Town needs to craft an economic plan


A recent New York Times op-ed piece cited how the rise of geographic inequality has been a major economic trend in recent times. While major cities in affluent regions — like New York, Boston, Chicago and San Francisco — have prospered, most small cities and rural areas have struggled, it stated.

While Jamestown has taken some steps toward helping its businesses and looking at its economic future, recent developments suggest maybe a more concerted and stronger effort is needed.

The loss of Baker’s Pharmacy and Jamestown Fish, along with the sporadic availability of several other restaurants in town, may be isolated incidents or they may be part of a larger causal effect that will ripple to other businesses. It’s too soon to tell. Either way, the town should make an increased effort to address the issue of sustainable economic viability.

Some type of master plan is needed so we can determine what would constitute a core business district, what types of businesses would be part of it (i.e., a supermarket, bank, medical services, gas station, hardware store, etc.) and how it would thrive long-term.

Looking at the models of how other similar-sized communities have successfully built vibrant downtowns is a good place to begin the process. Implementing already tried-and-true ideas is a quicker path to success than willy-nilly tossing darts at a board and see if they stick.

Our current comprehensive plan says a lot about what we don’t want the island to be; we need to do more about deciding what we do want it to be. Adding the parameters of a business district to the comprehensive plan so concrete steps can be taken to achieve such goals would be a good first step.

While some may advocate for merging with the Newport Chamber of Commerce or hiring an economic development guru to facilitate the necessary changes, we believe they can be done in-house with existing planning staff and the planning commission.

No matter who takes part in the process, or how we move forward, the time to act is now.