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SANDWICH, Mass. --Cape Cod's Otis Air National Guard Base, a hub in the nation's anti-terror network which launched fighters during the Sept. 11 attacks, would close under a reorganization of the nation's military bases unveiled Friday by the Pentagon.
But in a major victory for the state's political leaders, Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford not only will stay open, but will gain more than 1,000 jobs. And the Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick will remain open.
The sprawling Westover Joint Air Reserve Base in Chicopee also benefits under the Pentagon proposal, along with Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield. An Army Reserve training center in Devens will close, as will a smaller Army Reserve facility at Westover and a Navy shipyard in Boston.
In all, the state stands to gain 491 military and civilian jobs at its bases -- with the biggest gains at Hanscom.
The biggest losses would be at Otis, which employs more than 500 people, many of them civilians, making it one of the largest employers on the Cape.
"They live here, they shop here," said Rob Peterson, manager of the Wallace Food Mart in Sandwich, near the base entrance. "From car washes to convenience stores, this will be felt."
Otis is located on the 22,000-acre Massachusetts Military Reservation in Sandwich, Mashpee, Falmouth and Bourne. Home to the 102nd Fighter Wing, its F-15 Eagles are on continuous alert to protect the Northeast from terrorist attacks and drug smuggling.
Fighter jets from Otis were the first to arrive in New York on Sept. 11, 2001, when two planes were hijacked from Boston's Logan International Airport and crashed into the World Trade Center in New York.
"Otis is the number one base for homeland defense on the entire East Coast," Sen. John Kerry said. "It simply makes no sense to close Otis in the post 9/11 world."
Sandwich Chamber of Commerce president David Curtis said he hopes the military jobs can be replaced by private-sector employers, citing the development in nearby communities after the Army closed Fort Devens in central Massachusetts in the early 1990s.
"Long term, actually, I think the economic development would more than offset the job loss, through job creation, through additional and very attractive affordable housing being made available," he said.
"It's prime acreage no matter how you look at it," agreed Tom Otto, of Marstons Mills, over lunch Friday at Peterson's sandwich shop in Sandwich.
The base closing recommendations by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will be submitted to the independent Base Realignment and Closure Commission, which will hold hearings and make a final recommendation to President Bush by Sept. 8.
Otis' commander, Col. Paul Worcester, said he would remind members of the 102nd that the Pentagon's recommendations are subject to revision and they must stay focused on their mission.
"This is the Department of Defense's initial hack at what they think the Department of Defense ought to look like," he said. "Our job isn't going away tonight, tomorrow, next week."
Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce chief executive Wendy Northcross said her group will work to have the recommendation reversed.
"We still have an opportunity to lobby the government to try and save the base," she said.
As part of their effort to spare Otis from closing, Gov. Mitt Romney and members of Congress have urged federal officials to establish a homeland security training center there.
"The job ahead is to convince the base closing commission of the value of keeping Otis open," said Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom.
The recommendation to close Otis was the worst news of the day for Massachusetts, which otherwise fared well in the base realignment plan.
Members of Congress and state and local officials had lobbied hard to keep Hanscom from closing, proposing a $410 million expansion in a bid to make it indispensable to the military.
The base, located amid Boston's northwestern suburbs, employs about 30,000 people and is a leading research and development center for cutting-edge military technology. Under the Pentagon's proposal, operations from three other Air Force bases would be transferred to Hanscom, resulting in a gain of about 1,100 jobs.
"It's high tech, and that's where Hanscom has its full potential," said U.S. Rep. Martin Meehan, D-Mass.
Natick Labs develops and tests food and clothing for the troops, as well as other equipment, shelter and aerial delivery systems. It employs about 2,000 people, and the realignment would result in the loss of just 19 jobs.
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy called the facility "the rock of our military."
Westover, at 2,500 acres the nation's largest Air Force Reserve base, would see a net gain of 80 jobs under the Pentagon proposal. Col. Wade Farris, commander of the 439th Airlift Wing at Westover, said he felt "relief, a lot of relief" at the news.
But in a major victory for the state's political leaders, Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford not only will stay open, but will gain more than 1,000 jobs. And the Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick will remain open.
The sprawling Westover Joint Air Reserve Base in Chicopee also benefits under the Pentagon proposal, along with Barnes Air National Guard Base in Westfield. An Army Reserve training center in Devens will close, as will a smaller Army Reserve facility at Westover and a Navy shipyard in Boston.
In all, the state stands to gain 491 military and civilian jobs at its bases -- with the biggest gains at Hanscom.
The biggest losses would be at Otis, which employs more than 500 people, many of them civilians, making it one of the largest employers on the Cape.
"They live here, they shop here," said Rob Peterson, manager of the Wallace Food Mart in Sandwich, near the base entrance. "From car washes to convenience stores, this will be felt."
Otis is located on the 22,000-acre Massachusetts Military Reservation in Sandwich, Mashpee, Falmouth and Bourne. Home to the 102nd Fighter Wing, its F-15 Eagles are on continuous alert to protect the Northeast from terrorist attacks and drug smuggling.
Fighter jets from Otis were the first to arrive in New York on Sept. 11, 2001, when two planes were hijacked from Boston's Logan International Airport and crashed into the World Trade Center in New York.
"Otis is the number one base for homeland defense on the entire East Coast," Sen. John Kerry said. "It simply makes no sense to close Otis in the post 9/11 world."
Sandwich Chamber of Commerce president David Curtis said he hopes the military jobs can be replaced by private-sector employers, citing the development in nearby communities after the Army closed Fort Devens in central Massachusetts in the early 1990s.
"Long term, actually, I think the economic development would more than offset the job loss, through job creation, through additional and very attractive affordable housing being made available," he said.
"It's prime acreage no matter how you look at it," agreed Tom Otto, of Marstons Mills, over lunch Friday at Peterson's sandwich shop in Sandwich.
The base closing recommendations by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will be submitted to the independent Base Realignment and Closure Commission, which will hold hearings and make a final recommendation to President Bush by Sept. 8.
Otis' commander, Col. Paul Worcester, said he would remind members of the 102nd that the Pentagon's recommendations are subject to revision and they must stay focused on their mission.
"This is the Department of Defense's initial hack at what they think the Department of Defense ought to look like," he said. "Our job isn't going away tonight, tomorrow, next week."
Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce chief executive Wendy Northcross said her group will work to have the recommendation reversed.
"We still have an opportunity to lobby the government to try and save the base," she said.
As part of their effort to spare Otis from closing, Gov. Mitt Romney and members of Congress have urged federal officials to establish a homeland security training center there.
"The job ahead is to convince the base closing commission of the value of keeping Otis open," said Romney spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom.
The recommendation to close Otis was the worst news of the day for Massachusetts, which otherwise fared well in the base realignment plan.
Members of Congress and state and local officials had lobbied hard to keep Hanscom from closing, proposing a $410 million expansion in a bid to make it indispensable to the military.
The base, located amid Boston's northwestern suburbs, employs about 30,000 people and is a leading research and development center for cutting-edge military technology. Under the Pentagon's proposal, operations from three other Air Force bases would be transferred to Hanscom, resulting in a gain of about 1,100 jobs.
"It's high tech, and that's where Hanscom has its full potential," said U.S. Rep. Martin Meehan, D-Mass.
Natick Labs develops and tests food and clothing for the troops, as well as other equipment, shelter and aerial delivery systems. It employs about 2,000 people, and the realignment would result in the loss of just 19 jobs.
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy called the facility "the rock of our military."
Westover, at 2,500 acres the nation's largest Air Force Reserve base, would see a net gain of 80 jobs under the Pentagon proposal. Col. Wade Farris, commander of the 439th Airlift Wing at Westover, said he felt "relief, a lot of relief" at the news.
