There is a moment in almost every economic development project that nobody wants to talk about: the moment when the celebration fades and reality sets in. The announcement has been made, the community is excited, and then something surfaces — a $250,000 tap fee, a privilege tax buried in a local ordinance, a road that cannot handle industrial truck traffic. By that point, the damage is done. Trust erodes. Companies question their decision. Relationships built over months of work begin to sour.
