With a growing collection of maps, reports, and studies, Windham is moving closer every day to having a full-fledged sewer proposal.

On numerous occasions I’ve heard it said that past councils kept kicking the can down the road and it finally landed at the feet of the current council. Rather than kicking it one more time, this pro-business, pro-development group has decided to pick it up.

Don’t believe this is about natural resources and safeguarding public health. It’s not. There are many actions we could be taking right now to negate some of development’s impacts on our natural resources and the subsidy you provide for growth through your ever-increasing property tax dollars. Believe it or not, some of these actions can be found in Windham’s Comprehensive Master Plan.

Call me crazy, but I believe, by definition, that in order for the Comprehensive Master Plan to be implemented successfully, it has to be done so in an all-encompassing manner, not the picking and choosing that has happened in recent years; in most cases, to the benefit of special interests through higher density and changes in commercial zoning.

Did you know that the Comp Plan-with respect to economic development-recommends the Windham Economic Development Corporation and Economic Development Office consider a business’s ability to maintain or improve environmental quality and be fiscally positive for the town in their business recruitment strategies? Further, they should evaluate benefits and costs associated with proposed business initiatives.

Continual development over the North Windham aquifer and ensuing rise in development-related pollutants along with the 7.9 percent average yearly increase in Windham’s tax levy over the last 30 years should give us pause and lend interest in evaluating business effects on Windham. After all, the sewer could cost between $92 million and $197 million with estimate accuracy and debt service factored in and will likely increase Windham’s tax levy if approved.

We are a bedroom community, and this can be evidenced by the fact that we do not appear on Maine’s list of regional service centers. Part of the methodology in determining service center communities is a jobs-to-workers ratio. This list of over 70 communities throughout the state shows where people go to work. There isn’t necessarily an advantage to being a service center; and in some cases, there are added costs that come with the jobs and enterprises they support. Generally, increases in commercial growth and jobs created attract residential growth, which is typically a tax-negative drain on communities.

Yes, more business and families will require an expansion of infrastructure and municipal services. Further, people are under the impression that commercial development will offset their property taxes. At a recent Windham Town Council workshop about TIF districts, the town manager said, “I’ve heard it many times, people saying we ought to have commercial developments to lower taxes. It won’t happen. It won’t happen.”

What is the collective benefit of bringing expanded commercial development to Windham? It’s hard to say, especially without sound, quantifiable studies and plans put to use with regard to impacts on property taxes, municipal services, and infrastructure. I’d like to keep my taxes low while preserving Windham’s rural character. For those reasons, my wife and I moved here and purchased the house that she grew up in and her grandfather built in the 1940s.

Faced with being a bedroom community plagued with potentially high property taxes, Windham residents should know that the biggest municipal tax driver is how we manage our residential and commercial growth. Years of growth based on gut reactions and deference given to developer and business special interests has backed us into a corner with seemingly few options. Rather than gravitating toward what we think we know in solving problems, it’s time to examine growth’s cumulative impact on our community and seek solutions and viewpoints that may seem counterintuitive at times. Extensive planning, goal setting, strategic actions, and follow through with regard to growth, land-use, property taxes, infrastructure, natural resources, public health, and culture are necessary in becoming a model community. Let’s not punt the can down the road, but examine growth’s accumulated consequences for our community.

Patrick Corey lives in Windham. Visit his blog at patrickcorey.com to ask questions and leave comments.