Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 83 FA C T BO O K / D O I N G B U S I N E S S I N M A I N E I N F R A S T R U C T U R E / D I S T R I B U T I O N Levesque says aviation is "just one piece" of the overall plan — about a third of the acreage, the part of the campus surrounding the airstrip and terminal, is targeted for aviation use. But the plan wasn't going to work without it. Building a commercial airport at the site was quickly rejected when planning began. Portland International Jetport is half an hour away. Instead, Brunswick Executive Airport has grown at the site and a diverse group of aviation-based industries have sprouted up around it. Promotional materials point out that there are more than 62,000 registered general aviation aircraft within 500 miles of Brunswick Landing. "We've still got a ways to go," Levesque says. "We have a lot of large [vacant] hangar spaces." e most critical missing piece, he says, is a method to train avia- tion technicians. MRRA is working with the on-site colleges, Southern Maine Community College and the University of Maine at Augusta, to create that training program on site. " at's a big need," he says. "We need people certifi ed to work on airplanes. Just like pilots, you have to have them." When reuse planning fi rst stated, there were three redevelopment goals, Levesque says. Short term recovery of jobs, reactivating the economy follow- ing the loss of the air base and fi nally, bringing the payroll up to what it was when the military was in town. While Brunswick Landing has more jobs than there were at the base, payroll still hasn't caught up. e pay- roll at the base's height was about $140 million "and we're probably in the $80 million range right now." He says, though, that plans at the site "should get us to that point" in fi ve or six years. He says the community's involve- ment in the planning is one reason the plan has worked. at included numerous public hearings and other community outreach eff orts. "One the really neat things," he says, was the involvement in the early stages of students from area high schools, who were bused to the site and asked to envision the base's future. "We approached it with a lot of trepidation," he says. "Would they take it seriously?" ey did, and the input "blew us away." It not only is some of the foun- dation for the information technology and green energy focus, but also for its name, "Brunswick Landing, Maine's Center for Innovation." e community, those high school- ers who are now in their twenties, and other workers displaced by not only the Navy base closing, but other tradi- tional manufacturing jobs disappear- ing, are now fi lling the jobs Brunswick Landing is bringing. "Most of the people working here already live here," Levesque says. Ford, of the Association of Defense Communities, says that while reusing and maintaining avia- tion infrastructure can be expensive, Brunswick Landing is fi guring it out. "Brunswick has made it work and will have great opportunities moving forward," he says. Ford cites the region's support. "Leadership has been a critical factor," he says. "Not only does it have a great team on the ground, but the support it has received from the state and from its congressional delegation has been instrumental to its success." "Speaking with one voice and hav- ing a common purpose doesn't always happen, so the team supporting Brunswick should be commended," Ford adds. Levesque says the fact the focus has always been drawing from outside of Maine, rather than simply moving jobs from another area of the state. "We wanted to stay away from that," he says. As a consequence, he attends trade shows in places like Dallas, Orlando, Los Angeles. Brunswick, which is home to Bowdoin College and has a lively downtown and available housing, isn't a hard sell. It's located in Maine's population center, convenient to Portland and Boston and with a qual- ity of life Levesque says "is as good as it gets in Maine." "It's a really nice place," he adds, "and that doesn't hurt us." M M , a cor r espondent f o r M a i n e b i z , c a n b e r e a c h e d a t @ . ALLEGIANT • AMERICAN • DELTA • UNITED Before you take off , take a moment to notice what's new at Bangor International Airport, where things just keep getting better and better. You'll love our light-fi lled terminal, modernized service counters, and state-of-the-art baggage handling — all designed to get your journey off to a great start. A better travel experience begins right here. Visit FlyBangor.com. More new nonstops, including: Charlotte, Chicago, Newark and New York's JFK and LaGuardia A Smoother Journey, from Ticket to Takeoff . BGR_MEBiz_FactBook_062817.indd 1 6/28/17 6:11 PM Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been Leadership has been a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at a critical factor [at Brunswick Landing]. — Tom Ford Association of Defense Communities

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