USS Ticonderoga may come home to Pascagoula

Cherie Ward; The Mississippi Press

BATON ROUGE - More than 40 officials and community leaders from Jackson County embarked Thursday on a fact finding mission to tour the destroyer USS Kidd in Louisiana. The exploratory trip, sponsored by the Mississippi Ticonderoga Project and Vision Tours of Ocean Springs, was intended to provide ways to relocate the decommissioned USS Ticonderoga to Pascagoula. The guided missile cruiser would be the centerpiece of a proposed Mississippi Maritime and Warship Museum on the east bank of the city - in the heart of a proposed waterfront development.

"We want it on the Pascagoula River," said Dr. Jack Hoover, president of the Mississippi Ticonderoga Project. "We would like it as close as possible to the Highway 90 bridge for visibility to get more people in."
Hoover said the cost of the project is predicted to be $8 million to $10 million for transferring and setup.
"But, we plan to ask some of the bigger businesses for the majority of that," Hoover said. "It's a piece of our history. The ship was built at Ingalls in 1982. Businesses around here have made money off of the shipyard for years. So many people come up to me and say we have to have the ship here. The vets who served on the ship want it here."

Hoover organized the trip to tour the Kidd in hopes to gain county and statewide support for the project.
"I want everyone we invited today to take away from this trip that this is a beautiful project," Hoover said. "It will be extremely beneficial to the city of Pascagoula, Jackson County and to the whole state. Mississippi does not have a warship museum."
Maury Drummond, executive director of the USS Kidd Veterans Memorial, spent about an hour with the group answering questions and providing information about Baton Rouge's journey to gain its warship.

Drummond painted a picture of a worthwhile project with plenty of community involvement.
"Get the women involved," the 20-year director said, laughing. "Women will get things done and sometimes men just talk about it."
Most of the funds the museum receives are mainly from the gift shop, military reunions and overnight youth programs, but Drummond said the city allocates $225,000 annually for upkeep. He said city officials wanted 300,000 visitors yearly, but the ship sees about 80,000 visitors each year.
"And that's plenty," Drummond said. "If you get that many you're set. I'm willing to help in anyway I can."
Hoover said a hurricane plan would be developed as part of U.S. Navy requirements for the ship being transferred from the Naval Inactive Ships Maintenance Facility in Philadelphia, Pa.

"The ship would be hurricane-proof and up to Navy standards," Hoover said. City officials agreed the location would be perfect, history would come alive in Pascagoula with a warship museum and it could be an added attraction.
"But, I have said from the beginning that I do not want taxpayer dollars spent on the setup," Pascagoula Mayor Matthew Avara said. "I have said many times that this administration will not raise taxes. I think it's a doable-do and it would be the lighthouse of the waterfront project. I'll go anywhere and talk to anyone about it - I just won't spend taxpayer money on it.'

Avara said he would volunteer city staff to research and try to obtain grant funds for the project, but would not support allocating as much money as the Kidd receives annually from Baton Rouge. Todd Trenchard, communication director for Merchants & Marine Bank echoed the mayor.
"I think it's a good project," Trenchard said, "if we can find the financial resources for it. It's an important part of our history, but we're still recovering from Katrina."

Debbie Anglin, communications director with the Pascagoula School District, said she's excited about the prospect of a warship for students to tour. "It's a part of our history," Anglin said. "Our students' family members built the ship and for them to be able to explore it is very exciting. I'm already thinking of ways we can utilize it in the school system." Hoover said he understands the journey to bring the Ticonderoga to Pascagoula is long, but with help from the community it is obtainable.

Reporter Cherie Ward can be reached at cward@themississippipress.com or 228-934-1442.

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