Know what you're voting for …

Frontiersman editorial board

For years, Mat-Su residents have complained about the lack of facilities for sports events and large-scale conventions. The city of Wasilla went beyond talk and came up with a plan to do something about it.

This spring, Wasilla voters will decide on a proposal to build a nearly $15 million complex and tax shoppers an additional half percent to fund it.

The desire for such a facility is not new to Mat-Su. But as both private and public entities have brainstormed ideas, they knew they had to come up with a plan that would be both sufficient to meet the need and economically feasible.

We hope Wasilla's can meet both these requirements.

It is clear that it is difficult to line up ice time and to book meeting space for large groups in the Valley's existing facilities. Again and again, we hear from hockey teams who struggle to get their time on the ice. Again and again, we see community groups and trade organizations packing themselves into library rooms, school gymnasiums and other inadequate facilities.

Wasilla's plan provides a new and better answer to these local problems. But just as importantly, we feel that once existing needs are met the potential could snowball and we could begin to attract more people to our Valley. Conventions now held in other areas of the state could come to the Mat-Su Valley, where in the summer attendees can spend their off-hours fishing and in the winter snowmachining.

All this would be great for our community and our economy.

At the same time, we recognize that the voters and taxpayers who back this plan are putting their necks on the line for a facility that, if successful, will benefit the entire Mat-Su Borough. While the decision will ultimately be left to Wasilla residents who show up at the polls, anyone who shops in the city will bear the expense of building the complex.

We also recognize that this project has grown dramatically in scope since originally proposed and that many people still have doubts about its true costs and ultimate feasibility.

Our advice to Wasilla residents -- get involved in the discussion before you vote. Attend council meetings, ask the necessary questions and pin down the details. How much will it really cost to run utilities out to the proposed site? Are the estimated number of staff members and their corresponding salaries adequate to take care of the complex?

We think a sports and convention facility would be a wonderful asset to our community, one that could improve our individual quality of life and our economy. But rather than being overly optimistic about the costs of such a facility, we feel Wasilla residents should clearly understand what they're getting into before they cast their vote.