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Latitude41:

Unfortunately RIAC had to "slam the brakes" on the long-needed safety improvements and environmental requirements at the airport it leases from the State of Rhode Island due to extraordinary fiscal incompetence over the years - like building an almost useless $300 million train station borrowing over $12 million to do so just this year - two years after it was opened for service. Other stupid moves were the buying up of residential properties at 40% to 50% over the market value for the same and buying a cell phone lot for over $1 million while leaving acres of cleared unused property on Post Road that it could have freely used for this purpose. This past year RIAC booked an $8 million net loss and there is no end in sight for future losses. It is no accident that RIAC has yet to identify the source of capital required to build the required glycol plant and safety improvements. The situation has become so bad that even Buddy Cianci -- a previously unwavering booster of airport expansion who is said to own commercial property on Airport Road -- has begun to question whether the airport can ever "come back."

In the meantime EDC - RIAC's parent - is suing the RIAC financial planner for its role in 38 Studios. How can EDC extracate itself from this other mess to position RIAC for future financing when the bond rating agencies have already said RIAC cannot borrow another dime????

I don't think you get how dire the capital situation is at RIAC. Think about this point - RIAC only has two years to complete the safety improvements and environmental actions. Yet it seems to have done nothing to solve the capital requirements puzzle to do the same. It would not suprise me to see EDC (run by the governor) go to the General Assembly looking for general obligation bonds to build this required structure at T.F. Green. If that happens, RIAC should be disbanded because the only reason for RIAC in the first place was to provide a conduit to raise capital funds for the airport. That move would free up enough funds in executive salary savings to pay the juice on the required improvements and eliminate the need for general obligation bonds.

Keep pushing for the improvements. And don't forget to call for the elimination of the cash drain which includes the overpaid RIAC staff.

From: A jetBlue effect?

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