Purpose and Eligibility

(1) The Department may designate certain projects as "Special Projects" through its approval of a Special Project Designation Permit. For disposal site(s) designated as Special Projects, Special Project Designation shall have the effect of: (a) extending the deadline for submitting a Tier Classification Submittal as required by 310 CMR 40.0500; or (b) extending specific deadline(s) for completing Comprehensive Response Actions (Phases II, III, IV or V) as required by 310 CMR 40.0560(2); and (c) establishing an annual compliance assurance fee schedule for the Special Project as described in 310 CMR 4.00: Timely Action Schedule and Fee Provisions. (2) Eligible Applicants. The following entities may apply to the Department for Special Project Designation: (a) Any public body politic, including but not limited to any federal, state or municipal governmental entity; or (b) Any person who: 1. is an Eligible Person or Eligible Tenant as defined in M.G.L. c. 21E and 310 CMR 40.0006 with respect to the proposed Special Project Designation area; and 2. provides a letter of community support as described in 310 CMR 40.0061(3)(e) from the Chief Municipal Officer(s) of the community(ies) in which the proposed Special Project Designation area is located. (3) Eligible Projects. Projects eligible for Special Project Designation Permits may include but are not limited to infrastructure improvement projects (e.g., construction or expansion of rail lines or roadways), redevelopment of one or more properties, or the performance of coordinated response actions addressing multiple disposal sites or a single site with multiple owners. Eligible projects shall meet each of the following criteria: (a) one or more disposal sites are, or are likely to be, located within the boundaries of the project; (b) proposed response actions will be managed in a coordinated fashion; (c) the applicant has secured adequate financing for the project and (d) compliance with the response action deadline(s) for which an extension is sought under the Special Project Designation as described in 310 CMR 40.0061(1)(a) or (b) would unreasonably decrease the cost-effectiveness or feasibility of project implementation; (e) for Special Project Designation Permit Applications to extend a specific deadline(s) for Comprehensive Response Actions as described in 310 CMR 40.0061(1)(b), submittal of a Tier Classification for the disposal site(s) included in the Special Project Designation prior to or concurrent with the submittal of the Special Project Designation Permit Application; and 40.0061: continued (f) when the applicant is an Eligible Person or Eligible Tenant as described in 310 CMR 40.0061(2)(b), compliance with the following additional criteria for determining the eligibility of the project: 1. demonstration of community support for the project by providing a letter of community support in the Special Project Designation Permit Application from each municipality(ies) in which the property(ies) in the proposed Special Project Designation is located that describes the public benefit(s) of the project including economic development, infrastructure improvement, public housing, recreation or access; 2. except as provided in 310 CMR 40.0061(3)(f)3., each municipality may submit support for no more than two Special Project Designation Permit applications per annum for applications made by an Eligible Person or Eligible Tenant as described in 310 CMR 40.0061(2)(b), except where the population of the municipalityexceeds 50,000, in which case the municipality may submit support for two Special Project Designation Permit Applications plus one additional Special Project Designation Permit Application per 50,000 residents provided the total number per annum does not exceed six; 3. notwithstanding 310 CMR 40.0061(3)(f)2., when the annual municipal limit has been reached, the Department may consider a Special Project Permit Application made by an Eligible Person or Eligible Tenant as an eligible project upon receiving a written request from the Chief Municipal Officer(s) of each municipality(ies) in which the property(ies) included in the proposed Special Project Designation is located; (4) No annual limit shall apply to the number of Special Project Designation Permit Applications that may be made by a body politic as described in 310 CMR 40.0061(2)(a). Special Project Designation Permit Applications made by a body politic in a particular municipality shall not affect the limit on the number of Special Project Permit Applications that may be made by Eligible Person or Eligible Tenant applicants for projects in that municipality.