Businesses win in elections

By Phil Winter
Published: May 10, 2008

The save Invista campaign was successful with winning council candidates Bruce Allen, Frank Lucente and Tim Williams supporting a financial break for businesses by paying stormwater services costs from the general fund. Such funding is less expensive to businesses (more expensive to residents) than an alternative, basing fees on impervious surface areas. Businesses generally have more impervious surface than residences and therefore cause more water runoff unless adequate control facilities are installed and maintained.
General fund use financially benefits all Waynesboro businesses, not just Invista. Winning candidates Allen, Lucente and Williams should explain why all businesses, including Exxon, Home Depot and Wal-Mart deserve such favoritism.
Exxon, for example, had record profits of $40.6 billion (40.1-percent margin) in 2007 yet charges gasoline prices among the highest in town. Home Depot “gave” its chief executive, Robert Nardelli, $210 million when he departed under fire for poor performance. Wal-Mart, which upon its arrival increased Waynesboro’s Chatham Road flooding, paid its chief executives $700,000 to $1.3 million each in 2007, more than most Waynesboro residents make in 20 years. These and similar findings for other large businesses suggest corporate “greed,” not “need.”
Yes, Waynesboro needs businesses, but businesses need residents as customers. Waynesboro needs good corporate citizens that minimize their negative effects on residents, e.g. water, noise, light and air pollution; road congestion; and flooding from stormwater runoff. During a City Council workshop that included Invista, nTelos, Reo Distribution and other local businesses, not a single business offered to pay stormwater fees based on impervious surface area; all favored use of the general fund.
Lucente was right initially when he argued for stormwater fees based on impervious surface areas. His flip-flop on this issue probably won him the Invista vote, but will result in unjustified subsidization of big businesses by residents.
Phil Winter
Waynesboro