In tough economic times, the Sandy Creek power station project is a huge plus for McLennan County and especially its host city Riesel, officials say.

Work on the plant will help the county position itself for more building once the economic recovery solidifies, said Scott Connell, senior vice president for strategic development with the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce.

With the project, skilled workers and construction-contracting companies, many from Central Texas, are better able to stay in business in the area, so it helps keep construction capacity from atrophying, Connell said.

Students leave Riesel High School after classes Friday. Property tax money from the power plant could mean the district can replace outdated facilities.
Duane A. Laverty/Waco Tribune-Herald

“As we go through this period it is important that we have a viable construction business and keep skilled workers in the area so we can be ready for projects to occur,” he said.

At 1,100 workers, the project is at peak employment and 50 percent complete, said Mike Vogt, vice president for LS Power, which owns 64 percent of the project. LS, the Brazos Electric Cooperative and the Lower Colorado River Authority are partners in the coal-fired plant meant to boost electric-generating capacity in Texas.

The main construction contractor on the project estimates that about 15 percent of its construction workforce is from McLennan County, Vogt said. About 40 percent of the other contractors and subcontractors are from McLennan and nearby counties, he said. A detailed breakdown of the numbers was not available.

The number of workers will decline as the plant nears its expected 2012 completion date. About 100 people will run the station once it is operational, he said.

The plant will add between $600 million to $1 billion in taxable property value once it’s completed, McLennan County Judge Jim Lewis said. The extra tax base will help keep the pressure off homeowners and businesses by helping to hold down the tax rate, he said. How much of an effect will not be known until the plant is completed, Lewis said.

The tiny Riesel Independent School District will see a boost to its interest and sinking fund, the part of its budget from which it pays debt on facilities, Superintendent Steve Clugston said.

The cash will mean the district, which has about 600 students, can start planning to build a new secondary school to replace a building built in the 1950s.

The city of Riesel has also seen a cash benefit, with a July sales-tax rebate from the state climbing 504 percent from July 2008 to July 2009. The city’s sales tax take had gone from $7,851 to $47,452 for the month.

Online reports from the Texas State Comptroller of Public Accounts shows gross sales in Riesel businesses had gone from $12.1 million in 2006 to $258.6 million in only the first two quarters of 2009.

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