We all like progress, but progress doesn't come without some growing pains.
That was apparent in the recent news that Enterprise South industrial park will be upgrading its sewer system. It is more than doubling the amount of waste that the industrial park's pump station and infrastructure can currently handle, Chattanooga's director of waste resources, Jerry Stewart, told the Times Free Press recently.
Enterprise South is the home of the new Volkswagen manufacturing plant, and Internet retailer Amazon is building there as well, creating the promise of additional local economic growth.
The expansion of the sewer system at the industrial park shows at least a fair amount of local confidence that Volkswagen will grow manufacturing significantly beyond its current operations, which already employ more than 2,000 people. There is a tantalizing possibility, for example, that VW's Audi subsidiary could build a plant at Enterprise South, though no final decision has been announced.
The sewer expansion won't be free, of course. It is expected to cost about $7.5 million. Most of that will be paid by the city of Chattanooga, meaning local taxpayers.
That would be a small price to pay, however, if a great deal more investment takes place at Enterprise South, creating more high-paying jobs.