Grebien pushing for Pawtucket
Mayor hopes state will come through
Donald Grebien needs to be commended in taking the PawSox ballpark fight to the Statehouse steps on Wednesday afternoon.
It can’t be a Hail Mary pass and that’s that. It can’t be a one-shot mobilization effort and hope that does the trick.
More steps with the Pawtucket mayor sounding the gong must be taken if lawmakers are going to do a reverse pivot and allow for serious discussion concerning the next step for the local Triple-A franchise by the time the 2017 R.I General Assembly breaks for the summer.
If Grebien – appropriately dubbed “our hard-working mayor” by PawSox vice chairman Mike Tamburro at last week’s ballpark unveiling at Slater Mill – needs to call multiple press conferences in order to continue to drive home the point why this particular piece of legislation shouldn’t stay in the hopper until the fall, so be it. A subject matter that affects so many, particularly those who work and reside in the Blackstone Valley, needs to remain in the daily conversation.
It can’t afford to fade to black. Not now.
The biggest obstacle facing Pawtucket and the PawSox isn’t time. There’s a strong reason to believe the curtain on this year’s legislative session won’t be lowered until sometime between June 25-30. That’s roughly a month from now, thus weakening the argument that the legislation should have been placed in the appropriate hands well in advance of this week.
With elections in 2018 looming for Governor Gina Raimondo, House speaker Nicholas Mattiello and Senate president Dominick Ruggerio, there’s no guarantee anyone will want to take up the PawSox proposal next year. Deep down, Grebien knows the potential is there for the political climate to feature a far different tenor. Those who are familiar with the inner workings of the deal related to the PawSox ballpark might not be willing to stick their necks out in fear of potentially damaging their re-election bids.
Borrowing from baseball parlance, Grebien needs to keep firing away with the high heat. He’s come too far in his efforts to ensure the PawSox remain in Pawtucket for the next generation of baseball fans to this latest step derail him completely.
“There are a lot of things I’ve learned that I can’t control,” Grebien said on Wednesday. “All I can control is the messaging and for me to tell everybody why this is important to Pawtucket and the Blackstone Valley. That is my job. I’m going to be out here advocating, but I’m hoping this is only a speed bump.”
Grebien never lost hope when the late Jim Skeffington told him face-toface he was going to move the PawSox to downtown Providence. With somebody of Grebien’s can-do spirit at the forefront, there’s reason to believe Wednesday’s press conference at the Statehouse was merely the first salvo fired.
Now is the time for Grebien to make like a continuous loop and repeatedly explain why it’s imperative something gets done during this legislative period.
Keep showing and discussing the facts and figures in a public setting, particularly ones featuring TV cameras, tape recorders, and notepads. Use those occasions – notice the plural form – to talk about how Pawtucket is a city on the rise, the constituents you represent, and the gaping hole that would come should the PawSox ownership group and front office decide to entertain offers from other cities. That threat, as veiled as it might seem right now, could become viable soon.
In all seriousness, Grebien should look into closet space at the Statehouse for the podium with the City of Pawtucket emblem on it. That way, he could wheel it out and set up shop at a moment’s notice.
Of note, Wednesday’s presser featured local politicians, union officials, and Lt. Governor Dan McKee, formerly the mayor of Cumberland. Such a presence showed that Grebien isn’t in this fight alone.
His stamina and his quest to keep the PawSox in the city cannot be denied. No doubt, Grebien – the mayor who wears his passion and his heart for Pawtucket on his sleeve – will continue to fight the good fight.