The Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority launched its search for a new executive director this week, nearly a month after its former director resigned in the wake of a disastrous chemical spill that the entity is on the hook for.
The MRRA Board of Trustees announced Thursday it was seeking a new leader for the entity charged with redeveloping the former Brunswick Naval Air Station, now known as Brunswick Landing. The chairperson of its board, Herman “Nick” Nichols, said that that “new opportunities and challenges” await the next leader for the authority, noting that MRRA needs a qualified candidate to help guide Brunswick Landing “in an environmentally responsible and safe manner.”
“This is a critically important position for the Midcoast region, the state and the country in the continued redevelopment and stewardship of the former Naval Air Station,” Nichols said.
The search comes nearly three months after an airport hangar that MRRA operates spilled 1,450 gallons of a toxic firefighting foam concentrate mixed with 50,000 gallons of water. The aftermath has entailed a massive remediation effort as well as public outrage and concern for MRRA’s handling of its response to the spill.
Kristine Logan, the former executive director, resigned mid-October, one month after residents and local leaders called for her to step down in the wake of revelations that the hangar fire suppression system was flagged deficient over a year prior to the incident.
In a press conference three days after the spill, which happened Aug. 19, Logan had said that the inspection report for the hangar was clean when pressed by reporters, though she noted that the last inspection done was in 2023.
Not long after Hangar 4 inspection reports came to light, MRRA released documents showing that Hangars 5 and 6 at the airport were also overdue for inspection and had been flagged as deficient. These hangars contain toxic firefighting foam as well.
“After much reflection, I’ve come to the difficult decision that my first duty is to ensure this good work goes on, unimpeded by outside politics and the political agendas of others,” Logan said in a statement after the news of her resignation broke. “For that reason, I’ve decided to remove myself as a focal point.”
The authority, which was established in 2007 by the Maine state Legislature, is tasked with redeveloping the former Naval Air Station as well as the Topsham Annex that closed in 2011. Its board is appointed by the governor’s office and confirmed by the Maine Senate.
The authority said that its mission is to transition or redevelop old base property for civilian use, to create jobs and engage the private sector. In its guiding principles, it also said that it aims to be “good stewards of the land and environment.”
With the search for a new leader underway, MRRA has contracted Steve Levesque, its first executive director who predated Logan, to help keep things running on the Landing, which is home to 150 businesses and over 2,800 employees.
An advisory committee made up of MRRA directors, a Brunswick town official, a business person on the Landing, a member of MRRA staff and a member of the public will lead the search. MRRA’s board hopes to have a new executive director in place by March 2025 if not earlier.
The job description can be found at brunswicklanding.us. Candidates can apply by submitting a letter of interest and a resume to the search committee at info@MRRA.us by Dec. 15.