8000 jobs, Wow! why don't I believe it? While I hope the Cup comes to Newport I don't believe that it will create 8000 jobs. What qualifies as a job ? If a UPS driver delivers plans to a related job site did it create a job. The definition of a job is being stretched to get people to agree to a huge amount of investments with public money . Figures run from ten to fifty million. There will be additional costs in future years as well. Sounds like the rich man does the dancing while the working man pays the band. I want the America's cup to come. We just have to find a way for those who play to pay. Run some fund raisers at the yacht clubs.

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The America's Cup is big busines. If the America's Cup located here many of the boats would be built here creating jobs. Some people would start or expand their operations here. Our economy is worse here than in most of the country. R.I. is not known as a good place to do business. You have to compete to get jobs. R.I. does not do so well attracting business. Why not change that righ now.
How is the value of your house? It's was a rhetorical question. We are the only state in the country that has cosistently lost population. In order for property prices to rise, we need population growth.
Each of the sydicates that will compete for the Cup brings hundreds of people with them. They have to live some place. There may be 10-12 sydicates. Restaurants,groceries,clothing and everything else have to purchased.
I haven't even touched on tourism. The races are held in September and October. The Cup is a huge deal now. When it was in Newport it was much smaller and it hlped to bring people in to see it. The thing that would surprise most people is tourism was better the following summer. The name Newport was on television and newspapers every where in the world. You couldn't buy that much publicity. People heard about Newport and vacationed here the following year. The tourists tended to be more cosmopotin in those years.
In conclusion, if we want growth in R.I. we have to compete for it. Fighting for and getting the Cup would make a huge statement.

Mike Vickers ,Check the facts before you become a cheer leader.
If the America's Cup located here many of the boats would be built here creating jobs. False
The boats are built for the most part in their country of origin.
We are the only state in the country that has consistently lost population . False
According to the census we gained a small amount in population
Newport hotels and restaurants hire thousands of people . Many of them are workers from foreign countries on work visa's . Check the statistics, and look how many foreign workers take jobs in RI. I have worked in Newport since I moved back to RI in 1992. I want the cup to come back, we need the added revenue. I also want those who play, to pay the tab.

From the projo a couple years ago.

Rhode Island hotel and restaurant owners say they’re in a bind because about 600 foreign workers, who had been able to work in Rhode Island under temporary visas, are unable to return this year because of an impasse in Congress. Legislation that would increase the number of workers allowed into the country under the visa program, designated H-2B by the federal government, has stalled in Congress because of the general controversy over the immigration issue.

“People are scared. They are desperate to find workers,” said Frank Flanagan, a Newport attorney who specializes in immigration.

Dale Venturini, president of the Rhode Island Hospitality and Tourism Association, said H-2B workers, mostly from Jamaica, are typically employed as housekeepers and kitchen help at hotels, restaurants and bed-and-breakfasts on Block Island and Newport during the summer tourist season.

PS these numbers do not include the illegal immigrants that wash the dishes and are paid in cash.

Mike Vickers
I was born in RI and left in 1978 . Went to school in Portsmouth and Newport. I had many friends in the fifth ward and spent a lot of time in the city. I remember the beginning of the tourism industry and the loss of the navy. I left to join the army . I remember when Dennis Conner lost the cup. I remember the loss to the area when it left. Like the tall ships of 76 it created jobs for a short time. When you add all the short event together you have full time jobs. I don't want my tax dollars used to fund speculative investments. The people who will profit from the event should risk their dollars .
The states problems are so many I would not have enough time or space to list them. The best I can tell you is, Vote out all the people who believe Government is the answer.