Earle ships rumored to
relocate staying for now
Pallone and Holt critical
of any proposal to move
ships to Norfolk
Rumors that the U.S. Navy planned to move two of its ships from the Naval Weapons Station Earle pier in the Leonardo section of Middletown to Norfolk, Va., had politicians and community leaders in an uproar last week.
But the Navy secretary’s confirmation that no decision is imminent has put the affected communities at ease for the time being.
At the time, the rumor of the ships’ move was confirmed in a statement by Adm. James Amerault, deputy director for Naval Operations, according to Congressman Frank Pallone (D-6). The statement said that the USS Detroit and USS Seattle would be sent to Virginia or some other location outside of the mid-Atlantic region, and that "under the Navy’s proposal, the Detroit and Seattle would be replaced in three to five years by new vessels."
The decision was purportedly brought about by what the Navy referred to as a substandard quality of life at Earle for Navy personnel. Pallone and Congressman Rush Holt (D-12) denounced such claims, saying that they had received much feedback from Earle personnel touting Monmouth County as having a far better living environment than the Virginia base.
The decision was supposed to be made within two weeks, according to initial reports and confirmations, yet all those reports were denied by Secretary of the Navy Richard Danzig after Holt and Pallone demanded a conference on the matter via letter. Danzig did say that ideas had been bandied about on lower Navy levels debating a possible move of the two ships, but no edict was ever set in stone.
As of Friday, according to Pallone, Danzig said that he had not reviewed any documentation backing any assertion that home port assignments of the two ships would be changed.
Holt and Pallone demanded that any plans to relocate the ships that may cross his desk in the near future be abandoned. The two also asked that Danzig become personally involved in the matter.
Pallone said that the Earle employees he had encountered cited a preference for Monmouth County based on a positive community atmosphere and a quality education system. Pallone and Holt called the quality of life issue an excuse.
Holt and Pallone also pointed out that any quality of life dilemmas at Earle could be addressed and easily remedied. The two lawmakers also agreed that a move would not only compromise national security, but would be far cheaper to address without moving the ships and their thousands of personnel.
"The Navy is suggesting that the ships will continue to work out of Earle," said Holt in a released statement. "Accordingly, it makes no sense that they would be homeported at a facility that is hundreds of miles away from the site of their principal work." Pallone added that "it is obviously cheaper to have the ships homeported where they do their work."
Concerning the debated quality of life at Earle, Pallone asked for confirmation via a written list of Navy concerns.
Danzig said he would send Navy officials to Earle to discuss with Holt and Pallone the allegations of substandard life in Monmouth County for Navy personnel. "I feel that we now have the chance to show the Navy how important the sailors are to our communities," a Pallone statement read. "Most of them are happy in the Monmouth County area."
Noting that millions of dollars worth of improvements to Earle living conditions have been undertaken in recent years, Pallone feels confident that any outstanding quality of life issues can be rectified easily and cost-effectively.
Earle employs thousands of civilian and noncivilian people. The business community is up in arms over the thought of a move because not only will many civilians be thrust into the throngs of the unemployed should the ships relocate, but many of the businesses that have come to depend on Earle personnel’s patronage will suffer from the change in port.
Another angle approached by many is that Earle personnel are an integral part of the community. Some, especially those in Middletown, have come to know and love the sailors and their families.
Middletown residents see a move as a great loss to the community. "Earle is certainly tied in with our economy," said Middletown Mayor Rosemarie Peters. "There are a lot of civilian jobs there that, if done away with, would surely have an impact. Besides the economic factor, the base has been a good neighbor. Its personnel gets involved in a lot of community betterment issues and works in concert with our Emergency Management Office when problems arise."
With respect to talk of national security compromise with the two ships being relocated, Middletown Police Capt. Joseph Schaffery said, in his humble opinion, "There’s no threat whatsoever. Those ships don’t defend New York Harbor; they just supply the fleet. If they were combat ships or destroyers, the consequences may be different. Besides that, we’ve always had a great rapport with the Navy. We help them. They help us.
"If the ships relocate, it would just translate to maybe just a little less work in districts surrounding Earle for us. I honestly feel that the Earle personnel are not an integral part of economy in Middletown. Most of the people are housed at Earle facility in Colts Neck."
On the other hand, some in Tinton Falls would welcome the change. Tinton Falls residents have been known to complain about Earle’s strain on their school system, with 360 children of Earle families attending Tinton Falls schools and taxpayers bearing the extra tax dollar burden.
Tinton Falls Schools Superintendent Carol Moldan recently said that part of the reason a $6.7 million referendum was voted down was that the parents of these 360 students do not vote or pay taxes in the borough, and they represent a large portion of the student body.
Moldan said that although the schools are dedicated to providing the children with the education they deserve, many in the community continue to complain about the strain. Attempts were made to transfer the Earle students to Eatontown schools, where enrollment is low, but these attempts failed.
Pallone and Holt are encouraged by Danzig’s involvement in the issue. They feel that with Danzig fully apprised and involved in local developments, any points of contention will be floated to the surface for public scrutiny.
"By bringing this to the personal attention of Secretary Danzig, we can now be assured that any decision regarding the ships at Earle will be made at the highest level of the Navy, with full opportunity for public examination and input," Holt said.
Holt reiterated that when all is said and done, he’s sure that the ships will remain at Earle "for reasons of national security, Navy logistics, and because it provides the best quality of life for sailors and their families."