One of the great sports movies of all time was “Field of Dreams” (1989). Baseball fans (go Red Sox) might remember the story of a midwestern farmer who had a vision to build a baseball field in a cornfield. “If you build it, they will come,” said the vision.

Although some, including his wife, thought he was some sort of nut job, he ripped up the corn crop and laid out a diamond, installed lights, backstop, and bleachers. It was the movies, after all, and in the end, hundreds of fans visited his field, and everything worked out.

In our backyard, the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens followed a similar script. A group of garden and flower groupies had a dream, so they got together, mortgaged their homes, bought an old real estate development and built a garden that has become one of the great tourist destinations in New England.  In recent years, the Gardens have become a winter tourist destination after they strung a few hundred thousand twinkling lights on the trees.

Like flowers that attracted bees and butterflies, the twinkling lights drew thousands of visitors. And these twinkling lights-tourists did more than marvel at the displays. They stopped for dinner and provided a few more paydays for our restaurants and our friends and neighbors who staff their businesses. 

Last week, Keith S. Laser, the new superintendent of our local schools, stood up and proposed a similar project.

When he sat down at his new desk, he found an excellent staff and great teachers, but the buildings and grounds looked tired. Parking lots and sidewalks needed an upgrade, some of the foundations required a bit of TLC, the elementary school could use a new heating plant and on and on. A consultant’s study said they needed to spend $10 million to bring the plant up to snuff. His $10 million annual budget included a system’s reserve fund that totaled just $76,000. Oops.

Last week, the retired U.S. Navy pilot turned educator stood up before the public, the elected officials of both towns, and the school trustees and school committees and explained his dilemma. Sure, he said, they could spend $10 million on repairs, but they would still have a high school building that was 62 years old and a 41-year-old elementary school building.

He put it this way. “I have a 10-year-old Jeep that needs repairs. If I do the repairs, it will still be a 10-year-old Jeep. Is it worth it to put the money in a 10-year-old Jeep?” Or, he said, is it time to fix the old family car or time to trade it in for a new one with all the fancy bells and whistles?

His other problem was a physical plant built for 900 students, and just 483 are signed up for this year. Given the current birth rates, the school population is not likely to increase soon.

So, Laser’s dilemma had two legs. The buildings need repairs, and the school system needs pupils. It is sort of a chicken and egg problem. If you upgrade the school buildings, will you attract more students?

What if we offered a more modern education program? Might that encourage parents to send their children to local schools? Would an upgraded physical plant and upgraded academic offerings help attract new families?

We all love this place and our neighbors. We understand change is disturbing to many. But real change is more than the redesign of a highway intersection or plans to replace waterfront buildings.  In recent years, we saw our hospital gutted and replaced with an urgent care clinic. The suits who run the hospital explained the health care system was changing and, besides, there was not enough business in our neighborhood for them to keep the doors open and the doctors busy.

Our fishermen no longer spend their days pulling codfish out of the sea. Instead, they rely on lobsters to provide the dollars they need to feed their families. They tell me that fishery is changing too.

Our lives are filled with other problems that demand our attention. Elected leaders in Washington, DC, and Augusta seem to be always squabbling but never solving. Back at home, our community must discuss if, and how, we want to take care of our schools and our children.

Do we take a cue from the movie farmer who followed his dream and built a baseball diamond in a cornfield?

If we build it, will they come?