Let’s build ‘A Ballpark at Slater Mill’

In 1972, as a Pawtucket kid, I attended my first professional baseball game at McCoy Stadium. I remember going there in sixth grade to see a game with other student crossing guards (another bygone practice). The place was dingy, run down, and had few in attendance. Those who attended games back then might remember the stench from the garbage trucks stored below the concourse during games. It didn’t matter, I was hooked. And, so began my 40-plus years as a fan of my beloved PawSox.

In 1977, Ben Mondor purchased the team and hired professional management, led by the great Mike Tamburro, who is still there today. Gradually, improvements came and with that, more kids like me and, more importantly, more families attended games regularly.

In the 1990s, the International League mandated stadiums hosting Triple-A ball teams have a minimum of 10,000 seats. Because of its limited seat capacity, there was a real possibility we would lose the PawSox to another state. During this time, I served in the Rhode Island House of Representatives and was amongst the first, if not the first, to call for state intervention to help renovate the stadium and keep the PawSox in Rhode Island.

The General Assembly and Governor Almond stood up and passed a financial package that renovated McCoy and kept the team. The citizens of Rhode Island were thrilled. A second financial package was enacted during Governor Carcieri’s tenure, and again, Rhode Islanders supported it. To this day, there is no criticism of those measures which extended the life of a now 75-year-old facility to its natural end.

The above scenarios were known by the public, but were vastly different than other state initiatives that passed, despite public criticism. Specifically, the legislation in 1992 that authorized a hotel to be built with the proposed Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence. Subsequent to that, the 1995 legislation authorizing the Providence Place Mall passed. Both of these acts were controversial and required taxpayer dollars.

The fact is, though, that a great deal of private investment was spurred by these decisions that would not have occurred otherwise. We are still enjoying outside investment in Providence with the continued expansion of hotel projects due to the success of the Providence Place Mall and the Convention Center. Public-private infrastructure partnerships, when done properly, can spur decades of private investment and development.

Rhode Island is once again at a crossroads.

Do we have leaders who will lead the state to where it needs to be? Or, do we have leaders who will listen to a small, but vocal, group of naysayers who oppose every project with a whisper of state investment without facts, thereby stopping progress and stymying development?

Let me be clear, I opposed the 2015 PawSox proposal. It was arrogant and hoggish. It would not legitimately withstand scrutiny and it deserved criticism and ultimate defeat.

The 2017 proposal, however, is worthy of consideration, debate, and ultimate passage based on the merits. It is unprecedented that the ownership of a AAA baseball team would invest over $45 million in a project in which it will not own one brick of infrastructure. The public will own it. Further, every estimate concludes that any taxpayer investment will be covered by various forms of income from the facility.

Also, this is not “just” a baseball park. It will be a year-round, multi-purpose entertainment venue for all Rhode Islanders, not just baseball fans.

Finally, look at the tangible and intangible effects of the proposed stadium. The Apex building, a rusting eyesore that visitors see upon entering the state, will be gone. Instead, right next to a brand new, artistically designed highway bridge will be a sparkling attraction inviting you to visit it and the state. A long-neglected downtown area will be revitalized, spurring new development. It would boost recent private development in businesses like the Isle Brewers Guild, helping provide a quicker return on investment and fostering quicker expansion. Rhode Island will be adding a gem to its significant travel industry.

Based on facts, I can see no downside to this project.

Do not allow the PawSox to be yet another Rhode Island institution (think “The Tent,” “the 1025,” “the Auditorium,” “the Chateau,” Rocky Point, and Crescent Park, amongst so many others) that disappears from our landscape and becomes only a story of times past of which we tell our children and grandchildren. Instead, let’s build a varied entertainment attraction, experience new memories that will not only be remembered and passed down, but also created year-round.

Let’s build “A Ballpark at Slater Mill.”