NEW: PawSox Stadium Opponents Declare Success, Rally Planned for Thursday
Monday, September 21, 2015
Groups of opponents who worked to stop the Providence stadium deal for the Pawtucket Red Sox are declaring "success" after Speaker of the House Nicholas Mattiello confirmed talks with the new ownership group had stopped -- and one group is planning a rally on Thursday at the State House to celebrate.
"Stop the Stadium" Group
On Monday, the Steering Committee of Stop the Stadium Deal (STSD) announced success in its efforts to bring an end to a proposal to relocate the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox to the waterfront in downtown Providence.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST“We needed to stop this stadium deal, and we did! Voters are angry about a culture of corporate welfare in RI. In this case, we had a group of very wealthy businessmen who engaged in closed-door meetings with influential city and state officials," said Sam Bell, Chairman of STSD. "They asked for enormous taxpayer subsidies to benefit their private corporation. This speaks to exactly what people feel is wrong with how politics is conducted in this state.”
The group affirmed their position Monday that they support the use of the land for its intended purpose -- a public park.
“It’s also about saying yes to the public park,” said STSD member Sharon Steele. “The collective vision of an animated downtown waterfront has been evolving for 30 years, and a ‘Central Park for Providence’ has been at the heart of this vision. Public spaces make cities vibrant and wonderful places to live. They add to the quality of life. They also add economic value and are a natural complement to mixed-use real estate development. We intend to continue our efforts to ensure that an urban park welcoming to everyone remains a centerpiece of the redevelopment plan.”
Rally Planned for Thursday
Another Providence stadium opponent group, "Organizing for Pawtucket," is organizing a victory rally at the State House this Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
Group organizer David Norton wrote:
"We have won this fight! It sure was a tough drawn out fight, but make no mistake, WE HAVE WON! A Celebratory Rally is very much in order to show our State leaders that we are victorious! The PawSox owners have dealt with this issue with such arrogance and incompetence that it is very necessary to show them that WE stopped them! Incredibly, the PawSox owners are still claiming to be "considering" and "digesting" the situation! As you may have heard, from every major news organization in Rhode Island "THE DEAL IS DEAD", but the PawSox owners are so full of themselves that they refuse to admit that the deal is dead!
We have won, but we need to show up at our event at the State House to put an EXCLAMATION POINT on this victory! Please Join AND SHARE our Victory Rally Event. "
Related Slideshow: PawSox Stadium Aftermath: Winners and Losers
The Providence baseball stadium looked like a sure thing. Powerful owners pushing the project. Top politicians coupled with influential lobbyists and PR consultants all on board. Then, everything changed.
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