Town officials may catch some flak for going out to bid once again on a project to repair and improve the median strip on Avenue of the Fountains.

The price tag will likely come in somewhere between $1 million and $1.5 million. Work could be done this summer. “What will we get for that money?” detractors will say. “What a waste of money!”

The town the past few years has been hunkering down with regard to spending and is concentrating mostly on infrastructure needs – such as the voter-approved bond package to reconstruct Saguaro Blvd. from Shea to Fountain Hills Blvd.

Much like Saguaro Blvd., the bulk of the Avenue median dates back to the 1970s and is in need of a new infrastructure – faulty electrical outlets, leaking fountains, tree roots sticking up, brick-lined paths that look like an obstacle course.

Similar to one’s house – things wear out, they break down, they need fixing. It costs money to keep your house in tip-top shape. The same is true of public venues. Will the repairs and improvements magically bring 100,000 new shoppers to our downtown? Of course not. But it will make the Avenue safer and more appealing for decades to come. It will make the Avenue more “user friendly” for small art shows, walking around, those types of things.

Besides, the town has the money “in the bank.” It is in a special fund garnered from a portion of sales tax revenues earmarked specifically for downtown. This basic infrastructure improvement plan is smart and is needed. It is not frivolous. It meets the “common sense” litmus test.