To say the least, for the last few years, times have been a bit tougher, in Elko, for a lot of us.  What started it all off was a big drop in the world gold price.  Gold mining provides a lot of employment for the people in this town and area.  Gold prices began a significant decline around August, 1997.  Beginning in the first month of 1998 through 1999 and to a lesser extent in 2000 and 2001, the mines were forced to cut back spending and lay-off a lot of good people.  This affected not only the mines and their people, but the support industries (equipment manufactures, truck engine repair shops, radiators, tires, et al).  When people left town for other jobs, it also affected the tax supported local government and the local merchants, many of them mom and pop (who, if they are still here, are having a difficult time making ends meet).  In the city of Elko, there have been additional factors hurting the local economy that aren't mentioned much.  Some of these are:  the railroad merger relocated employees to other cities, Wendover and Jackpot have taken away from the drive-to gaming businesses in Elko, I would think that higher gas prices have reduced travel on I-80,  most of the ranchers have been pressed by low prices and higher costs, automation - removing office jobs in Elko and transferring them to larger cities - for example, the phone company, now a general US recession may be affecting things like tourism.  In addition, the higher costs of just gett'n by, such as higher electricity, gas prices, cost of living and health insurance, have reduced our discretionary spending money.

In a recent article in the Elko Daily Free Press,12/12/01,  Adella Harding's article stated that "the number of jobs lost in the area totals 3,000 over the past four years".  In the third quarter of 2001, there are now 20,060 people in the labor force.  It's easy math, let's assume an annual income of $54,800 for these 3,000 people.  This means a loss of $164 million per year, that does not now come to town - annually.  I am also willing to bet that the lost jobs were primarily associated with mining and were some of the better paying ones in the community.   

With all this in mind, the purpose of this letter is to respond to the Chamber of Commerce's campaign of 'Shop at Home'.  When you get paid here and you take the money out of town.  It is lost money to Elko.  It never becomes new money to Elko.  It's get - go - gone.  I am grateful that the Chamber wants to encourage local spending.  It is not intended to make local merchants rich.  I believe it is intended to stem the loss of businesses from Elko and attempt to retain sales tax dollars that are used to maintain the infrastructure of the town and county. However, the primary reaction of this campaign seems to have been to lump Elko's businesses and take a whack at them and then explain why we shop out of town.  Please realize that there are a lot of mom and pop businesses in Elko that, because of the slower economy, are hard pressed for cash flow.  A lot of us in retail businesses are trying to do the best job we can even though costs are up and available cash is down.  Trust me on this - stress is up for most local business owners.  Although the Chamber's campaign may have helped keep some cash in town - and I am grateful for their efforts - in my opinion this isn't the real answer.  The real answer is not just to encourage us locals to shop locally.  The bottom-line answer is to bring more new money to Elko.  Let's not just be concerned at where the local 20,060 people spend their money.  Let's try to get the 6,080.7 million other people living outside Elko (or even just the 275.6 million other people in the US) to spend a little of their money here.  How do we bloody do this?

First, I don't want to minimize what is already going on.  First the gold mines - thank you and bless you.  The Fire Academy is good for Elko.  It brings new money into Elko, both in the form of salaries and also students that come here to school - they spend some hotel time and shop in Elko.  The pipeline project is good in that the salaries of the contractors and employees will be paid by out-of-town money.  Lets not forget the government.  A lot of tax dollars paid by other people in other towns are spent here to keep us in line.  Believe me Senator, Robert Byrd of West Virginia knew the definition of the word 'Pork Barrel'.   He moved massive parts of the federal government from Washington DC and relocated it to the hills of West Virginia.  Wheeling, WV has long term good jobs that are helped paid for by us in Elko.  The State and communities goal should be to get back more than you paid in taxes.  NYTC, the kids school just east of Elko, and the BLM and Forest Service brings new tax supported money to Elko.  The expanding Great Basin College has tremendous potential.  It may eventually bring college students from Reno and Las Vegas to study here.  All we need is a great program that will draw them.  The Emigrant Trails Interpretive center coming to Elko is good.  This will bring government money to Elko and some government employees with their salary paid by new money.  It may also maybe pull some tourists off of  I-80 in Elko to spend the night here and eat dinner and breakfast here, gamble a bit buy some snacks at the store.  The State Park of the South Fork Reservoir brings some state salaries to town and brings a few people to town to fish or ski.  I bet not a lot.  Fishing is poor - at least for me.  Newt Crumley brought big name entertainment to the Commercial Hotel in Elko, the Red Lion brings in plane loads of tourists, the Cowboy Poetry brings tourists to Elko, the Mining Convention, the VFW convention brings people to Elko.  Bless them.  Bless them all.   How 'bout a big name golf Tournament, a Trap and Skeet tournament that brings national titled shooters to Elko. 

What else?  Let's consider tourism first.  Big draws are long term consistent reasons for people to visit you.  For example, if it were a tradition to invite all your relatives to visit you in Elko on your birthday or Christmas - lots of new money would come to town.  Other examples of big draws are the Great Wall of China, Pyramids, the Grand Canyon, Branson, Missouri has country western entertainment and fishing.  Lagoon in SLC.  It sure would be nice to create a reason to want to come and visit Elko.  A reason so great that bus loads of Japanese tourist would come here to take their picture standing beside 'it'.  I say this not to be racist but at the Butchart Gardens, in Victoria Island British Columbia this is the case.  Personally, I drove to Seattle, took a ferry boat to Victoria Island then a double-decker bus to see a remote old rock quarry planted with flowers.  And I would like to go again.  So would millions of others.  It is beautiful.  I have also gone, as many others have, to Payson Arizona to see Zane Gray's Cabin, I've gone to see Sutter's Mill in California to see where the gold rush started.  These are some of the big long term draws.  How about stocking our reservoirs and streams heavily with fish.  Over a number of years we will get the reputation of a great place to fish.  I would drive from Reno to the Marshes or Wildhorse or South Fork fish if it were great fishing.  Heck, I'd fish the Humboldt if I could catch anything on a regular basis.  Wildflowers.  How about planting wildflowers along the Humboldt river corridor so profuse that people will come here every spring just to see the wildflowers blooming along the Humboldt.  If they are annuals or perennials they would multiply by themselves with time.  In early Elko history I find that they cut down the cedar and juniper trees on the surrounding hills for fuel.  How about replanting the Elko Hills with cedar or juniper trees to restore the environment and give it a more scenic look.  How about a statue that is so beautiful or magnificent that people would drive from Denver to see it.  Why do you think they moved the London Bridge to Lake Havasu?

How about not just relying on the big government and tourism and encourage new industry to come to Elko.  We need to diversify the economy and encourage new businesses that will bring new money to Elko.   We could be a retail hub like Twin Falls or attract new responsible companies who will produce something here and sell it to the outside world.  We need to do it now. 

Finally, the question arises ... do we want to become a Reno or Las Vegas or LA.  I don't think so, as for me, definitely not!  Big is not necessarily better.  The problem is we are losing ground.  We are on our way to becoming a Palisade, Hamilton, Tuscarora or Union Pass (when the hills run out of recoverable gold).  If we have not made town plans ..  many of us ought to begin making personal plans ... such as where to relocate when the gold runs out.

Editor:

I feel that one of the most important issues facing us in Elko now, as it has always been, is to provide for our children.  When my daughter's generation graduated from high school many of our kids were able to obtain good paying jobs at the mines and thereby were able to remain in Elko. We as a town did not need to do anything to encourage these jobs.  We got lucky - real lucky.  The city fathers did have to react very quickly to the resulting influx of families and to more kids in our schools and the lack of the town's infrastructure like housing, sewers, water, streets, lights et al.  It was a big job for the city, but these elected officials stepped up to the plate and batted.  History has proven they didn't bat a thousand but overall they did an excellent job. Now the city is asking for our comments related to Elko on their report card.  I think we need to encourage the direction Elko is going to take.  First for our children.  Here someone is already on the ball.  I feel we need to provide better advanced education for our children via Great Basin College.  This will not only let our kids go to college at a greatly reduced expense when compared to sending them off to college, but they can remain with us for four more years.  It will also provide the opportunity for some of our kids to go to college when otherwise we could not afford to send them.  Then we have at least prepared our kids for a good job in Reno, Boise, SLC, Twin Falls, San Francisco or wherever, with  this quality education.  This assuming we have completely failed to provide any new jobs for them here at home.  Or maybe, just maybe perhaps, with their education one especially bright student with his diesel mechanics degree will say 'I can open a high-tech truck repair shop in Elko for the 18 wheelers on I-80 and make a million bucks'.  And he will.  Plus his company will also provide employment for others.  Another might say 'I can open an internet distribution company here because I can get my supplies on I-80 and the railroad and then provide overnight service to my customers with Elko's airport.'   Another millionaire in the making.  Another might say 'with all these new businesses and a stable economy in town I can get a "Red Lobster" franchise and provide for my family.'  And he will.  For these reasons, and more, I would like to see Great Basin College continue to grow and improve and become the 'University of Nevada at Elko' sooner than later.  As for job creation, everything I have read attributed to Glen Guttry (for whom I have great respect)  in the Elko Daily Free Press seems to me to be true.  It reminds me of when I graduated from ASU.   I thought when I graduated I just got to pick which management position I would like.  Very quickly I learned 'it ain't like that'.  You start small and work up.  The same analogy holds true for business.  Good Morning Furniture didn't begin with the wonderful large display room they have now.  It started as a small shop in the East End Mall overly stuffed with furniture.  With good service and a heck of a lot of gumption Glen and his family guided it's growth.  Lagoon amusement park in SLC didn't start out as a big amusement park with spectacular slick rides and a huge staff.  It stated off as a Ferris wheel and a few rides for kids in a vacant lot.  For that matter Disneyland didn't start out as a multimillion dollar corporation.  It began when Walt and Roy had an idea about a mouse Walt had sketched and how they could make Mickey come to life on film.  It grew from there.  They all created something out of an idea and then nurtured it and it grew.  I am positive that if Glen walked into the City Council meeting with Steven Jobs and said Apple computers is moving to Elko there would be plans for a life size statue of Glen in the park.  But it isn't likely.  What is more likely is getting another young "Steven" working in his garage to come to Elko - if he isn't here already.  This is where UNE comes in.  If the programs the school teaches are good enough it may encourage some of these bright kids to come to Elko - assuming they are not already here - which they probabaly are here - and help them help us.  I also bet if we really wanted to we could encourage young businesses with good ideas to come to Elko - and hopefully grow. We must also forget the damned philosophy of not encouraging businesses to come to Elko because they might compete with the existing businesses.  We in business remain open only by customers voting for us daily with their check book.  The process of natural selection has and will determine the survivors.  If a customer doesn't like how they are treated by a business and it is the only place in town - they will still shop - out of town.  Competition makes for a stronger town.  Walmart out performed a number of mom and pop businesses when it came to town.  Drove some of them right out of business.  But how many people now would say let's get rid of Walmart?  Let's go see if we can get a Target store.  Lets see if Mervyn's will open a store here.  Yes, I agree some people might have to change jobs.  I might be one of them.  I hope not - but if so that's life.  But Elko will be stronger, better - by natural selection.  Let's pursue tourism, let's try to get more good government programs for Elko, let's support the college's growth, let's try to get those truck distribution centers, let's encourage new businesses, let's get an industrial park going at the old drive-in theater site, let's talk to Steven about moving Apple Computers here. Whatever ... but let's go get 'em partner - let's head 'em up and move 'em here.