Town Needs the Basics, Gets a Skate Park

(CBS)  It's been nearly seven months since Congress passed the economic stimulus package. At nearly $800 billion, it's one of the largest expenditures in history.

But some critics say a lot of it's being wasted on frivolous projects, at a time when local governments are starving for cash. CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson follows the money to a struggling city in New England.

In Pawtucket, R.I., the fishing can be first-rate. But not everything is bountiful. The city is facing its biggest financial crisis since it was founded in 1671.

Just how bad are things in Pawtucket? Fifty-two city workers have been laid off. The budget is $7.5 million in the red. And unemployment is among the worst in the nation. In short, Pawtucket is on the verge of bankruptcy.

So when the 72,000 residents heard Pawtucket would be getting $550,000 in stimulus money, they might have assumed it would help with their deficit, layoffs or unpaid school bills.

Instead, they're getting this a skate park for kids.

City planner Michael Cassidy hopes a brand new skate park will be a safe place for young people to gather. He says it's been an objective since 2002.

But the plan has created an uproar. It's not that anyone's against a skate park; the city just needs other things a whole lot more.

"I was certainly hoping that we were going to get a little of it," said Pawtucket Fire Chief Timothy Mclaughlin,

Mclaughlin runs one of the busiest fire departments around. He says it defies logic to build a skate park while he's being forced to eliminate four lifesaving jobs.

"I don't think public safety was taken into consideration at all," he said.

He says the half million dollars would be enough to save those positions for a year with enough left over to make some overdue repairs to his fire stations.

But before you blame Pawtucket's leaders, they felt they didn't have much choice. The way Congress set up the stimulus program, local governments can't always spend stimulus money on what's needed most - even if it would save jobs.

Pawtucket had to find a "shovel ready" project that could go out for bid in 90 days.

Cassidy says he was left in a tough spot.

"If there was a way that I could use some of this money to bring back staff, I certainly would have tried to do that," he said.

The skate park has become so controversial that the city's trying to fix the image problem with an accounting shift. It'll use the stimulus money for another project - road beautification - and move that project's money to the skate park.

But that won't help the firefighters or the others in Pawtucket with so many critical needs - about to get the best skate park around.

[Pleaidian]

That photo is not of the Pawtucket skatepark. Remove it or find a real one. Don't be lazy.

[beeker252]

I used to live in Pawtucket for 3 years due to economy back in 2001. As soon as I lived there, I did not like the way they managed the budget and the personnels there had an attitude that leaves lots to be desired and it reflects on the state legislature as well. I knew there were a possibility that city and state would have problems come the next time a recession shows up. I guessed right which is why I left in 2004 and never looked back. Furthermore the ARRA had money in it to help the state but not the local government deal with the falling revenues due to economic storm and it did had accountibility but like the leaders at all levels, decided it did not applied to them.
Lastly, what I see on the post is nothing more than just rants without facts backing it up. This demonstrate to me that people are not educated to understand the long term impact when you deal with taxes and spending at any levels of the government. Sharyl, great job on doing the "follow the money" segments.

[v1m]

Splendid little idea, this park.

Pawtucket's mismanagement is its own fault. Precisely, it's the fault of a bunch of narrow-minded adults who can't see beyond a bubble economy or the vapid consumer culture in which they dwell.

No reason to blame the kids.

Build the skate park and let them enjoy themselves in a non-capitalist manner for a change.

Without dawdling in dull, ugly shopping malls.

Without being shoehorned into the same old competitive sports for the vicarious pleasure of fat Type-A geezers.

Maybe they'll end up happier than their parents. It's worth trying on those terms alone.

[MaxInProvidence]

I've lived in Rhode Island for twenty years and have been skateboarding for sixteen. I've ridden dozens of skateparks on both coasts and in the midwest. Rhode Island's parks are mostly substandard compared to the rest of the country and region.

I went over to check out the new park today. It's almost done and looks like it'll be the best in RI.

As for the cost, once this thing is built it will be essentially free to maintain. Nobody complains about the hundreds of baseball, football, and soccer fields around the state that require constant expensive maintenance and sit unused most of the time. This skatepark is reinforced concrete with steel coping, which means it will require little or no maintenance. If the parks in Bristol and Johnston are any guide, the Pawtucket park will be in constant use year-round.

Who will benefit? The whole community. Kids who would otherwise sit at home playing video games or be out getting into trouble will have somewhere to hang out and have some good clean fun while getting some exercise. Local stores and restaurants will get more business from people like me who will drive from all over the state to ride park. The skateboard shop in Providence will get more business. The school next door could offer skateboarding as a PE class. Families can come out and watch (there are always a few people up against the fence watching people skate at Stamford, CT's excellent park).

This isn't waste, this is a valuable investment in the community.

[oiaf0831]

Didn't Biden say "No swimming pools?"

I guess he forgot to mention skate parks.

Obama nation!

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

You just can't stand it that you have a black president, and your white power is slipping away. Get over it!

This is your new world. Deal with it.

[pickaguitar1]

Did they have a skate park? No?

Ok...build one then...next!

[clarkalex]

39 separate cities and townships in an area the size of which is like medium sized cities in some states or just a small county in others. I live in RI. We should have 4-6 cities max and yet we have 39. 3 on a 12mi by 9 mi island. It's crazy. Talk about waste of resources and BAD MANAGEMENT. This is the most fiscally mismanaged state in the country. It's should be a dark comedy or a freaking soap opera. The problems of Pawtucket would not have been solved by that stimulus package and go way deeper. The state itself has the same issues. It's not the responsibility of the federal government to cover local and state government's bad decision making processes. Don't blame Obama, Bush or whoever is in the White House. Instead, look at your own local and state government and tell them to get their act together using their own backbone.

[platteman]

When you give away money for shovel ready projects, this is what you get.
Let the states and cities find a way to cut their budgets. Living high on the hog always comes to an end unless you have an unlimited supply of money. Soon the congress, jokers that they are, will have to face the facts. You can't give money away over and over again and stay within the budget.

When you have Robin Hood in charge of his merry men and women, this is what you get. Double talk, double speak and no real substance. Once again, all you left wing liberals voted for him, I hope you got lots of money to pay for his programs and ideas. He is anti-capitalism and a chicago thug. Hope you like what you got.

[Benton09]

As opposed to being in the pockets of the Industrial War Complex and Big Oil as the Bush Regime was.

[ROBACA]

Who will benefit? A few people with a temporary job to build the thing? Who is going to pay for the upkeep? Government waste once again that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

[rhs648]

As much as I oppose the stimulus package, the money should not be used to shore-up state deficits. It is up to the state and local governments to raise the money to pay for state and local employees and programs. The stimulus package was designed to create new jobs. The income earned from these new jobs will be taxed. That is where the state and local governments should get the money to pay for state and local government employees and programs. Further, there must be accountability. The federal government must set standards and requirements. Many of you call for more more regulation. These guidelines/rules are regulations designed to make certain the money is used properly. Otherwise, the money could be diverted to things for which the program wasn't designed. If a state or local government can't raise the money for employees and programs, perhaps they should scale back to what they can afford just like household are forced to do.