Workers trickling in to help with startup at Spring City reactor

Fewer workers than expected so far have moved into the area to help build the Unit 2 reactor at Watts Bar Nuclear Plant, officials said Monday.

Harold Stinnette, real estate agent for Select Property Brokers in Dayton, Tenn., said Monday he has received one call a week since November from TVA workers looking for property to rent. But the numbers have not been what he expected, he said.

“We’ve had a few come in, a very few,” he said. “It’s not a flood like we thought we’d have by now.”

TVA spokesman Gil Francis said major construction at the plant will start July 8. TVA officials said they expect 1,500 to 2,000 workers during construction.

Beginning in November, TVA will pay more than $5 million to counties and cities affected by the influx to offset extra costs for schools and law enforcement. The money will be distributed according to which areas are most affected, Mr. Francis said.

Mr. Stinnette said at least three RV campgrounds have sprung up around Spring City in the last few months solely to handle the influx of TVA workers. Many developers also have talked about renting homes, he said.

“Everybody’s talked about the big start-up,” he said. “But I really don’t know, I haven’t seen it.”

Dayton Mayor Bob Vincent said he’s heard that more than 200 workers’ children could enroll in the city’s school.

Dayton expects to receive $90,000 annually from TVA, he said. The city could use the money to rent portable classrooms to handle the extra students.

“At the moment, though, we haven’t seen any increase in the numbers,” he said.

Counties have considered how they will use the money. Rhea is talking about renting portable classrooms, and Meigs is considering building two community centers.

Decatur Mayor Dean Henry said Monday his city would not start planning how to budget the money until April, when the city budget process begins. He said the city expects $65,000 to $68,000 annually. He has heard a few workers, mostly engineers, have moved into the area.

He expects more workers to arrive in May, just before the start of construction. That will mean more traffic, more street maintenance and more calls on police, he said.

“I don’t think it will be enough money, but that’s what we get and there is no appeal process,” he said.

IMPACT MONEY

Estimated Tennessee Valley Authority impact money by county:

* Rhea: $568,507

* Meigs : $568,507

* Roane: $227,403

* McMinn: $142,127

* Monroe: $113,701

Source: Tennessee Comptroller’s Office