Buying And Developing The Polluted Exxon Site Is A Bold Undertaking

By Josh Resnek

The Davis Companies are taking on a mega money land/development deal that is all about huge outlays of capital and borrowings, an enormous price tag for pollution
mitigation, ballooning construction costs caused by inflation and rising interest rates as a recession appears to be coming on.

Timing is often a key component of every successful huge undertaking such as the Exxon site.

We suspect no one knows this better than the enormously successful folks who run the Davis Companies.

The Davis Companies is a rich outfit filled with talent and ambition.

The founder of the company, Jonathan Davis lives in a 9,000 square foot home in Chestnut Hill valued at $14 million.

The company president Richard McCreary’s Weston home is not quite so large but carries an estimated valuation of about $5 million.

The “pauper” of the group is Davis executive Michael Cantalupa. His Winchester home is modest in size compared with those of his executive colleagues with a valuation of under $2 million.

These developers are risk takers and entrepreneurs willing to put hundreds of millions on the line for the chance to develop almost 100 acres in Everett.

The purchase price for the property has not yet been announced.

It is not believed Davis Companies has taken possession of the sprawling property.

We predicted several months back that this Everett industrial property should sell from anywhere between $350 million to $400 million.

Plopping down that kind of money to begin a major project in today’s rapidly changing economic climate takes a great deal of courage and knowhow.

In addition, of great interest would be to know how exactly such a grand purchase can be accomplished and how the financial aspects of the deal will be structured.

Why take such a risk on a polluted Everett property?

Because if the project can get up and running, it might well take in more than $1 billion for the Davis Companies should it ever be completed.

It could very likely be a project worth more than $1 billion to Davis Companies when all is said and done.

What will the Davis Companies be offering the city to seal the deal besides political contributions to the mayor?

Extremely public minded and vocal residents are hoping the Davis Companies will be proposing to provide a new fire station and a police substation and to pay for added police and fire personnel as a start.

Whatever happens, this project – the mother of all projects – will take several years to make it through the acquisition and planning stages before the expensive removal of all the contaminated soil is taken care of.

After that, we suppose, the sky is the limit.