Beer may be Milton's water solution

The town of Milton is having a heck of a time getting a referendum passed to upgrade its water system. Twice the town's elected officials have gone to the voters.  Twice the effort has failed. But just because the referendum has failed doesn't mean the water problems will go away.

An aging water infrastructure in the community threatens one of the basic services provided by the town. Those voting against the referendum because they think waiting will put the town in a better position to garner more state assistance are gambling with something far too important to leave to chance.

Town officials have no choice but to keep up their efforts to pass a referendum to get the funding necessary to put the water system back in first-class shape.

The third effort may be the charm, but those in charge should take no chances. In addition to sharpening their communication efforts to persuade the voters of the importance of the water-system improvements, they might want to consider a time-tested way of influencing the vote.

Dogfish Head, in addition to great beers and ales, has brought employment and positive press to Milton. The craft brewery is in the midst of a major expansion which will include a pipeline to carry finished product from its brewing facilities to its new bottling and warehousing facility.

With a bit of engineering effort, that pipeline could be expanded to an underground system - like natural gas and water - which could provide Milton residents with the opportunity to tap into a metered flow of beer into their homes.

Hot, cold and beer.

Not only would the addition of a beer utility be an incentive for people to relocate to Milton, and further boost economic development and jobs, but tying it to the water-system referendum might be just the thing to swing the vote into the win column.