Mayport plans for carrier, but debate continues - Navy News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Navy Times

Mayport plans for carrier, but debate continues

NAVAL STATION MAYPORT, Fla. — When the carrier Carl Vinson tied up to the big pier on the north end of the harbor here in mid-February, locals got a sneak preview of what they hope will become a regular occurrence.

Florida’s First Coast, as local boosters call it, lost its last aircraft carrier in 2007 with the decommissioning of the conventionally powered John F. Kennedy. Unless their congressional delegation can intervene to stop it, many of the frigates that call this their home port are also going to start disappearing. So the next best hope for Mayport is the carrier that local officials, the Navy and the Pentagon all want to put here among the palm trees.

“I’m pretty well convinced that we’re ready,” said Mike Borno, a retired lieutenant commander and mayor of Atlantic Beach, just outside Mayport. The city has kept open a school that some officials wanted to close when Kennedy left, meaning it’s ready to accept new kids when a carrier gets here around 2015.

Once the ship does arrive — the Navy has not yet said which one will be moved — he expects a boost for schools, the local economy and the whole Jacksonville region.

“Mayport’s a well-kept secret in the military — until you get transferred here. Then you discover how nice it is, and you don’t want to get transferred out,” Borno said.

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