El Paso’s Economy Holds A Glimmer Of Good News

EL PASO — Finally, some good news.

Last week, ABC’s “World News” reported that Texas’ economy is doing better than the nation’s, and now, two members of El Paso’s business community say we’re even doing better than the rest of Texas.

“We’re doing exceptionally better – we have a great deal to be thankful for,” said Richard Dayoub, president of the Greater El Paso Chamber of Commerce.

As the national economy has been slowly worsening, Dayoub said, key indicators like unemployment have been getting better in the Sun City.

“It wasn’t that long ago that our unemployment was in double digits here: 12, 13, 14 percent,” he said. “Thank God for Fort Bliss!”

Recent expansions there have been creating more construction jobs on- and off-post, Dayoub said. Future defense contracts bring more people, who need new homes and other services, bouying the economy well into the future.

“We’ve not experiences the extreme highs and extreme lows that other markets have,” he said.

If you already own a home in El Paso, chances are that it’s getting more valuable — that’s good news most folks aren’t hearing.

In fact, many homes across the country are actually losing value.But if you’re trying to buy your first home in El Paso, or anywhere really, the news just isn’t quite so good.

“We need to get the federal government to relax some of the harsh conditions that they’ve placed on banks,” said Ray Adauto, executive vice-president of the El Paso Association of Builders. “At the same time, you need to have jobs that come in with better pay.”

That’s something Dayoub and Adauto say should be a part of the city’s long-term economic plan.

“The key element for this community it to not get complacent,” Dayoub said.