Fresh Start

May 17, 2007

A new chapter is opening in the planning for Fort Monroe, and it has real promise.

The new Fort Monroe Federal Area Development Authority, charged with making decisions about what will become of the base after the Army leaves in 2011, will have its first meeting on Monday. The FADA was created by the General Assembly in this last session, and it takes over the job from an earlier FADA that Hampton ran.

What people can -- and should -- expect of the new and improved FADA is that the state will step up to take a leadership role. That has been too long coming, and it's essential. Almost all the developable land on Monroe will revert to the state and belong to all the people of Virginia. The same is true of most of Monroe's many historic structures and relics; the state is, of all the parties involved, the best equipped to become the custodian of its history. [[At Citizens for a Fort Monroe National Park, we believe that the best custodian of Fort Monroe is some combination of the National Park Service and an innovatively structured trust organization.]]

Instead of being made up only of seven Hampton residents appointed by the City Council, the new FADA brings to the table a collection of people whose expertise and connections need to be there.

The state secretary of natural resources oversees state functions that will be important at Monroe: historic preservation, environmental issues, parks and conservation. The secretary of commerce and trade will be called on to help with the economic development that will be necessary to mitigate the big hit Hampton and the region will take when the Army leaves. [[Why simply "mitigate"? Why not take the opportunity for a huge boost for the region?]] The assistant to the governor for commonwealth preparedness has been tapped because he handles a key area: liaison with the military. The secretary of administration can help keep state agencies working together, which will be vital in this complex project. And it's obvious why the secretary of finance is there.

The governor appointed two more members: an expert in heritage tourism, and one in historic preservation, who is also knowledgeable about national parks (that's valuable, since the possibility of a park is under discussion).

Joining them will be four members of the General Assembly, who may be called on to mobilize legislative and financial assistance.

Hampton's decision to fill its seats with the same people who served on the old FADA will provide helpful continuity. [[But that continuity links back to an abortive attempt to make Hampton the sole owner of Fort Monroe.]]

There's another key player: the public. They're welcome to join the proceedings Monday. [[But as of Sunday, May 20, the agenda for the meeting segregated the public comment period to the very end of the meeting -- too late to influence any of the many actions scheduled to be discussed and taken.]]

This is a fresh start, with the people and agencies that need to be there. Hampton did a good thing jumpstarting the process, but it got ahead of the partners it needs to work with. Now they can all work from the same game plan.

They must, because there's an awful lot at stake. Some critical pieces of the nation's history need to be preserved. Hampton needs to make up for the anticipated loss of thousands of jobs and residents. [[Just Hampton? What about the rest of Fort Monroe's actual owners?]] A beautiful and environmentally sensitive piece of land needs to be protected and made available to the public. It will take everyone who gathers Monday to make a success of it.

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Fresh start

New Fort Monroe planning group gets down to work