Deal clears the way to redevelop brownfield in Everett, Mass. AG Campbell says

May 31 | John L. Micek

A 100-acre brownfield site in Everett formerly owned by petro-titan Exxon Mobil could one day be the site of a revitalized district that includes affordable housing; retail, clean energy, warehouse, and office space, and a hotel, under the terms of an agreement announced Friday by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea J. Campbell’s office.

The deal between the state and Everett Landco, LLC, which acquired the site from Exxon Mobil in January, insulates the company from liability in exchange for its commitment to clean up, remediate, and redevelop the property.

It’s the largest such agreement ever inked by the Attorney General’s office.

“Brownfields covenants are powerful tools that provide developers and municipalities with liability protection allowing them to clean up contaminated property and subsequently develop them for community benefit,” Campbell said in a statement. “In Everett, this remediation and redevelopment project will create significant economic development, housing, and a healthier community.”

The former Exxon Mobil parcels in Everett’s Lower Broadway Economic Development District include a deep-water terminal on the Mystic River and two former tank sites close to Routes 16 and 99; the MBTA’s commuter rail, and the Encore casino, according to a story published on the New England Real Estate Journal’s website.

The partnership that acquired the land is a joint venture between The Davis Companies, a Boston-based real estate management firm, and Global Partners LP, an energy firm based in Waltham.

The multi-year remediation project “will unlock a generational opportunity to transform this neighborhood for the benefit of Everett and the region,” Michael Cantalupa, Davis’ chief development officer, said.

Speaking to the New England Real Estate Journal in January, Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria said the suburban Boston community has been working for more than a decade to “make Lower Broadway a jewel for Everett and an entrance to the city that makes us all proud.

“We look forward to working with this venture to remediate and redevelop the former Exxon site to advance this transformation, [to] and bring clean energy and green tech jobs to our city,” DeMaria said. “Within another 10 years, Lower Broadway will be of even greater benefit to all our residents and the broader community.”

State Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper called the deal a “win-win” for the state’s economy and its environment. Projects such as the one announced Friday “provide housing, jobs, tax revenue, and importantly, a cleaner, healthier community,” Tepper said.

The announcement also comes as state and local officials in Everett pursue legislative authorization of a bill that could clear the way for a soccer-specific stadium for the New England Revolution of Major League Soccer, that also would sit along the banks of the Mystic River.

Earlier this month, enabling legislation sponsored by Sen. Sal N. DiDomenico, D-Middlesex/Suffolk cleared a key committee hurdle on Beacon Hill, MassLive previously reported.

The Kraft Group, which owns both the Revs and the New England Patriots, of the National Football League, are behind the roughly $500 million push to bring a soccer-specific stadium to Everett.

DiDomenico told State House News Service that he’s looking forward to “getting everything going” on the proposal, which was the subject of a hearing last month.

Despite moving down the field, the bill still isn’t across the goal line.

A spokesperson for Senate Ways & Means Committee Chairperson Michael Rodriques, D-1st Bristol/Plymouth, said there’s no immediate timeline for a vote on the bill.

“The bill is currently being reviewed by Senate Ways and Means staff, but as the committee’s top priority is processing the expected 1,000-plus amendments next week and then preparing for the FY25 budget debate the following week, there’s no timeline currently for further action on this legislation,” Rodrigues’ spokesman, Sean Fitzgerald, said in a statement.