Oil spill trustee council to visit Cordova, discuss center

CATHY SHERMAN

April 25, 2008 at 10:50AM AKST

For The Cordova Times

The adage slow and steady wins the race might seem appropriate for our community center project. Here’s an update.

We have an important opportunity to demonstrate community support for this project on Thursday, May 1, when the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council visits Cordova.

The six federal and state trustees want to hear testimony from Cordovans, at a meeting set for 6:30 p.m. in Mount Eccles auditorium, about our wishes and direction for use of remaining funds in the oil spill settlement.

We’ve requested about $7 million from the EVOS fund, which reportedly has more than $120 million remaining in its balance.

The council is charged to spend these funds on restoration activities that have links to the 1989 oil spill.

Cordova Center Committee Chair Dan Logan sees the center as addressing the human services impacted by the oil spill. The Cordova Center combines a conference center with theatre/auditorium and meeting rooms, library, museum, Science Discovery Room, Oil Spill Response Center and visitors’ center, as well as some city offices.

"It will replace aging and obsolete facilities," Logan said, "and also will offer more opportunities to host conventions, performances and meetings. The Discovery Room and Oil Spill Response Center will directly address issues related to the ’89 spill."

"The center will aid and assist Cordova as an impacted community in helping to diversity and stabilize our economy," said Mayor Tim Joyce, who will be making a presentation at the meeting.

"The city will gain economic benefits from the conference market the Center will access," said Joyce, "bringing increased sales tax, lodging tax and car rental tax revenues. This will accelerate the recovery of the damaged human services."

The Cordova Center committee has developed a broad list of funding sources. The Trustee Council’s support is critical to leverage some of those additional sources. These include private foundations and corporations, federal and state funding, and municipal and local fund-raising. Proposals are developed and submitted to many of these sources with great results.

To date, $5.2 million is secured for a project estimated to cost $17 million.

Cathy Sherman is the information specialist for the city of Cordova.