Towanda no longer a ghost town

SUV runs on pixie dust?

Economic and political conversations in the Finger Lakes tend to be dominated by academics, financially secure newcomers, and career politicians.  In other words, folks who don't need to find a job.  Local families struggling to maintain their households in a dying economy, while burdened with the nations's highest taxes, seldom have a voice in the issues of the day.  To bring a little diversity to one of the Finger Lakes' most important discussions, this blog will occasionally look at the the "other side" of Marcellus Shale gas drilling.

Just a few miles south of the state line, locals in formerly destitute Towanda, PA are experiencing some of the positive effects of gas drilling.

Not so long ago, this town was just the seat of Bradford County. Now, it lies at the epicenter of natural gas development in the Marcellus Shale region.

It used to be a sleepy little place on the Susquehanna River. Now, it's a boom town.

Help-wanted signs plead for waitresses, mechanics, truck drivers. Once-empty storefronts are now occupied in this hilly borough, population 3,000.

Towanda has morning and midday rush hours, thanks to the columns of trucks bearing water, sand, and drill pipe. A banner hangs outside First Liberty Bank & Trust: "Gas Rights? We can help."

"People used to call Towanda a ghost town," said Shannon Clark, a Borough Council member and real estate agent. "No more."

The Philadelphia Enquirer reports that some Bradford County business are thriving as drilling firms buy local.  A previously struggling local grocer now feeds gas workers, and that's a good thing:

Local businessman Nick Hurley runs the cafeteria at the complex, serving 700 meals a day, including lunches that workers grab on their way out the door. Hurley also provides janitorial and laundry services for the facility.

He can't believe his good fortune. His family owns two grocery stores, but business was suffering before the gas boom hit last year.

"Our backs were against the wall," said Hurley, 36.

He started catering to gas rigs, and the business kept growing. His family's companies now employ 160 people, up from 90 before the boom, including 35 at the Man Camp alone.

"This is wonderful," he said. "We grew up in kind of a repressed area. There is no way we could have built this up without natural gas."

Unemployment is dropping faster here than in any other county in Pennsylvania - the jobless rate was 6.8 percent in October, fourth best in the state, down from 8.1 percent a year ago.

Bold added.  While we already have enough "no fracking" signs here in the Finger Lakes, we could use some "help wanted" signs as well.   If you disagree, please share your thoughts in a comment.