People who know that a healthy economy includes high-quality manufacturing and other blue-collar jobs are pleased to hear a campaign is underway to protect the Providence waterfront from total gentrification.

Some developers here want a place wherein there are only condos and restaurants for the affluent, served by low-paid people. But the middle class needs manufacturing and marine-shipping jobs, which pay much better than service jobs. A thin layer of rich people and a thick one of low paid service workers with a shrinking middle class in between is socio-economically grotesque. One of Rhode Island’s comparative advantages is that it has ports. We must protect them.