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Meditech Project
FROED Powerpoint - The above images were taken from this powerpoint which goes over the project and its benefits.
Email State Officials - clicking this link will open up your email program and allow you to email the Elected State officials below. If you wish you can extend the email and sign it before sending.
Honorable Deval Patrick
Office of the Governor
Room 280
Boston, MA 02133
ph: 617-725-4005
Constituent.services@state.ma.us
Honorable Tim Murray
Office of the Lt. Governor
Room 280
Boston, MA 02133
ph: 617-725-4005
Constituent.services@state.ma.us
Honorable William Francis Galvin
Secretary of the Commonwealth
Citizen Information Service
One Ashburton Place, Rm 1611
Boston, MA 02108-1512
ph: 617-727-7030
cis@sec.state.ma.us
Honorable Therese Murray
President of the Senate
State House, Suite 332
Boston, MA 02133
ph: 617-722-1500
Therese.Murray@masenate.gov
Honorable Robert A. DeLeo
Speaker of the House
State House, Room 356
Boston, MA 02133
ph: 617-722-2500
Robert.DeLeo@mahouse.gov
Senator Kenneth J. Donnelly
Chair, Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight
D Arlington
State House, Room 413D
Boston, MA 02133
Ph: 617-722-1432
Kenneth.Donnelly@masenate.gov
Representative Peter V. Kocot
Chair, Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight
D Northampton
State House, Room 22
Boston, MA 02133
Ph: 617-722-2140
Peter.Kocot@mahouse.gov
Dear Member of the Fall River Area Chamber of Commerce & Industry,
On Wednesday, October 26, 2011, the Board of Directors of the Fall River Area Chamber of Commerce and Industry voted unanimously to endorse and support Massachusetts Senate Bill 2113 regarding the regulation of the Massachusetts Historical Commission's oversight of properties that are only on the State Historic Register. Passage of this bill will allow for the construction of the Meditech project within the Riverfront Business Park in the Town of Freetown.
Meditech is an internationally recognized company based in Massachusetts. This business success story provides integrated software solutions to meet the information needs of health care organizations worldwide. Having been in business for over 40 years Meditech is one of the top ten firms in Massachusetts employing more than 3,600 people.
Meditech wishes to expand by constructing a second SouthCoast facility not far from its other location on Martine Street in Fall River. That 120,000 square foot facility currently employs over 500 workers. The anticipated expansion project was to be a $65-70 million multi story 180,000 square foot medical records facility constructed within the Riverfront Business Park in Freetown. No government funds or local tax incentives were used or sought for the project. Once the construction is completed the new facility would employ an additional 825 individuals in the SouthCoast region. Keep in mind that Fall River has one of the highest unemployment rates in the state.
The parcel at issue has a long history of commercial, agricultural and industrial use. Public documents confirm that the 138 acre commercial parcel is zoned for industrial use. Records also demonstrate that the private property has never been listed on either the national or state historic registers. For decades commercial crops such as corn and hay were cultivated and harvested on this site. It was also used as commercial dairy farm operation where top soil was repeatedly overturned. In more recent years the parcel was part of a tract of industrial land that had been home to the Algonquin Gasification Plant.
The Algonquin Gasification Plant was a synthetic natural gas processing plant that produced an additive on site which was mixed into natural gas so as to give it an odor making it become more detectable. Photographs from the 1970's and before clearly display a long history of processed natural gas being stored in massive tanks on site that held up to 268,000 barrels each. Ten or more 90,000 gallons propane gas tanks were also submerged throughout the property. Furthermore, underground piping was trenched and laid by Algonquin for the purpose of delivering processed natural gas to communities north of Freetown.
Meditech proposed to only disturb 21 acres, while donating 117 acres to the Trustees of the Reservation for open space preservation. By midsummer, all local and state permitting issues had been satisfactorily addressed. All that remained was an approval from the Massachusetts Historical Commission ("MHC").
To the detriment of 825 jobs the MHC overextended their regulatory authority to include privately held industrial property not listed on the state or federal historic register. Why is MHC holding the line on Meditech when they previously allowed Stop & Shop to construct a 1.3 million square foot distribution center on the 158 acres that abuts the Meditech site? The nature of the contradiction requires explanation.
Equally concerning is the silence from both the MHC and the Office of the Secretary of State. Both state agencies have repeatedly refused to answer the inquiries of business leaders, elected officials and other concerned citizens. Calls from the Chamber have been placed on hold indefinitely on numerous occasions. Such action from state government officials is not defensible. Particularly when the MHC has prevented a Massachusetts business from creating 825 jobs on fully permitted privately held industrial land.
As a last resort, the SouthCoast legislative delegation introduced S2113. This bill clarifies the role of the MHC in a way that will remove the regulatory impediments which have effectively terminated the Meditech project. With so many people looking for employment in the Commonwealth this scenario cannot be repeated.
The Meditech project must be salvaged. For several decades our region and the state have been working toward diversifying the economy. Through the hard work of countless individuals, elected officials, organizations, agencies and educational institutions the life sciences industry is finally thriving within the Commonwealth and the SouthCoast. It has been a difficult and slow transition. The loss of the Meditech project could unravel decades of economic development. That is why the Chamber of Commerce strongly endorses and supports passage of State Senate Bill S2113.
Please add your voice to what has become a statewide effort to allow for the construction of the Meditech project. Send your emails and letters to the Governor, Lt. Governor, Senate President, House Speaker and the Office of the Sec. of State. Phone numbers, email and mailing addresses to the above mentioned elected officials are provided below. The Rodrigues bill to save the Meditech project will be heard before the Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development. The contact information for both leaders of the joint committees has also been made available. Thank you in advance for any and all efforts made to sustain this vital economic project.
Yours very truly,
 Jason M. Rua Chair of the Board |  Robert A. Mellion, Esq. President and CEO |
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