Boy, did those empty hangars at Myrtle Beach International Airport come in handy when AvCraft, a Virginia-based jet-airplane outfitter, came calling recently. Three unused hangars are the nucleus of a deal, announced Monday, that state and local leaders struck with AvCraft to create 40 high-pay jobs immediately and 280 jobs over time.

In virtually the blink of an eye, our community has moved another step away from its over-reliance on tourism as a source of prosperity. And as Gov. Mark Sanford noted Monday in Myrtle Beach, the existence of hangars easily retooled to fit AvCraft's needs had a role in putting the Grand Strand on the road to job diversification.

This just goes to show you how quirky economic development can be. AvCraft officials began to focus on Myrtle Beach a scant seven weeks ago, after they contacted a local painter about some work. From that contact, local and state officials learned that the company wanted to relocate their Tyler, Texas, jet-refurbishing facility to some other location. They decided to capitalize on the opportunity.

So they slapped together a state-local incentives package - including the lease of the hangars at a bargain $2 per square foot. As part of that, the Myrtle Beach Air Force Base Redevelopment Authority will kick in $750,000 to upgrade the hangars. If the hangars hadn't been available, AvCraft would have been harder to entice.

Some Horry County Council members seem worried that the public will see the deal with AvCraft, especially the virtual giveaway of the hangars, as a foolish move. Residents who don't believe one dime of public money should ever be spent on the private sector may feel that way.

But most county residents, we're betting, will see the county's willingness to lease the hangars at rock-bottom prices as a fair trade for the jobs and economic activity that AvCraft will bring to the community.

The harsh reality of economic development is that if you want good new jobs in your community, you've got to offer incentives. As was the case with AvCraft, other localities will do the same. (It's nice, in that regard, that our community won over AvCraft even though other communities offered fatter packages.)

If one of the incentives you can offer is usable buildings that already exist, so much the better. Economic-development gurus say that having an inventory of available business buildings such as the hangars is a community's best bet for attracting new jobs. If you can house a new employer immediately, you have an edge over communities where relocation would entail building a factory, office or warehouse.

AvCraft leaders deserve credit for recognizing that our community is a great place for them to do business - not only because of its mild climate and friendly residents but also because of its motivated work force and Horry-Georgetown Technical College, a regional leader in work force training.

Gov. Mark Sanford, the state Commerce Department (which put together a generous tax-credit package), Horry County and Partners Economic Development Corp. deserve great credit for recognizing the value of this opportunity and snatching it. Their decisiveness will benefit the community for years to come.