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	The Positive Plaza Alternative coalition is a group of area residents devoted to getting the "other side" of the Plaza issue considered and discussed. We're tired of the naysayers and gloom mongers dominating the discussion, only looking at the negative side of the Plaza, especially when it's probably going to happen regardless. Of course there are problems with the Plaza expansion, especially for the City of Port Huron – but there are also tremendous opportunities. An expanded Plaza and expressway Corridor alone won't automatically turn the opportunities into benefits, but they offer a window of opportunity that we can make use of. If we take prompt and visionary action, we may be able to get some benefits to counterbalance the problems. If we do nothing, we will get only the problems while others reap the benefits. Coalition coordinator Roger Thomas lives in the Plaza Zone and has been following the expansion project since inception. He explains why he helped begin this initiative:

"I've lived in Port Huron for 30 years. I was transferred here to serve on the cutter Bramble, and after leaving the Coast Guard stayed around. I attended SC4 and Oakland University, earning a bachelor's in computer science. I've run my consultancy out of this area for 18 years. All my children have attended Port Huron Area Schools. I love the area, which is why I chose to raise my family here. "There are two very depressing things Blue Water Area residents can do. One is drive around the Port Huron Industrial Park and look at all the vacant buildings. I can remember when many of those buildings opened to great fanfare and headlines about all the workers this business was going to hire. Now many stand vacant, like giant tombstones marking the graveyard of manufacturing jobs in the area. "The other depressing thing to do is pick up one of the local high school yearbooks and turn to the pages where the graduates talk about their future plans. Almost none of them mention staying in the Blue Water area. Many of them say plainly that they hope to move out of state – New York, California, anywhere but here. Tragically, the more capable the student, the more likely he or she is to move away. Our best and our brightest are envisioning their future elsewhere! In fact, my high school aged children tell me that among their classmates, 'having' to attend local colleges and stay near the area is considered a second-best solution – what you do if you can't get anything better. "If we want our children to stay around and continue to build this area, we need to create viable industries that provide jobs for them to come home to. Diversification is the key to our future. Being right on an international border, the City of Port Huron and surrounding communities are in a position other cities would love to have: major assets like an international bridge and waterway system are already in place. All we have to do is take advantage of them! "My involvement with the Living in Limbo coalition opened my eyes to just how little forward thinking is being done with respect to the Plaza and Corridor projects. The City Council, Administration, and local media are acting like the projects are the problem, rather than the golden opportunity they are! Ten years ago Port Huron was all but stripped of the benefits of being a border community by a Plaza structure that shoved the border traffic up over everyone's head. Now the State returns to offer a "do-over" – the chance to remake the Plaza in a design that could work with our local economic plans. As a community we need to stop thinking in such narrow and simplistic terms about the Plaza expansion and start looking at how to capitalize on the opportunities it offers." Positive Plaza Alternatives is an independent coalition of Blue Water area citizens devoted to promoting a serious discussion of the problems and opportunities presented by the Plaza and Corridor projects. We are not affiliated with or funded by any business, political group, government agency, community foundation, or other organization. We welcome all serious input on any side of this issue, and will publish constructive points submitted. Abusive and juvenile input will be discarded unread.