Lawton Economy Booming

LAWTON, Oklahoma -- A century ago the new state of Oklahoma was full of boom towns. These days such towns can be hard to find as we endure a recession. But one of the success stories is Lawton in Comanche County.

On a quiet April morning in downtown Lawton, you can't tell that the city is in the midst of an economic boom. But it is.

Dr. Mark Snead conducted a recent study at OSU that paints a rosy future for Lawton's economy. Lawton's Goodyear plant seems to have weathered some recent storms. And there's an abundance of new homes building on the south side of town.

Driving all this economic boom in Lawton is mostly the new campus of the Air Defense Artillery School at Fort Sill.

In 2005 the BRAC Commission ordered the school moved from Fort Bliss to Fort Sill. Eleven new buildings are going up at a cost of $210 million.

"We estimate, and it's a good estimation, that our population will increase by 10, 000," Jon Long with Ft. Sill Public Affairs said. "That includes soldiers, some army civilians that come with them and their families."

That explains all the new houses under construction. A growing population brings growing pains. But the City Manager wouldn't want it any other way.

"I'd rather have it this way than the other way, which would be missions leaving Ft. Sill," Lawton City Manager Larry Mitchell said. "Obviously it's a great opportunity for us, and it's one that we don't want to miss."

Total spending at Ft. Sill for BRAC Commission mandated projects comes to just over $417 million.