Gov. Lincoln Almond should stop pouring taxpayer dollars into a container port proposal that long ago lost its momentum and no longer guarantees thousands of new jobs.
Last week, the governor added $1.42 million for an environmental impact study for the container port at Quonset Point/Davisville. The money reportedly came from his 2002 contingency budget and is being added to $2.5 million already allocated for the study by the General Assembly.
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Almond administration officials argue that this expenditure should come as no surprise, that all along they have estimated the environmental impact study to cost between $3 million and $5 million.
Port proponents also argue that moving forward with the environmental impact study and lengthy permitting process will help to lure potential developers to Quonset.
Those arguments have limited merit. And they don’t account for a couple of indisputable facts.
First, the Rhode Island economy has faltered badly in recent years and taxpayers are saddled with a state budget deficit that is choking valuable programs and services. Secondly, the proposal to build a container port at the former Navy base is no longer being widely embraced by the electorate.
Both gubernatorial primary winners, Republican Don Carcieri and Democrat Myrth York, oppose the project and in fact, have suggested they would look to pull existing funding once elected to succeed Almond.
Does it make sense now to invest even more deeply into a project that does not have the support of the next governor?
The proposal to build a container port at Quonset got a grand start several years ago. There was talk of thousands of jobs and minimal environmental impact. But state officials were unable to secure contracts from major shipping companies. Opposition to the project grew. Other ideas for the massive tract of land – including that of a technology park – have been suggested.
We do not accept the argument that because initial estimates for the study were between $3 million and $5 million the state must spend up to that point. But more troubling is the very idea that pushing forward with the permitting process and environmental impact study should help lure a private developer.
If a private developer was not lured when state officials put on a full-court press in the early stages of the container port talks, then it seems short-sighted now to drop another $1.42 million into the process.
Rep. Suzanne M. Henseler, a North Kingstown Democrat, was especially critical of Almond last week.
“We are in the middle of budget crisis,” said Henseler. “Governor Almond has only three months left in office and both major-party candidates for governor – one of whom will inherit this issue – oppose the port project. Most importantly, the people of Rhode Island and particularly South County have steadfastly said they don’t want this port…”
The governor may not be happy that the container port proposal has lost its momentum. But the two gubernatorial candidates who will appear on the ballot in November won their primaries with platforms that included opposition to the port proposal. That message from taxpayers should not be ignored.
Contingency dollars, we suggest, would be better spent filling at least some of the gaping holes in the state’s current budget.
Opportunity knocks at
Brown
Brown University President Ruth J. Simmons’ decision to appoint Andries van Dam, a world-renowned computer scientist, as the school’s vice president of research should be seen not only as an important one for the Ivy League school, but also as an opportunity for the Rhode Island economy.
Simmons has correctly surmised that enhancing its research efforts will elevate Brown to an even higher level in the world of academia. Andries van Dam is a brilliant scholar with expertise in computer graphics and educational applications for technology. His ascent is a bold move by Brown and van Dam sounds determined to make bold advances in research and technology. van Dam is in fact talking about doubling the school’s research activity in just a few years.
This means exciting new advances in technology, medicine, communications and other fields will have their roots in Providence. That means opportunities not only for students, educators and researchers, but also for entrepreneurs and economic leaders.
We hope and expect that Brown’s commitment to research and technology will not only make it a better university – but in turn make Rhode Island a better state.
