Team Infidel
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Philadelphia Inquirer
April 12, 2008 He'd convert Willow Grove Naval Air Station into a base for domestic-security operations and agencies.
By Derrick Nunnally, Inquirer Staff Writer
The entire footprint of the closing Willow Grove Naval Air Station will be used for a new multi-agency emergency and defense hub if Gov. Rendell gets his way.
Although Rendell said the conversion would come with strict limits for air traffic - and a ban on regularly scheduled commercial flights - residents of Horsham, the township surrounding the Willow Grove base, worried that the new installation would become a burden.
Rendell sent a letter to Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter yesterday formally asking to use "all lands and facilities" at the 1,100-acre Naval Air Station for the new facility. He said the decision will "save the base as an important government installation" after a failed fight to reverse the Defense Department's 2005 recommendation to close Willow Grove.
"Abandoning this installation means that its tremendous capabilities would be lost forever," Rendell said in a statement.
Under Rendell's plans, the base's buildings, airstrip and grounds would be used to house Commonwealth and federal agencies, along with other users with related duties. The base is planned as a nexus point for the Northeast Corridor's defense, homeland security and emergency preparedness needs, with each agency paying rent to cover expenses.
Horsham Township leaders sent a letter to Rendell last week outlining concerns about the proposed facility, focusing on whether increased use of the area will overwhelm the township's roads, utilities and other infrastructure, but Rendell did not respond.
Horsham Township manager Michael J. McGee said yesterday that he was "disappointed, but not surprised" to learn Rendell had chosen the most robust of three options a consultant had provided for the Willow Grove base. Both the other options called for the Commonwealth to use less of the base's footprint.
"We continue to have our original concerns," McGee said. "How many associated users will be there? And who are they? I guess that only the future will tell."
The Commonwealth's next move is obtaining by early summer a formal written agreement with the Defense Department for the base's conversion. Rendell wrote to Winter that he would like to have a meeting between Commonwealth and Navy staff within 30 days to map out the process, which would result in Pennsylvania operating the installation. It would remain the property of the Defense Department.
The conversion is to happen in phases, according to Rendell's plan. Although the Navy isn't due to leave the base until fall 2011, Rendell wrote to Winter that the Commonwealth will be ready to take partial control of the facility by early 2009.
State Rep. Rick Taylor (D., Montgomery) said he approved of Rendell's plans but added that several quality-of-life concerns remain to be addressed.
"Given the alternatives of turning Willow Grove into a homeland security hub or allowing for suburban sprawl, the governor's announcement reflects the best choice for the quality of life for the citizens of Horsham," Taylor said in a statement.
April 12, 2008 He'd convert Willow Grove Naval Air Station into a base for domestic-security operations and agencies.
By Derrick Nunnally, Inquirer Staff Writer
The entire footprint of the closing Willow Grove Naval Air Station will be used for a new multi-agency emergency and defense hub if Gov. Rendell gets his way.
Although Rendell said the conversion would come with strict limits for air traffic - and a ban on regularly scheduled commercial flights - residents of Horsham, the township surrounding the Willow Grove base, worried that the new installation would become a burden.
Rendell sent a letter to Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter yesterday formally asking to use "all lands and facilities" at the 1,100-acre Naval Air Station for the new facility. He said the decision will "save the base as an important government installation" after a failed fight to reverse the Defense Department's 2005 recommendation to close Willow Grove.
"Abandoning this installation means that its tremendous capabilities would be lost forever," Rendell said in a statement.
Under Rendell's plans, the base's buildings, airstrip and grounds would be used to house Commonwealth and federal agencies, along with other users with related duties. The base is planned as a nexus point for the Northeast Corridor's defense, homeland security and emergency preparedness needs, with each agency paying rent to cover expenses.
Horsham Township leaders sent a letter to Rendell last week outlining concerns about the proposed facility, focusing on whether increased use of the area will overwhelm the township's roads, utilities and other infrastructure, but Rendell did not respond.
Horsham Township manager Michael J. McGee said yesterday that he was "disappointed, but not surprised" to learn Rendell had chosen the most robust of three options a consultant had provided for the Willow Grove base. Both the other options called for the Commonwealth to use less of the base's footprint.
"We continue to have our original concerns," McGee said. "How many associated users will be there? And who are they? I guess that only the future will tell."
The Commonwealth's next move is obtaining by early summer a formal written agreement with the Defense Department for the base's conversion. Rendell wrote to Winter that he would like to have a meeting between Commonwealth and Navy staff within 30 days to map out the process, which would result in Pennsylvania operating the installation. It would remain the property of the Defense Department.
The conversion is to happen in phases, according to Rendell's plan. Although the Navy isn't due to leave the base until fall 2011, Rendell wrote to Winter that the Commonwealth will be ready to take partial control of the facility by early 2009.
State Rep. Rick Taylor (D., Montgomery) said he approved of Rendell's plans but added that several quality-of-life concerns remain to be addressed.
"Given the alternatives of turning Willow Grove into a homeland security hub or allowing for suburban sprawl, the governor's announcement reflects the best choice for the quality of life for the citizens of Horsham," Taylor said in a statement.