The band will play on, thank goodness.

On Tuesday came the news that the Coast Guard had decided not to move the Coast Guard Band to Washington D.C. from its only home for its 91-year existence, New London.

This newspaper remains perplexed why Coast Guard leadership ever pursued this potential move. Adm. Paul Zukunft, the commandant, had taken note that among the Armed Forces, the Coast Guard alone had no band stationed in the nation’s capital. Unlike the larger armed services, the Coast Guard has only the one band.

The announcement last September of the potential move did not include evidence that getting the band to Washington when necessary for official functions had suddenly become a big problem. Absent a problem, there seemed to no need to make a change. Fortunately for New London and this region, the working group formed to consider the “costs and logistics of a potential relocation” also concluded there was no good reason to relocate the 55-member band.

In making the decision to keep the band in New London, operating out of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy there, Zukunft said the review panel concluded the band could best achieve its mission by staying put. It did recommend increased efforts to improve the band's visibility by performing more frequently at events in Washington and at venues across the nation.

That makes sense. The Coast Guard Band is a great emissary for the service and if it raises more interest in the service’s lifesaving and national security mission, that’s good for the academy and for New London. After all, the city soon hopes to be hosting the National Coast Guard Museum.

The state’s delegation in Washington, Sens. Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy, and Rep. Joe Courtney, all applied political pressure to keep the band in New London. Whether that played a factor, who knows, but it couldn’t hurt.

The band is beloved by the southeastern Connecticut community. Its local performances are always well attended. Band members call the region home. Some members play with the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra and other local ensembles.

Sound the trumpets! They’re staying.