The city council on Monday established the board, and its members will be chosen during the next month or so.

The panel will be charged with working to bring additional commercial and industrial businesses to the city. Its members also will focus on retaining existing businesses in the community.

This is good news for all residents of the Tonganoxie area, and it is particularly good news for residents who own property.

If this new advisory panel, which will report to the mayor and city council, is successful in expanding the number of businesses in the city, Tonganoxie’s property tax base would expand. And that should translate into lower taxes for property owners.

In addition, more businesses mean more jobs and perhaps more opportunities for shopping, which would translate into more sales tax revenues for the city.

Of course, the advisory board and council must take care that the companies they court are good corporate citizens. These companies should support the community and provide a boost to the economic viability of Tonganoxie.

With all that Tonganoxie has to offer, the advisory board should be successful in its efforts. The city is a highly livable community, with strong schools, a good supply of housing and residents with a solid work ethic.

It’s clear our community will grow, and the advisory board will provide one more component to help ensure that growth is in a direction that is beneficial to all who live and work here.