As if on cue, Gov. Gina M. Raimondo last week showed that she understands the need for swift action, first replacing the entire I-195 Redevelopment Commission, and then revamping the state board of education.
Previously she had brought in outsiders to serve as her chief of staff and commerce secretary – the two positions that matter most to the business community – showing that while she is a Rhode Islander through and through, she is not afraid to challenge the political orthodoxy (as if her fight over public-employee pension overhaul left any doubt about that).
It is also clear that once she decides to make a change, she wastes no time in executing it. Thus, now that the complex site prep work of the I-195 commission has been accomplished – and it was significant and difficult work at that – Gov. Raimondo and her team want to try a new approach to marketing the property.
It remains to be seen what can and will be done to jump-start development there, but in the short term at least, the actions of Rhode Island’s new leader are exactly the kind of signal the state needs to see. •