City Greenlights Harbor Business Plan

After all the debate leading up to Tuesday night's vote on the Harbor Enterprise Business Plan, the actual vote was anticlimactic. City Council members unanimously approved a slightly modified version of the plan and then quickly moved on to the next agenda item.

Designed to revitalize the city's harbor area, the plan (see pdf) was created with input from city officials, consultants and citizens. First presented to the City Council on July 20, it was then sent to the Budget & Finance Commission and Harbor Commission for additional recommendations. 

By the time it returned to the City Council's agenda Tuesday night, legislators seemed ready to accept it. "I think not to accept it would be an insult to the staff," said Councilman Matt Kilroy.

Councilman Steven Diels urged adoption of the plan with a minor modification, calling the harbor "an embarrassment." He proposed that the plan be subject to review twice a year, a suggestion that eventually carried the day.

Councilman Bill Brand also wanted the group to stipulate that "Pad 10," a dilapidated structure that hasn't been occupied for years, be torn down within two years, but that proposal was rebuffed. Council members agreed that the termite-ridden structure needed to go, but saw no reason to insert a timetable into the business plan under consideration. 

Brand also tried to persuade the council to vote to tear down the AES power plant, calling it "a once in a lifetime opportunity," but got even less traction on that issue.

Public comment was mixed. Harbor business owners voiced their concerns about the plan, but they too could see the writing on the wall, with one commenting that it was clear "which way this was going to go."  

Midway through the session, City Manager Bill Workman reminded the elected officials that the plan was designed to be a living document and would change as the city's business needs evolved. 

"We also want to avoid paralysis by analysis," he cautioned, advising that it was better for the city to move forward on a good plan rather than wait until it was perfect. 

"Otherwise another 20 years can pass in the blink of an eye, quite frankly," he said.

The plan identifies five top priorities: Resolution of the waterfront zoning and land use plan; development of the Shade Hotel; master plan for Mole B; installation of transient moorings; and renovation of the pier entry now being called George Freeth Plaza.