Man in the middle (continued)

THE PREVAILING VIEW of Duffy, in fact, is that of the quintessential Rhode Island good guy — someone who rose from modest Pawtucket roots to become a successful PR whiz, good government supporter, and honest broker widely admired for his devotion to civic and charitable endeavors.

A self-described political independent more closely identified with Republicans, Duffy nonetheless attracts plaudits from even some of the state’s most partisan Democrats. Bill Lynch, chairman of the Rhode Island Democratic Party and a fellow Pawtucket native, for example, says, "I’ve known him probably since I was 15 years old, and I’ve always found him to be a sincerely well-intentioned, well-meaning guy who came from a humble background and did phenomenally well in business. When I see him, I like to give him a hard time, because I remember him back when he was a working Irish Democrat from Pawtucket, bartending at Duffy’s Tavern on Broadway, and now when I see him, he always has a tuxedo on and he’s hanging around with a lot of Republicans."

Political consultant Guy Dufault, a Pawtucket native and former chairman of the state Democratic Party, says, "I think Dave’s a terrific guy. He’s been great for the community. One of the best things he’s done, he’s been willing to give back to the community, and he’s someone you could always count on who wants to make the whole state better." (Dufault inherited the representation of the Narragansett Indians when Duffy’s firm relinquished it in the late ’90s, after then-governor Lincoln Almond pointed out how the tribe’s casino aspirations contrasted with the stance of another Duffy & Shanley client, the state Economic Development Corporation.)

The extent of this kind of civic commitment can be seen in Duffy’s voluminous two-page listing of past and present activities, organizations, and awards. A small sampling includes his current service as a director of Citizens Bank of Rhode Island and Connecticut; a trustee of Rhode Island Hospital; a director of the Channel 36 Foundation; and past efforts as the founding chairman of the Rhode Island Sports Council; chairman of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce; director of the John E. Fogarty Foundation for the Mentally Retarded; a trustee of Save the Bay; director of the Rhode Island Holocaust Museum; and chairman of the national board of directors of the National Conference for Community and Justice.

Duffy says he takes this kind of commitment — "I don’t call it giving back, I call it community-building" — so seriously that he asked every professional on his staff, as Duffy & Shanley grew from a small firm, to be on a nonprofit board. "That’s part business and part goodwill, because you meet people on these boards that can lead you to some business," he says, "but you can’t go into it with that attitude — that’s a byproduct of doing good. I never played golf. I said, well, that’s my hobby. It’s more than a hobby — it’s a way of life to me."

At times, this approach has also intersected with state government — a stance, even if well intentioned, that would seem to keep his firm in a very positive light. In the mid-’80s, for example, Duffy & Shanley developed a donated advertising campaign for the state under the DiPrete administration with the motto, "Rhode Island — Our people make us great." In 1995, the ProJo reported that Duffy & Shanley produced on a complimentary basis television, radio, and newspaper ads for the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce supporting then-governor Almond’s budget proposals. Duffy was a member of the chamber’s board of directors at the time. Asked if it was a conflict to do projects for the chamber while serving on its board for many years, he says such efforts were mostly done on a voluntary basis.

Still, it’s not hard to contend that Duffy and Carcieri’s advocacy for the sale of the Westin — which is conditioned on an agreement to build a neighboring tower with additional 200 rooms — and the rejuvenation of the Dunkin’ Donuts Center align with the public interest, even if the latter project would also benefit Duffy’s beloved PC Friars.

The additional 200 hotel rooms would raise the number in proximity to the Convention Center to 560, "which would allow us to sell several hundred more clients that we can’t approach right now," Duffy says, thereby strengthening the core mission of the Convention Center Authority, and offering the related spinoff economic effects to Providence businesses. Since the Dunkin’ Donuts Center "sooner or later would have to close without some substantial help," he says, "this is as much about helping the city."

Although the problems with the planned sale of the Westin to the Procaccianti Group provided a steady stream of front-page grist for ProJo business reporter Andrea Stape through January, Carcieri contends the state will ultimately benefit. "There’s no fiasco, okay? The fact is we had a lot of bidders at a price that nobody thought we could ever get," the governor told me recently on WPRI/WNAC-TV’s (Channels 12 and 64) Newsmakers. "I resurrected [this] a year ago — said let’s get us out of the hotel business. At the time, people were saying, [the Westin could sell for] oh, $65-$70 million. Ninety-five, 95 and a half is the Procaccianti bid. And right behind them was one at $95 million from a Mass Mutual subsidiary. So I think it’s a great property. That price nationwide will stack up with the market anywhere, so I think the disappointing thing is that there was not a disclosure to the Convention Center Authority at the time that there was an outstanding DEPCO issue. You can say that they should have known it, but they asked the people to disclose it."

Lieutenant Governor Charles Fogarty, a Democrat, and ProJo political columnist M. Charles Bakst rapped Duffy and the Convention Center Authority for being too secretive about releasing information about the 15 bidders for the Westin. Duffy, however, says, "I absolutely reject the charge that we are shrouded with secrecy around here. There were good business reasons not to give it to them [the Journal] when they wanted it, as our process was not complete. As soon as the vote was taken, they were given all 15 bids."