and master plan for what the base calls its "Cantonment Area," a 7,000-acre portion of the 22,000-acre base. Responses to the RFP are due by Feb. 7.
The goals of the master plan are to increase the efficiency of the military base and to add housing and other development on surplus property to help address the region's housing shortage and grow the local economy, the release says.
“Our military installations are major economic drivers across Massachusetts, bringing jobs and investments into our state,” Massachusetts Secretary of Economic Development Yvonne Hao said in a release. “In partnership with the Adjutant General and Joint Base Cape Cod, MassDevelopment will facilitate the development of a master plan that optimizes the use of this critical state asset and paves the way for future housing development and job creation on the site.”
The 22,000-acre Joint Base Cape Cod is the largest military training installation in New England, according to the release. It is home to the Massachusetts Army National Guard, Massachusetts Air National Guard, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Space Force units.
The master plan builds on MassDevelopment's partnership with JBCC in 2013 that created the JBCC Master Coordination Plan. The coordination plan identified near- and long-term actions on the military base, including housing.
This isn't the first time the state has looked to former and current military bases for housing support.
In October, the state allocated $300K to planning a 4,400-acre site at Fort Devens, The Boston Globe reported. The funds would be used to hire a consultant to plan growth on the site and pave the way for new housing.
In 2023, Brookfield Properties and New England Development proposed a big mixed-use project, including 3,855 residential units, at a former 1,450-acre naval air station in South Weymouth, Boston.com reported.
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