The 38 Studios debacle is proof Rhode Island needs a new direction in growing its economy.
- NEWS
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Thursday, October 18, 2012
It has become clear, largely as a result of the 38 Studios debacle, that Rhode Island’s economic development efforts, its attempts to convince businesses to locate and grow in the Ocean State, are adrift and have been, for some time, highly ineffective. While 38 Studios crystallized for many the fact that we are simply not doing a very good job of selling our state, that $75-million boondoggle is just one of a number of questionable decisions by the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, the quasi-public agency whose mission is of paramount importance to the overall welfare of our state and all its citizens. In recent weeks, the General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Economic Development has heard testimony and received study …
The head of the state's Economic Development Corporation has stepped down following the controversy of Curt Schilling's 38 Studios.
- GOVERNMENT
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Thursday, May 17, 2012
Update: Curt Shilling's company pays missed loan payment, according to WHDH Boston. Keith Stokes has stepped down as the head of the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation amid the controversy surrounding Curt Schilling’s videogame company 38 Studios, according to the Providence Journal. The company, headed by the former Red Sox pitcher, defaulted on a $1.125-million payment to the state on May 1. On Wednesday, Schilling and members of 38 Studios met with state and EDC officials in an emergency meeting that was closed to the public. In 2010, EDC approved a $75-million guaranteed loan to the videogame company following 38 Studios’ promise to bring 450 jobs to the state by the end of 2012 and moved its business from Massachusetts to …
Govstench
3:37 pm on Thursday, October 18, 2012
@Timothy: That argument must have been a dinger. First off, the state has no business being in economic development. The EDC has been a dumping ground for political hacks for years. There is no need for some economic equation or magic wand to make this problem go away. The state simply needs to get off the backs of small business. They have over 1,600 regulations that these small business … more ›