Huge Mass. Land Sale

The Boston Globe reports on a big land sale by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority:

The MBTA is unloading surplus property at a record rate, with about $95 million in land sold, put under contract to be sold, or leased long term in the past two years and $29.5 million more under negotiation or being prepared for sale or lease, T officials said yesterday.


The financially strapped T brought in $19.5 million from real estate sales, mostly to private developers, in the fiscal year that ended June 30, up from $5.4 million a decade ago. The agency could quadruple its fiscal 2005 real estate income over the next two years if all the planned deals happen, officials said.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority is the second-largest landholder in the Commonwealth, behind only the state. It holds about 6,500 acres of property, equal to about 1 1/2 times the land area of Cambridge. Much of the land is unused property near T stations and other facilities.

The T is also trying to pay off some of its $4.9 billion in debt, the most of any transit agency in the country. At the same time, the T is facing a budget deficit caused by shortfalls in state sales tax, a portion of which goes to the T, plus declines in advertising revenue, increases in fuel costs, and falling ridership. The $340 million in payments on that debt in fiscal 2005 exceeded the $319 million it collected from passengers.

Those who say they aren't making any more land think again.When many of these municpalities will face budget problems in the coming decade many parcels of land will wind up in private sector hands.Land sales will pay for some of the pension obligations.All you real estate speculators take notice.