BRAC votes to keep open sub base
 

By Stephen Singer
Associated Press Writer  
August 24, 2005

GROTON, Conn. --Calling it a "center for excellence," the national base closure commission voted Wednesday to keep open the Navy's submarine base in Groton, saving thousands of jobs and a cornerstone of southeastern Connecticut's economy.

"Yahoo!" said U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn. "Submarine base New London lives, and I think that it will live forever." The commission voted 7-1 with one abstention to keep the base open, culminating a fierce lobbying effort by Connecticut officials since the base appeared on the Pentagon's proposed list of base closings on May 13.

Connecticut lawmakers inundated the BRAC commissioners with data, reports and letters in an effort to reverse the Pentagon decision. Gov. M. Jodi Rell said she was in tears as she listened to the decision while in her car on the way to New London. The governor said she had someone in her office hold a phone to a television set so she could hear the vote. "We did it! We did it!" Rell said.

"We knew our odds were long, but we also knew our cause was just. The BRAC Commission saw what the Department of Defense did not want to see. They saw more than dollars and cents. They saw the unparalleled military value of our sub base." Just before  casting his vote, BRAC Chairman Anthony Principi said the submarine base couldn't be replaced. "The New London sub base is truly the center of excellence," he said.

Economists have said closing the base would devastate the state's economy and threaten 31,000 jobs statewide, including more than 8,000 at the base itself and thousands of others who do subcontracting or provide support for the facility and its residents. The base is the Navy's oldest submarine base, established in 1868. "Oh God, I'm so excited," said U.S. Rep. Rob Simmons, a Republican who won a close election by campaigning to save the base.

"We're marathon runners, and marathon runners focus on the goal. The goal was always today and we wanted to pace ourselves for today. We broke the tape today. We won." Local and regional officials had argued that the Pentagon's recommendation to close the base was flawed, citing national security concerns, submarine force requirements, environmental cleanup costs, personnel needs and detailed reports challenging the Navy's projected cost savings.

In addition, lawmakers took issue with the Navy's assertion that an environmental cleanup would cost about $23 million and Pentagon officials last month acknowledged it may be too early to tell what the actual cost would be." As the commission's decision showed, our case was rock solid, based on the true military value and cost assessments of Navel Submarine Base New London, said U.S. Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn.

"The commission heard our arguments loud and clear, thanks in no small part to the incredible teamwork displayed by Team Connecticut." Retired Air Force Gen. Lloyd "Fig" Newton, one of seven commissioners who voted to keep the base open, said it would be a mistake to close the base. "Not only is Sub Base New London a first-class facility, it's the flagship of the submarine facility," he said. A large number of Rhode Islanders work at the sub base and at businesses supported by the base.

Gov. Don Carcieri and other state officials had said they were concerned about the closure. The Pentagon's base closure plan is the first such effort in a decade to reconfigure stateside military bases. The Groton base made the proposed closure list in 1993, but was saved after an effort by legislators, business owners and residents.

Earlier Wednesday the commission unanimously voted to close three army reserve centers in Connecticut -- the Sgt. Libby U.S. Army Reserve Center in New Haven, Turner U.S. Army Reserve Center in Fairfield and U.S. Army Reserve Center Maintenance Support Facility in Middletown. About 56 jobs will be lost as a result of that vote, according to Pentagon estimates.2005 Associated Press.
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Contributed,
YNCS Don Harribine, USN(ret)