NIMBY decisions can be costly

Recent developments in the long process to bring sewer and water service to the prison being built at Point MacKenzie have, as they seem to do lately, prompted grumbling online and on the radio.

But we are not here, at least not today, to weigh the relative merits of the project. We would rather talk about how we got here and a phenomenon that has come to be known as NIMBYism.

If you are not familiar with that particular acronym, it’s short for Not In My Backyard. There are often very good reasons not to have something in your backyard. And sometimes a little NIMBY-ism is warranted.

And whether it’s warranted or not, it’s certainly something we see a lot around here. The prison is a prime example. The rancorous debate over where to locate it took up a sizeable chunk of our time here at the Frontiersman in 2006. Though there were some in favor of the prison being located in their communities, the voices of opposition were very loud in Palmer, Houston and Sutton.

It seems every year we repeat the same process.

In 2007 the NIMBY complaints surrounded Matanuska Electric Association plans to build a coal-powered electrical generation plant. Those plans were eventually dropped and remain dead. But we are hard pressed to remember a public meeting on the idea that was not packed to the gills with angry would-be neighbors of the project.

In 2008 it was the Bogard Road extension that brought out the concerned neighbors. These days it’s Usibelli Coal Mine and its potential mine in the Buffalo Mine Road/Soapstone Road area.

So what does all this have to do with the price of sewage service in Point MacKenzie? It’s an example of how when we as a community choose to push these kinds of projects to the periphery, the fiscal implications are often great.

The state has known for a very long time that in order to have its prison in Point MacKenzie it would have to pay substantially more for water and sewer. This year we were able to put a dollar amount on that. The Department of Corrections will have to pay $5.35 per day, perinmate for the services. Which is 10 times the 53 cents it pays for the same services at Hiland Mountain Correctional Center in Eagle River.

It’s not hard to see those costs in other projects. MEA officials are now set to rely on natural gas and are biting their nails over possible supply shortages. Had the neighbors of the Bogard project won the day, we would now be seeking to build a costlier, less effective east-west traffic corridor.

Getting back to the prison — the Department of Corrections could have avoided these extra costs if it had found a way to locate a prison somewhere closer to city services. Mat-Su Regional Medical Center, for example, is on a city system. And Valley residents embarked on one of the most ambitious public works projects in this region’s history to make it happen.

We’re not convinced that plunking a prison down in the middle of an established city like Palmer or Wasilla was a better option. But it was the cheaper option. Those who would complain about the way the Department of Corrections and the borough have chosen to provide those services should remember what the alternative was. And neighbors worried about big projects in their areas should keep these costs in mind the next time a NIMBY fight is gearing up.