Development that's good …

Gov. Frank Murkowski was in Palmer on Monday, along with a bevy of state and local government types, to help break ground on the new state veterans home.

The project has been a long time coming. At different times over the last several years, efforts have been made to address the fact that Alaska remained one of only two states in the union that did not have a home for veterans.

Now this oversight is corrected.

The new facility will be part of the current Pioneer Home. It is being constructed largely with a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, which will allow for the renovation and modernization of the Pioneer Home so it meets federal guidelines for a sanctioned veterans home.

With a high per capita rate of veterans living here in the Valley, hosting the state's veterans home seems like a natural fit. But just having a home for those who gave so much in defense of freedom is even more natural. Veterans did their part to take care of the rest of us, they should know that they will be taken care of in return.