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| Sorry, George Tremblay, no conspiracy here |
By Scott Wolf
The Rhode Island State Planning Council delayed a vote on a
draft Economic Development Plan for the State of Rhode Island.
The draft plan, which has been under development for more than
two years as part of an initiative known as Rhode Map RI, emphasizes the very
unradical notion of building on our strengths.
In recent weeks, critics of the plan have put forward a great
deal of misinformation and misinterpretation that has threatened to undermine
public confidence in this forward-looking and sorely needed economic
development plan.
Grow Smart is proud to have been a member of the consortium of state agencies
and public and private organizations that guided the development of the
Economic Development Plan now under consideration. We strongly support
its adoption by the State Planning Council.
We believe that the Council, Rhode Island’s elected officials
and the people of Rhode Island can have full confidence in the transparent and
open public process through which the plan was developed, the extensive
research on which the plan is based, and the recommendations that the
plan makes.
We are writing to set the record straight on some of the
misinformation that has been presented as fact.
Fact: The plan reflects the thinking of public and private Rhode Island
interests. The extent to which it is implemented and what specific strategies
will be used will be decided by the Governor, the General Assembly, municipal
governments and private businesses and organizations. Rhode
Island did not have the resources to undertake a planning process of this
magnitude.
Therefore, the state applied to the US Department of Housing
and Urban Development’s Sustainable Communities grant program to secure the
funding required for the research, writing and coordination of the public
outreach effort that went into the preparation of the economic development
plan.
However, that research, writing and public outreach was managed by the
Rhode Island Division of Planning and guided by a Consortium made up of
representatives from Rhode Island state agencies and private organizations.
Furthermore, it is critical to remember that this is a
plan. The fact that it was produced with the assistance of Federal funds
in no way enables Federal interests to insert themselves in decisions as to how
the various strategies contained in the plan will be implemented. Those
decisions rest with the State Executive and Legislative Branches, with
municipal governments and with private businesses and organizations.
False
Assertion: The plan is not an economic development plan.
Fact: The draft plan was written to comply with a mandate from the
General Assembly which directed the economic development corporation and the
division of planning to produce a strategic plan that would include:
- A unified economic development strategy for the state that integrates business growth with land use and transportation choices;
- An analysis of how the state’s infrastructure can best support this unified economic development strategy;
- A focus and prioritization that the outcomes of the economic development strategy be equitable for all Rhode Islanders;
- Reliance on comprehensive economic data and analysis relating to Rhode Island’s economic competitiveness, business climate, national and regional reputation, and present economic development resources;
- Suggestions for improving and expanding the skills, abilities, and resources of state agencies, municipalities, and community partners to speed implementation of the plan’s recommendations; and
- The inclusion of detailed implementation plans, including stated goals, specific performance measures and indicators.
The plan, which was written with input from business leaders
around the state, outlines six goals for strengthening our economy: (1) provide
educational and training opportunities to activate a 21st-century workforce; (2) foster an inclusive economy that targets opportunity to typically underserved
populations; (3) support industries and investments that play to Rhode Island’s
strengths; (4) create great places by coordinating economic, housing and
transportation investments; (5) create a stronger and more resilient Rhode Island;
and (6) make Rhode Island a state where companies, workers, and the state as a
whole can develop a competitive advantage.
It advocates strengthening the state historic tax credit
program; supporting industries and investments that play to Rhode Island’s
strengths including the marine, defense, arts and food sectors; better
marketing of our tourism brand and assets; regulatory reform / streamlining;
and “…setting fair tax policies consistent with those of other states.”
The
plan also asserts that expanded workforce training and a better education
system are important to ensure that Rhode Island’s workforce meets the needs of
employers and that the growing minority population in RI is as economically
productive and self sufficient as possible. This call for social equity
has especially inflamed the most vocal critics of the plan, even though it is
in the enlightened economic self interest of all Rhode Islanders.
False
Assertion: The plan is an “extreme social engineering
scheme” that would “block paths to property ownership and infringe on rights of
property owners.
Fact: As noted above, the General Assembly directed that the economic
development strategy should “integrate business growth with land use and
transportation choices,” and should include “a focus and prioritization that
the outcomes of the economic development strategy be equitable for all Rhode
Islanders. Responding to those directions, the plan recommends
location of housing and businesses that will promote access to work
opportunities. These recommendations do not infringe on the rights of
property owners.
False
Assertion: The plan’s development process did not provide the public
and the business community with an opportunity for input.
Fact: From
the beginning Rhode Map RI has been characterized by extensive public outreach
and many opportunities for public input. Over the last year
and a half, public input sessions have been held in every corner of the
state. The public input phase launched with coverage in the Providence
Journal, and all sessions were publicized through press releases and social
media.
Opportunities for electronic input were also provided. The
research and drafting of the economic development plan was guided by a
diverse Economic Development Committee with
representation from such strongly pro-business and pro growth organizations as
the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, the Rhode Island Builders
Association, the Rhode Island Nursery and Landscape Association, and the
business funded Providence Foundation.
In addition, the Rhode Island Foundation and Commerce RI
co-hosted a series of workshops during which over 300 business leaders
discussed their needs and identified ways to work together with the state to
build on Rhode Island’s strengths. The State Planning Council held public
hearings for the draft Economic Development Plan on October 27 and 28 at which
62 individuals testified. In all, more than 1,000 people have contributed their
input.
False
Assertion: There is no reason not to delay passage of the Plan in order
to allow for further discussion.
Fact: The
draft Economic Development Plan has been developed to comply with legislation
passed by the General Assembly requiring that such a plan be developed and that
it be submitted on or before October 31, 2014.
In 2013, the RI General Assembly passed a law directing that,
“(a) The economic development corporation and the division of planning shall develop a written long-term economic development vision and policy for the state of Rhode Island and a strategic plan for implementing this policy. . . (b) On or before October 31, 2014, the economic development corporation and the division of planning shall submit the written long-term economic development vision and policy and implementation plan to the governor, the senate and the house of representatives.”
The Division of Planning’s standard practice is to submit plans
to the State Planning Council for approval and to have the Council hold public
hearings on proposed plans. In keeping with that practice, public hearings were
held and the State Planning Council vote was scheduled so that the Plan would
be ready for submission to the governor, the senate and the house or
representatives as close to the October 31, 2014 deadline as possible.