To the U.S. Senate, doesn't a half-million jobs mean anything?
By Russell A. Davidson
February 11, 2009
The writer is president of Mount Kisco-based KG&D Architects, which is engaged in school and other building projects throughout the Lower Hudson Valley. He was 2007 president of the American Institute of Architects of New York State.
More than 100 years ago, the architect Daniel Burnham said, "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be realized." While the federal stimulus package currently under consideration is certainly no little plan, the proposed changes by the Senate removed all of the elements that would even touch individual Americans, no less have any magic to stir men's blood.
I was one of more than 800 architects from around the country in Washington last week urging our local congressional leaders to place a high priority on investments in infrastructure as part of the economic stimulus bill. But, as we left the nation's capital, the Senate "compromise" eliminated $19.5 billion in infrastructure spending for schools and cut another $1.5 billion for energy-efficient federal buildings. And, with those cuts, the Senate tossed aside more than 500,000 jobs that might have benefited our local community and national economy.
As the global financial crisis continues to threaten the livelihood of American businesses and workers, the Senate's priority was to tell millions of American workers in the design and construction industry that they don't deserve to be a part of the economic recovery. Nearly 1 million jobs have been lost in this vital sector of the economy - which accounts for 1 in 10 dollars of Gross Domestic Product - over the past two years. A study conducted by the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University states that each $1 million in construction spending supports 28.5 full-time jobs. The Senate's compromise only slows the momentum of jobs creation.
As an architect active in this sector of the construction economy in the Lower Hudson Valley I see first-hand how many jobs school construction creates and sustains right here in our area. Every tier of the local design and construction industry including architects and engineers, construction contractors, union trades of all types, laborers and materials suppliers benefit from these projects. School buildings comprise the largest type of publicly funded building in this country, and they impact every neighborhood.
Has Congress lost its bearings? Generations of students are preparing for life in the global economy in FEMA-like trailers or classrooms with falling ceiling tiles. According to the National Education Association, it would take more than $268 billion to repair and modernize America's K-12 school facilities. In fact, the state Education Data Center of the Council of Chief State School Officers shows average spending by school districts on operations and maintenance is $900 per student, or $45 billion nationwide per year. This means it costs school districts $45 billion just to maintain school buildings' current condition. Construction adds an additional $45 billion per year.
In an economic crisis as grave as this, we need to do everything we can to stimulate the economy and rebuild our communities. What better way to do so than to invest in our children?
Please read the entire article at:
http://lohud.com/article/20090211/OPINION/902110308/1076/OPINION01
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