Millionaires and more: Shale boom upside

Amy Rutledge, a Carroll County native and director of the Carroll County Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitor's Bureau, and Keith Burgett, a veterinarian whose Burgett Angus Farm is the site of one of the first Marcellus wells in the county, were among those meeting with us to discuss the drilling boom's impact on the community. This posts deals with the pros they identified. We'll get to their cons in the next post.

One of the the most shocking statistics was cited by Rutledge, who said that a survey of local banks indicated that the boom had produced as many as 600 millionaires in a county of 30,000 people.

She also said:

• The number of hotel rooms in the county will double by the end of this year with the opening of new facilities.
• Unemployment has decreased from nearly 15 percent in 2009 before the boom to near 6 percent now. Local people who are not working now "probably don't want to work," she said.
• Drilling on the grounds of a county-owned resort and golf course has saved the facility, which has been renovated and now is consistently booked up due to gas drilling-related business.
• Rental landlords have experienced a windfall as prices that had been between $300 and $600 per month have increased dramatically. It is now difficult to find anything for less than $600 a month.
• The Chamber of Commerce has grown from 175 to 220 members.

Burgett also pointed out:

• He was pleased with his dealings with the drilling company that put in the wells on his property
• Restaurants and gas stations that were struggling to survive are now consistently busy
• The developments laid out in these points represent incredible improvement for a county where residents' average income had been about $10,000 below the statewide Ohio average.