Thursday, August 25, 2005 3:30 pm
Commission votes to save finance center in northern Maine
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The commission´s 7-0 vote calls for bringing the facility from its current level of 353 jobs to up to 600 jobs.
Sen. Susan Collins, who grew up 12 miles away in Caribou, watched the vote alongside Gov. John Baldacci and the rest of Maine´s congressional delegation at the Applied Technology Center, which is part of the Loring Commerce Centre.
"I was optimistic that we would prevail as far as convincing the commissioners not to close DFAS but this expansion is more than I could have hoped for," she said. "I´m just thrilled about this decision. It´s great economic news for northern Maine."
Workers whooped and cheered when the announcement was made, and several bottles of champagne were produced. Outside, motorists honked their horns.
All told, the Pentagon wanted to reduce its 26 DFAS centers across the country to three large centers in Denver, Indianapolis and Columbus, Ohio. Both Rome and Limestone were among the 23 DFAS locations that would have been eliminated.
Commissioners said they took into account the severe economic impact of closing the two DFAS centers created at former Air Force bases: Limestone, former home to Loring Air Force Base, and Rome, N.Y, home to the former Griffiss Air Force Base.
"We´ve got a better proposal. We´ve got a fairer proposal," commissioner James Hill, a retired Army general, said before the votes were cast.
In the end, the commission voted to retain Columbus and Indianapolis, along with Cleveland, Limestone and Rome. The Denver center would be closed.
"Even though we went through three mouths of a lot of anxiety, we came out on the other end in really good shape," said Carl Flora, president and chief executive officer of the Loring Development Authority.
The vote was a relief for people in Maine and upstate New York who had complained that the Pentagon targeted facilities that were created to offset the impact of previous base closings, resulting in a sort of double jeopardy situation.
"We´re keeping faith with people of Maine," said Lloyd "Fig" Newton, a retired Air Force general who visited the Limestone center. He praised the efficiency of the Limestone facility and said the workers there "proved their mettle."
The commission´s decision came a day after commissioners voted to close the Brunswick Naval Air Station but to spare the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. The Portsmouth decision would spare 4,500 civilian jobs; the Brunswick decision would eliminate 4,800 military and civilian jobs.
When complete, the commission´s final report will be sent to President Bush, who can accept it or reject it, or return it the commission for further evaluation. Congress also will have a chance to veto the plan but it has not taken that step in four previous rounds of closures.
Maine officials had argued not only for keeping the Limestone center open but for adding jobs because of its efficiency and low turnover rate.
The modern facility can easily accommodate up to 480 workers, and there would be room for up to 600 workers by eliminating some storage space, officials said.
Even though the facility is relatively small, the jobs are important in an expansive county that has fewer than 76,000 residents.
The facility, located at the former base hospital, handles the books and ledgers for domestic Air National Guard bases and active duty Air Force bases in Europe, said Larry Conrad, who oversees the operations.
The finance center has been one of the biggest success stories of efforts to redevelop the former Strategic Air Command base.
Besides the DFAS center, the Maine Military Authority, which overhauls military equipment, has grown to 540 workers. Sitel has 250 employees at a call center. A Job Corps center has about 144 faculty and 350 students.
All told, the Loring Development Authority has created 1,450 jobs, which offsets the 1,100 civilian jobs that were lost when the base closed.
