If the Goal is the Best Prison, Keep Your Eye on that Objective

   To those who would move the prison, who say the economic benefits demand it, I reply, Good governance is not always a matter of economics.
   You don't built and run a school but what it costs money. Your first concern is, How can we make our schools better. Yes, if all sites were equal, you might sell off one site for the property tax revenue it could generate, or because that site is in the center of a booming high-tech hub and the property could be used for that.
   But, the siting would remain important. It would have to be located in the community it aimed to serve, and, regardless what property you chose, it would mean that property could not be used for the commercial benefit it would have if a store or a housing development or something else went there.
   There a price you pay when you provide a service. Good governance demands that you pay the price.
   Much has been made of the fact those in the real estate industry are at the forefront of the prison relocation effort. I do not say that they are going to make a profit. What I do fear, is that they will see the question not from the viewpoint of which site will best be suited the best prison, but from the vantage point that property suited for high commercial development should not be squandered on a prison.
   Good governance should be the first priority. And, if you are compromising that in order to provide economic development, you are not keeping your eye on what should be your objective.