Post-BRAC Renewal: Adaptive Reuse on the Southern Plains

From 1988 to 2005, the U.S. Department of Defense’s (DOD) Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) program reshaped, streamlined, and modernized the extensive DOD network of military installations across the country. In achieving this goal, troop realignment and base closures had serious economic implications for the local communities that supported the affected installations. While DOD took responsibility for the contamination and hazard mitigation on the closed military installation sites, communities were often left with no resources to redevelop or reuse the closed sites.

Key lessons can be learned from how Economic Development Districts (EDDs) have convened, adapted, and reacted to BRAC closure actions in their communities and local military installations. This case study will feature South Plains Association of Governments (SPAG) in west Texas and their valuable work redeveloping Reese Air Force Base outside of Lubbock, TX. Lessons learned from this SPAG case study are widely applicable across the economic development space. Just as manufacturing facilities, universities, coal-fired power plants, or nuclear power plants are key economic drivers and employers in regions, military installations can be the bellwether for regional economic prosperity. As the installation goes, so goes the region, emphasizing the importance of long-term economic development and resilience planning done through the Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS).

REDEVELOPMENT AT REESE

Military activity on the site began when the Army Air Corps first opened an Advanced Flying School in 1942. Over 25,000 pilots were trained at Reese AFB in its 55-year operation. Reese AFB also achieved acclaim through the first use of a digital flight simulator to train pilots. Several local industries relied on the base and thousands of both direct and indirect jobs injected money into the local Lubbock and wider regional economies from base employment. The base was selected for closure during the 1995 BRAC round and final military operations ceased on the site in 1997. Under its obligations from the National Defense Authorization Act, the U.S. Air Force has managed the site contamination remediation activities, completing major remediation activities in 2016 related to the trichloroethylene used in cleaning solutions for aircraft. The current contaminants being remediated are perfluorinated compounds which came from the use of fire suppression foam. Further testing and site monitoring is conducted on the site to ensure that the groundwater meets EPA standards. This process is expected to continue for the next 10-15 years.

SPAG has championed redevelopment of the Reese Air Force Base since its closure in 1997, serving as one of the primary entities pushing for redevelopment and reuse of the site in partnership with the Reese Technology Center (RTC). The Reese Technology Center is the dba name for the Lubbock Reese Redevelopment Authority (LRAA) that aims to redevelop the former Reese Air Force Base site into a business and research park. The base site was primed for redevelopment as the site had extensive infrastructure assets including the large runways, roadways, utilities on site, and several existing structures that have been converted into warehousing, research centers, and industrial uses. Thanks to the efforts of SPAG, RTC, and the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), the site is now thriving as a host to over 25 private site occupants and public entities like Texas Tech University, South Plains College, Texas A&M Forest Service, and SPAG Law Enforcement Training Academy’s Classrooms, Driving Course, and Firing Range.

EDA INVESTMENT

SPAG has a reserved seat on the RTC/LRAA Board of Directors and SPAG Executive Director Tim Pierce is the current President of the RTC/LRAA Board of Directors. SPAG’s high level of involvement in base redevelopment discussions has assisted the RTC/LRAA in securing funds from EDA including 4 separate awards over the past 25 years. EDA investment has helped SPAG and RTC/LRAA build on and improve the economic development assets and infrastructure on the site.

EDA Awards:

2001 – Fiber Optics Network Installation
$1.0 million EDA investment
Redevelopment Benefit: The dual fiber loop ring investment brought high speed internet connectivity to the site and allowed for the later construction of a data center on the site.
2013 – Commercial Gate Entrance on State Hwy 114 Entrance
$1.2 million EDA investment
Redevelopment Benefit: Improvements to the site gate entrance off the arterial Highway 114 allowed for greater commercial trucking access to the site and has contributed to South Plains College opening a commercial driving license (CDL) program on the southern runway.

2021 – Airfield Security and Runway Upgrades
$865,000 EDA investment
Redevelopment Benefit: EDA investment in the runway and airport facilities have attracted two aerospace companies to the site as well as allowed other site users to use the runways for research projects and transportation including a TTU-led initiative to research the use of drones for agricultural monitoring and rural healthcare delivery services.
2023 – Business Park Expansion
$2.0 million EDA investment
Redevelopment Benefit: Due to past EDA investments and the work of SPAG and RTC staff, the existing business park facilities have run out of room to support new businesses or current customers needing to expand. This investment will create a much-needed new industrial space to attract even more site tenants.

To read more about EDA investment on the site, read EDA’s recent listing of their investments supporting the redevelopment of the site.

LESSONS LEARNED

The NADO Research Foundation worked with Kelly Davila, Director of Regional Services at SPAG, to create tips and key lessons learned for regions with closed military installations.

Davila emphasized that EDDs have all the tools needed to support their regions through the redevelopment process and can utilize key partnerships with federal funders, experience managing complex programs, and connections with local communities to drive locally sourced base redevelopment that contributes to local and regional economies. Davila shared the following highlights for other regions:

Collaborative Planning through the CEDS: SPAG played an integral role in the redevelopment of the Reese Air Force Base and is specifically cited in the enabling legislation for the Redevelopment Authority. Since the original BRAC notification, SPAG stayed engaged by coordinating various stakeholders, including regional local governments, community groups and incorporating the closure of the Reese AFB into our CEDS.
Liabilities into Assets: When an installation closes, all the extensive infrastructure and facilities left on the site can be viewed as liabilities rather than assets. SPAG was able to work with their local and regional stakeholders to redevelop the facilities, capitalizing on their existing infrastructure assets like the large runway and existing utilities, to find solutions that fit the needs of their regional economy.
Resource Mobilization: SPAG was able to access EDA Revolving Loan Funds to address the short-term impact of the closure. The loans helped new and existing small businesses expand and hire from the newly available workforce. From there, SPAG began writing and administering a series of EDA grant awards beginning in 2001 to work directly on the infrastructure of the former base. Even as Lubbock and the regional economy began to absorb the economic shock of the base closure, SPAG ensured that the event stayed at the forefront of our ‘regional story’ for state and federal partners, funders, and area stakeholders.
Technical Assistance: SPAG has provided technical assistance in various forms to the Reese Technology Center. From serving in a board position, to assisting in long-term planning, conducting economic analyses, and facilitating regional coordination efforts, SPAG has become an anchor partner to the Reese Technology Center. As the EDD, our organization has a deep understanding of the region and has utilized this role and knowledge to assist in on-going redevelopment efforts.
Active Regional Role: EDDs facing a closure or economic event like this must show up for their region and stay engaged with area leadership. EDDs play an important role as the convener of regional stakeholders and can provide solutions and ideas to aid in base redevelopment. Not having the support and engagement of SPAG would have made this economically devastating event much worse.

This case study was prepared by NADO Regional Development Researcher Andrew Coker ([email protected]).
(June 2024)