Education spurs growth

As more housing developments pop up in and around Maricopa, complaints are lodged about roads and the transportation infrastructure needed for all these new people coming into this city.

In a roundabout way, the Maricopa Unified School District override passed in November may play a key role in helping to fix these problems.

The continuation of the override, which allows for an extra 10% to be added to the school system’s budget, is targeted at keeping class sizes small and technology current. It’s funding that’s much needed to help bring our educational system up to par.

People don’t always associate schools with infrastructure, but they should.

Major industrial leaders certainly seem to look at it that way.

When corporations are trying to figure out where to locate their facilities, they want to make sure they’ll will have an educated workforce from which to hire.

The override will improve schools and that will attract more industry to Maricopa.

Right now, Maricopa is largely a commuter city. More and more houses are going up each day.

No matter what, that piece of the growth is happening. There’s a good reason for it. If you look at what’s going on all around Maricopa, the whole region is experiencing an economic boom. All these new people are going to have to go somewhere.

What’s needed now, however, are serious good-paying jobs located in Maricopa.

That kind of growth will allow more people to spend less time in their cars. They will get to work where they live. That in and of itself will ease some of the transportation problems we are now experiencing.

As more goods are produced in Maricopa, improved transportation infrastructure will be needed to help bring those products to market.

But none of this is likely to happen without a well-educated workforce.

In November, the community of Maricopa voted to maintain elevated spending on education, and that decision is going to pay serious dividends down the road.

This Editor’s Letter was first published in the December edition of InMaricopa magazine.