Debate over Public Funding for Cruise Ship Ports

Same arguments to support taxpayer-funded sports stadiums invoked

Controversy roils the waters of the Charleston, S.C., harbor and others in the US. At issue: Is the ever-expanding cruise ship industry a cost or benefit to port cities? And how much should taxpayers chip in for port facilities versus what they can expect in return?

Since 2010 the 2,000-passenger Carnival Cruise ship Fantasy has been based in Charleston at a terminal, which, according to the Post & Courier, is now considered old and outdated. Under debate is whether a new, $35 million cruise ship terminal should be built.

Opposing the new terminal is Cruise Control, a preservationist group, as well as individual citizens who object to cruise ships' noise and pollution. One Charleston resident whose home sits near the existing terminal complains to the New York Times, "I can hear the [ship's] announcements from my house. And that black smoke. It just tumbles out of that smokestack. You should see the dust in my car."