BOOM AND BUST: A LOOK AT THE CHANGING ECONOMIC AND DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE OF GRAND COUNTY, UTAH

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Greg B. Hall, Department of Geography

Introduction

Inter-Mountain West counties who historically have tied their economic livelihood to the exploitation of primary resources have been susceptible to cycles of boom and bust. The history of Grand County, Utah, depicts this precise paradigm. In the 1950’s, when a young Texan discovered uranium in the resource rich Colorado Plateau, north of Moab, economic prosperity and a population explosion came the way of Grand County. Mines in the county processed 95% of all uranium ores for the nation. The population reached 10,000 people, and wealth flowed from the pits of this rich resource. The market lulled soon thereafter, and intermittent cycles of economic prosperity and depression have persisted. The last boost to the economy came in the 70’s when the energy boom created increased jobs in the mining sector. This short-lived prosperity only lasted until the early 80’s when primary commodity prices felt, creating an inevitable bust to natural resource based economies. The result was rampant unemployment and a mass exodus from mining communities.

In order to “diversify” their economies and reverse the trend of out-migration and unemployment, many communities turned to exploiting their “other” natural resource. Since the turn of the century, many urban residents began to turn to the countryside for leisure and recreation. Rural areas provide an array of resources for those seeking refuge from the city. Communities such as St. George, Utah; Sedona, Arizona; and Jackson, Wyoming, have all been beneficiaries of rural amenities. Rural amenities such as the rugged and majestic panorama of mesas, canyons, winding rivers, arches and Native American ruins, all surrounded by two National Parks, allowed Grand County to enhance their economy by promoting Moab as a tourist “Mecca.”

The purpose of this research is to explore the demographic and economic history of Grand County, emphasizing the changes since 1970. The main question asked was: How has the changing ambiance of Moab as a recreative community affected its economic and demographic structure? The paper specifically examines the changes in the economic structure and its effects on the resultant enigmatic population structure.

Hypotheses

Specific hypotheses were generated to investigate the reasons for the changing local economy and population and the success of the economic restructuring of Grand County.

Economic

I) The choice to promote Moab as a tourist Mecca has created a national identity and increased the number of tourists visiting the county.

2) The change to a tourist/retiree-based economy lowered unemployment and enlarged the labor force in the retail and service sectors.

Demographic

1) The promotion of the county’s tourism sector has caused the population to surpass the 1970 population.

2) The restructuring of the economy caused a reversal in migration streams, creating in-migration in 1991 for the first time in a decade.

3) The changing ambiance of Moab has created a shift in the age distribution, bringing more retired people (over 65) and dramatically lowering the number of young working family persons (1 to 29).

4) Grand County, as a result of the tourist industry. is one of the most rapidly growing counties in the state of Utah.

Discussion

Data was collected and analyzed from several county, state and federal agencies. The Master Economic Development Plan for Grand County was secured and enabled the study to show the promotional methods used by the county to bolster the image of Moab. Ten tables were constructed to show specific demographic and economic changes since 1970. As expected, the county had a rise in the labor force during the 1970’s energy boom-the mining sector employed over a quarter of the labor force. With the fall in primary commodity prices, the mining sector dropped to employing between 5% to 8% of the labor force. As a result, the county was left in shambles, and a mass exodus from the county began. For 10 years, consistent out migration occurred, lowering the population by almost 25%, leaving unemployment rates in the teens and created a county where personal income was above the state average to drop well below.

The economy remained stagnant for several years before the county planning commission decided to “diversify” the economy and emphasize the site-specific amenities that the county contained for tourist and retiree populations. Arches and Canyonlands National Parks witnessed visitors’ increase between 10% to 15% annually. Slick Rock Bike Trail became the national capital for mountain bikers, and Moab became the destination for many hikers, river-runners and ATVers. Revenue received from room rents jumped from $3 million in 1980 to over $10 million in 1991. recently a consistent annual increase of 13%. As a result, the service sector has increased the percent of the county’s employment from 12% in 1980 to 26% in 1993, and the trade sector has increased by 12%. The unemployment rate has dropped from a high of 19.4% In 1983 to only 6% in 1993. The labor force grew by 15% in 1993. It is obvious the effect that the restructuring of the economy to tourist-based has had a dramatically positive effect on the local economy, raising personal income in the county to record highs.

As a result of the heightened economic activity and the rural amenities of the county, the demographic profile has changed. No longer is there outmigration, but the county is growing primarily as a result of In-migration.

Retired people are finding the beautiful landscape of the surrounding land pleasurable and are relocating. The retired age population has reached one-eighth of the total population, the number that St. George had when beginning their population boom. The majority of the population is age 30 to 64, because they have the start-up capital necessary to begin new retail and service industries. Grand County has become one of the fastest growing counties in Utah with a growth rate at 6% annually. Only Summit and Washington counties exceed Grand County. The restructuring of Grand County’s economy has definitely changed its economic and demographic profile.

Conclusion

The promotion of Grand County as a tourist/retiree Mecca has proved beneficial to the county. Rural economies in the Inter-Mountain West that were effected by the busted mining economies are “diversifying” their local economies to take advantage of the rural amenities which big city folk tend to enjoy. Tourism is becoming more important to struggling rural economies. But in order to not become over reliant on one sector, much like the mining sector, many rural economies need to look to light manufacturing or other sectors to give stability to tourism. Tourism has positively effected the changing economic and demographic structure of Grand County.

References

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