Where is the line between graciousness and doormat?

Frontiersman editorial board

In the interest of being a good host to new businesses, the city of Wasilla is again extending a gracious hand, filled with cash, to help a business out of a problem of its own making. The Home Depot store in Wasilla is operating with a fire-sprinkler system that doesn't meet state standards. The store is hooked up to city water and the pressure is not adequate, according to state regulations.

Engineers for Home Depot tested pressure on the city's lines prior to beginning construction of the store. They determined pressure was adequate, and decided to connect to city water. Just days before opening, Home Depot discovered that pressure was not adequate and that, unless the store remedied the problem, it would have to close its doors. The Home Depot threatened to sue the city unless the city provided a solution to the problem.

According to Wasilla Public Works Director Archie Giddings, the city plans to solve Home Depot's problem by installing a water tower, at a price of about $1 million. Giddings said the city's water utility plan from 2001 already anticipated the need to increase volume and/or pressure along that line, and he added that grant funds left over from installing the loop serving that area will be used to do the work. In short, it won't be city money, and it is work that would have been done eventually anyway, according to Giddings.

Still, the problem was caused by Home Depot. Its engineers tested the lines and determined to use city water. Had they determined there might be a problem, Giddings said the city would have exempted the store from connecting to the city system. In that case, the store would have had to install its own tower. Giddings said that wouldn't have solved the problem for future development along the Palmer/Wasilla Highway Extension.

That may be true, but it's clear Home Depot has forced the city's hand on this one. The store created a problem and is now using up grant money that belongs to Wasilla to fix it. It is important to create a business-friendly environment, but that relationship has to go both ways. When Intel built a plant in Rio Rancho, N.M., the city and state provided tax incentives, and Intel built a new high school for Rio Rancho. Between the water tower and the two traffic lights Wasilla is considering installing for Home Depot and Lowe's, the new businesses could cost the city $2 million or more. Being a good host shouldn't cost that much.