Military Task Force figure out options for the $177M bond bill WESTFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Local and state officials met Monday evening with Westfield resident’s business owners at Westfield North Middle School. This is the 1st of 6 information sessions being held around the state. The Massachusetts Military Task Force wants to find out how the state can best utilize the Military Bond Bill that was signed into law less than two months ago. The bond bill gives Governor Deval Patrick and future governors an option to spend up to $177 million of state money on projects that could benefit a military base here in Massachusetts and its surrounding communities. According to 104th Vice Commander Colonel Kenneth Lambrich, “It’s a close knit family. The folks at the base that are airmen on the base, they live and grew up here in this community. For the vast majority of them, they are the community.” The Task Force already spent about $10 million on Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield. The 9,000 foot runway was resurfaced to better accommodate F-15 Fighter Jets and other private airplanes that land there. Going forward, the Task Force is looking for similar projects. Military Task Force Executive Director Adam Freudberg told 22News, “It’s a very important project. It creates jobs, construction jobs.It helps with the F-15′s, Gulf Stream. 87% of the planes that land here are not military.” On 22News at 11:00 p.m., reporter Yoojin Cho will have a Live Report on how Westfield residents feel about the base’s impact on the local economy.
Posted on: Tue, 13 May 2014 00:13:58 +0000
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