Terre haute forecast 2012.

• Author: Christ, Kevin
• Position: Statistical data

The outlook for the Terre Haute regional economy is much like the campaign slogan of Terre Haute's newly re-elected mayor Duke Bennett: "Responsible Progress." The city has managed to navigate the drain on revenues resulting from property tax caps while simultaneously developing a plan to deal with its combined sewer overflow problems in an EPA-compliant fashion. While employment figures make it abundantly clear that many of the area's residents continue to struggle to find work, the city is living within its means.

The bright spots are mostly confined to the relatively healthy education and health sectors. Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, Indiana State University and the Wabash Valley campus of Ivy Tech Community College are all experiencing robust enrollment and working on significant building projects. The expansion of Union Hospital is complete and both it and Regional HCA continue to provide stable employment for many. Those looking for other hopeful signs might point to a continued healthy relationship between the city and its largest private employers (Sony, Bemis and Alorica) that could well be enhanced by the stability associated with having the first re-elected mayor in 20 years.

The downtown area continues to revive, with new facilities under construction for a local TV station and radio station, the latter of which will include new office and retail space. Additionally, the renovation of a former federal building is well underway. In June 2012, it will become the new home of Indiana State's Scott College of Business. The relocation of the college to the northern edge of downtown will continue a revitalization of the area that has been ongoing since 2007.

Labor Market

Despite these successes, one cannot ignore the conclusion that the Terre Haute regional economy is stuck in the same stagnant environment that affects the state of Indiana and the nation. Almost 30 months into an official recovery from the worst recession since the 1930s, the Terre Haute economy continues to be sluggish and offers few signs of any imminent return to robust growth. Since peaking in November 2006, area employment has sputtered downward, with about 5,600 fewer people employed in the area today (see Figure 1).

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

After improving rather dramatically between the fall of 2010 and the spring of 2011, the Terre Haute labor market weakened considerably during the last half of 2011. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the local unemployment...