Are there billions ahead?
Economic report says that Exelon would be boom to area finances
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Billions of dollars could pump into Victoria County if a nuclear plant comes, an economist report says.
The Perryman Group from Waco released a 65-page report today that showed the county would see $13 billion in total spending from construction and related activity of the proposed Exelon Nuclear plant.
Once operational, the 700 permanent workers and their families would increase spending by more than $2 billion a year.
“It’s not unlike anything I would have expected,” Adrian Cannady with the Victoria Economic Development Corp. said. “It exceeded expectations.”
Cannady hopes residents read through the report to understand the positive impact the Exelon project would have for the county.
But the county also needs to understand the costs and consequences of building a nuclear plant 12 miles south of Victoria, attorney Sandra McKenzie said.
“It’s not just this panacea,” she said. “There can be some serious long-term consequences to individuals.”
The group came to these findings based on an economic impact model that has measured spin-off or multiplier effects for the past 25 years, Ray Perryman said. Exelon asked the group to measure its economic impact, providing the group with the number and types of employees they would hire.
The economic analysts then went to state and national databases to see how much the workers made: between $60,000 and $80,000, Perryman said.
The group also studied windmill power plants and the South Texas Project in Matagorda County.
The model estimates that the increased spending would lead to the creation of 6,500 jobs, which would increase the overall economy by 11 percent. The construction and development process would contribute $348 million in taxes to the state and $70.2 million to local governments over the build-out period. Once operational, it would contribute $46.2 million to the state and $40.8 million locally in annual taxes, the report said.
Local governments gain most from property taxes and sales taxes, Perryman said. Higher-paid workers could afford more expensive homes and bigger homes would enhance property values, he added.
The large tax base would contribute to services like parks, which would attract people into the area and raise values, but would keep the overall rate low, he added.
However, the land adjacent to the plant would not see a rise in value, neither would it depreciate, Perryman said, citing his career’s studies of more than 40 power plants.
If the project needed to construct electric infrastructure like substations and transmission lines, it won’t detract from land values, but it would need to use land for the projects, Perryman said. They would pay the fair market value for that land, he said.
Could a nuclear plant prevent other industries or business from coming into Victoria?
“I think you find just the opposite effect,” Perryman said. “It’s an asset.”
The creation of a large tax base and low tax rate environment combined with the pool of skilled workers would attract business to the area, he said.
Projects like this also bolster civic clubs through an influx of new members, while the company also sponsors events and contributes to education, Exelon community outreach manager Bill Harris said.
But the report doesn’t address the possibility of tax abatements, McKenzie said. She points residents toward House Bill 2994, passed by last year’s Texas legislature, that gives eligibility to nuclear facilities for school tax breaks. Schools can grant tax subsidies to be reimbursed by the state.
“It appears to look at short-term job creation, but doesn’t look at the infrastructure costs of community services such as schools and law enforcement for the influx of construction workers,” she said about the report.
The construction of a nuclear plant in Matagorda County brought high rents for local residents and locked people into long-term mortgages, she said.
After the construction boom, the economy dipped, leaving empty buildings and a higher tax rate, McKenzie said.
Overall, the economy in Matagorda County saw economic improvement, Lisa Tew, communications director for the Matagorda County Economic Development Corp. said. The construction of South Texas Project’s first two units led to 1,200 permanent jobs, she said. Even with tax abatement, the local area sees millions of dollars in revenue.
Tew admitted the economy felt growing pains with the influx of workers and plans to plan better for temporary housing with the third and fourth reactor units, which would bring in $6.1 billion to the local economy.
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ray perryman is a hack! he'll write these economic impact reports for the highest bidder!
know why? because they don't take into account the whole story! they pick and choose, only talking about the creation of jobs and the "ripple" effect... yes those things will happen. those are positives. but there are so many negatives that he doesn't take into account that would have an economic impact! they say that no one has been hurt by a nuclear power plant and that is a boldface lie. the effects of radiation will have an impact on this community and our ability to perform these so-called jobs. property values will be affected in a very negative way, this can be clearly seen with other areas where nuclear plants have been built. shoot, if you need an example look at bay city! where are all the millionaires?? i'll tell you where. they're in chicago, dallas, houston, and austin, pulling the strings to exploit our local communities. is this what your families have struggled for??
August 7, 2008 at 1:58 p.m.I don't know of many people in Splashus that got any of those "good-paying" jobs.
Seemed like they imported most of the operating staff, except for some security guard and janitorial work. Everybody I know worked there for a while and left.
The building of the plant seemed to be the boom and after that, kinda bust. Now WCJC has teamed up with STP to train people in the field, but the plant has been there, in one form or another, since 1976.
I think Victoria might be different than Splashus, just because it's already more than 10x the size of that little town and has lots more going for it in terms of location and other opportunities.
July 31, 2008 at 11:08 a.m.I started this once then realized that I remembered only parts of the stories regarding Chernobyl and Three Mile Island both nuclear plant disasters. I left to read about it. If one believes that the solution to electrical power is the nuclear plant one must read the postings regarding Chernobyl's aftermath especially those on UNICEF.
July 31, 2008 at 9:48 a.m.This article tells glowing stories of economic growth and jobs. I say look at Bay City. Do local people get hired in the plant, a few at low paying unskilled jobs. Most jobs are for professionals not for locals and they are recruited across the country to move to more populated (modern) areas.
If my children have the potential of suffering as the children of Chernobyl are suffering today 20 years after the horrific accident, I don't think a job today is worth the possibilities of suffering and destruction tomorrow.
They say that these plants are the safest in the world; however, I have not heard of a fool proof plant of any kind. Our area already houses too many dangerous plants. I believe, however, that damage from them would be short lived and not extend into 100s of years while the area waits out the half life of radioactive poisons in the water, vegetation, and earth while we deal with cancer ridden children and mutations at birth. The damage from Chernobyl is not an Urban Legend. It is a fact. People reading this man's glowing reports should consider that it is his bread and butter. For us this is our home, our land, our water, and our vegetation. This gentleman will move on most likely once the plant is accepted to another area where his job will be to soothe the "natives" and keep them (us) from stopping what could be an economic boon especially for Exelon, but which carries a horrific potential into the future for our homes and lands.
Goliad: Did you forget the number of good paying jobs created after the project was done? The locals turned away many opportunities for home developments and many of the new workers live in Lake Jackson, Freeport, and even the Palacios area.
Business leaders now admit (at least those I have talked to) that their mistake was to embrace the project only partialy and not look down the road. Given the chance (and it may be coming) again, they would look more towards long term growth, and not just the trailer parks and fast food joints you mention..
July 31, 2008 at 9:33 a.m.I was living in Matagorda County - Splashus actually - before, during, and after STP came to town.STP and Brown and Root made some previously struggling farmers rich. It put some money into the local businesses hands. There was a plague of obnoxious out-of-towners from New York.When it was over, it was OVER and the businesses that expanded or were built practically overnight suffered some hard times or folded. The town went back to exactly how it as before - except for more apartments and trailer parks.And a really big cooling (gator) pond by the plant.So I would imagine that is what Victoria is in for as well.With our society and political climate the way it is - everything is about business and money, not people - I just feel hopeless that we can do anything about stopping the nuclear power plant or the uranium drilling in Goliad if we wanted to. It's sad to say, but the people's welfare is not an important issue any more for our govt - though it's supposed to be by the people, of the people, and FOR the people.
July 31, 2008 at 9:26 a.m.When are we going to start seeing all those billions of dollars that should have been pumped into our economy from the steep selling price of the oil that is produced around here? Is it just a coincidence that there is an article touting the benefits of uranium at the same time that you are receiving ad revenue from the sponsors of the 'Nuclear energy--it's good for Texas' banner across the top of this page?
July 31, 2008 at 9:12 a.m.