OK, first thought that comes to your mind: Where's a good place for a prison?
If you said Not in My Backyard (NIMBY), count yourself among the majority. A prison, along with a shooting range, a religious cult compound, a sewer plant, and a freeway, are some of the facilities that people probably don't want near their homes. I'm not saying that nothing would be appropriate in my neighborhood. If they want to drop a pocket park behind my house, then I'm OK with that. A few more neighbors, a school, a museum, a camp, all good. But some things belong a long way from populated communities. Especially far from communities that have grown exponentially in 20 years.
Somehow, desperate for continued wild growth, Prescott Valley's economic "minds" (using the term rather loosely) decided that they haven't had any "what's coming to Prescott Valley" stories in the paper in the last month. Considering the years of one announcement after another, that was bound to happen. Look at the headlines and go figure. Prescott Valley is still incredibly economically viable, so why not wait out the current downturn and the economic engine will fire again. Instead, these folks grabbed onto the first train that passed...CCA. Let's build a prison in Prescott Valley.
A wise council would say publicly "Hmm. Let's consider this very carefully." In private, the discussion should have gone something like this: "Are you out of your recession-twisted mind? A couple of years ago, they bit our heads off for suggesting a prison in Prescott Valley. You can't find a solar panel manufacturer, a technology-based company, another distribution center, or some other employer that wants a medium-size, pleasant community with good weather and good transportation routes? I'm not going to back a prison and get killed by the voters. We pay you enough -- get out there and earn your economic development money."
CCA wouldn't have wasted a day more in Prescott Valley. Instead, last night's 3-4 straw poll isn't enough to put the nails in this coffin. Watch your backs, PV residents. Stay watchful. Sometimes being a NIMBY isn't such a bad thing.
