Editorial: Levin leaves lasting impression on Alpena

When we think of Alpena's history there are names that immediately come to mind of those who walked before us, but whose contributions and legacies had significant impact on the region at that time.

As historians write today's history, one name that should forever be remembered as playing a significant role in this community's growth is that of U.S. Sen. Carl Levin. While Levin is elected to represent constituents across Michigan, it could well be argued he holds a special affinity to the constituents of Northeast Michigan.

To say Levin has been good to Alpena is not even fair and doesn't begin to justify the senator's contributions. Levin hasn't been good — he's been fantastic to and for Alpena.

Evidence of the senator's influence in Washington, D.C., is everywhere around us. While we're sure many in other parts of the country might argue such influence is unfair and nothing more than pork, we would counter it is economic development at its best — with a track record we'd put up against any federally funded program in the country.

If you doubt for a minute the senator's influence, look at the stories run in the newspaper over the past week. Levin was at the National Marine Sanctuary's unveiling of its new exhibit, the Alpena Regional Medical Center to see firsthand the cooperation between the sanctuary and the hospital with the hyperbaric chamber, and the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center for its ribbon-cutting for the new squadron operations training facility and new radar system.

Without Levin's influence, each of those projects would have had a hard time coming to fruition. Trust us, each of those projects are wonderful and stand on their own merit. However, it certainly helps when you have a high-ranking senator in the U.S. Senate personally adopting each of those and seeing them to conclusion.

Does anyone else find it odd that once Levin was scheduled to be in Alpena last weekend that suddenly the state's dispute with ARMC officials over the hyperbaric chamber was settled? If ever there were evidence of the senator's influence, there it would be.

As this decade's history is written, Levin's name will be mentioned prominently regarding Alpena and Northeast Michigan.