Most of us are passionate about Homer. Each of us has our own particular reasons for this passion. We live here because of that passion. To some, the passion is driven by the quality of life. Some because of job opportunities. Some of us are passionate about retiring here, while others have a passion for just "hanging out."
As part of this passion, this quality of life and these reasons for being here, we have come to expect certain values from the community, while we, in turn, add value to the community. This is what makes our community "tick." The values we expect include reasonable health care, good education for our children, job opportunities, a sound economy and a dedicated city government. If we have children or grandchildren, we have a desire to see them share our passion and remain in our community following their education. We want them to both share in the value and contribute value.
If our expectations are not met, our passion wanes, we become disenchanted with our town and move on to something else in another community. Or, if the expectations of our children and grandchildren are not realized, they, too, move on. In fact, the passion for Homer and the values in our community are such that most of the people who move on do so only because they have limited or no job or career opportunities here, or because job opportunities appear to be greater elsewhere.
Fortunately, the Homer economy has continued to grow and prosper, which, in turn, provides job opportunities, allows us to expand quality health care and provide for the education needs for our children. A growing and prosperous economy benefits nonprofits, too. The community wealth created by a vibrant economy has a significant impact on the well-being of these valuable organizations that represent an important part of our quality of life. The private sector, the nonprofit sector, and the public/government sector are bound together they succeed together or they fail together.
Regardless of how we view government, it and the business community are the major driving forces in the growth of any economy, including Homer's. But there is always a love/hate relationship between business owners and politicians. Businesses, for example, are likely to complain of government's interference in the free-enterprise system. For this relationship to work to the benefit of our community, city government must have the will power and ability to provide fuel for the economic fire, while the business community has the freedom to grill the economic steak.
While fueling the economic fire, city government also must protect our quality of life, our passion for Homer and our future economic prosperity, while allowing business to grow and create high-paying jobs for us, our children and grandchildren. In some cases, it is city government's responsibility to invest in our community by forward-funding (issuing bonds, etc.) to provide the fuel. This is not an easy task.
Some people call this smart growth. Others call it sound economic sense. But regardless of what each of us thinks, random, uncontrolled growth will not provide the value we expect and provide us with the quality of life we want.
One way governments add fuel to the economic fire is to plan, lay out and establish a sound community infrastructure to, in our case, Homer. The Town Square project is a great example of city government's opportunity to play a major role in this process.
This project has to be viewed as part of our community's overall economic development efforts, and, if planned wisely, can create substantial wealth and well-being to all of Homer. As an example, the Town Square project could integrate visitor attractions, lodging and new shopping areas and cause visitors to spend more time and money in the area. The resulting increased direct employment is likely to cause an increased demand for residential housing, government services and other goods and services, with a corresponding opportunity for increased employment and quality of life.
The proposed new Town Square project will move Homer toward a more diverse and resilient long-term economy. It will be good for Homer.
Michael Haines is a Homer resident and an economic development and small business consultant. He can be reached at alaskaentrepreneur@yahoo.com.
