By Mike Fitts
and Ashley Fletcher Frampton
Published June 29, 2009

The S.C. Budget and Control Board today signed off a $9.2 million loan for repairs to the USS Laffey, a destroyer at Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum.

The Patriots Point Development Authority is concerned that the Laffey, which fought in both the European and Pacific theaters in World War II, could sink at the dock and possibly release pollution into the region’s waterways.

State Treasurer Converse Chellis, one of five members on the state board, toured the rusted ship on June 11 and announced the possibility of the loan. Chellis called two other members of the board while aboard the Laffey and asked them to vote for the loan at today’s meeting.

During the board’s discussion today, Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom asked if other, less expensive actions are possible.

For example, he asked if the Laffey could be allowed to rest on the bottom of the harbor, like the museum’s aircraft carrier, or if Patriots Point could acquire another destroyer from the Navy to replace the Laffey.

Chellis bristled at the suggestion that the state abandon the Laffey, which earned the nickname “The Ship that Would Not Die” during its battle days.

Patriots Point interim executive director Dick Trammell told the board that the ship could not rest on the bottom at the dock without water overflowing its deck.

If the ship sinks before repairs are made, the added expenses would be considerable, Trammell said.

Officials have said that turning the Laffey into an artificial reef would cost $8.7 million, not significantly less than the cost of repairing it.

The $9.2 million loan comes from money set aside for other state capital improvement projects, Chellis said. Patriots Point has promised to pay the money back by 2010, before it will be required for those projects.

Patriots Point, which does not receive regular state or federal funding, is banking on a request for $20 million in next year’s federal budget to pay back the loan.

The attraction’s $8 million annual operating budget does not cover capital expenses, officials have said.

Its leaders have struggled to find money for the repairs at a time when visitor numbers and revenue are declining. Earlier this year the attraction laid off 11 employees.

The attraction’s board of directors is working on a master plan for its 445 acres that could include new development, generating more revenue.

The Laffey repairs are the most pressing of about $50 million in repair work needed for the museum’s ships. The USS Yorktown, the attraction’s aircraft carrier and largest ship, also has rust damage that needs attention.

Trammell has said the Laffey would be moved to dry dock for repair work in August or September.

Related stories:
A story to tell: Patriots Point looking toward future
State to lend Patriots Point $9.2M to save USS Laffey