I enjoy scrolling through our newspaper archives. Reading through previous articles, I get a chance to see whether earlier predictions bore fruit – or withered on the vine.
Here, for instance, is what The Pilot reported on Aug. 9, 2003:
“The cruise lines are showing their interest in Norfolk. The pieces are falling into place now.” – Stephen Kirkland, then-cruise marketing manager for Nauticus
What a difference a decade makes.
You’ve probably read about the sinking cruise-ship business in Norfolk, the second-guessing by some members now on City Council, and the fear the Half Moone Cruise and Celebration Center has become a multimillion-dollar white elephant. This week, Carnival Cruise Lines announced it was pulling out, leaving the city without a ship homeported here.
Norfolk residents, many of whom have been questioning the city’s recent proclivity for spending bushels of public dollars on brick-and-mortar projects, have a right to be angry.
Two things are worth noting:
* Norfolk officials should take reasonable risks to spur economic development and tax revenue.
* But if they spend foolishly and those gambles fail, city officials will forfeit lots of credibility when they embark on future ventures. That includes the $89 million in public money that the City Council recently approved for a new hotel and conference center.
I’m not trying to beat up on Kirkland, who’s now assistant executive director at Nauticus. Mayor Paul Fraim and others also were boosters of Norfolk’s terminal.
Luring cruises to Norfolk, however, was always a long shot. The chances for success were hindered by competition from other ports on the East Coast and our location in a cul-de-sac. The cruise lines never expressed any long-term hugs and kisses for Norfolk, even when the economy was doing well.
Turn back to the archives.
Cruise ships began stopping in downtown Norfolk in 2001. By 2003, Nauticus had 32 bookings; 61 were set for 2004.
In January 2005, construction began on what was to be a $36 million terminal. An additional $5 million was spent for related infrastructure. (The final price on the terminal itself was $37.4 million – with $32.4 million of that coming from Norfolk taxpayers.)
Dark clouds gathered early, even before construction was completed. In late 2005, Holland America Line announced it would no longer stop in Norfolk in 2007, the same year the new terminal opened. It meant, at the time, that Carnival would remain the only carrier with multiple visits that hadn’t abandoned the city.
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