INDUSTRY: A Golden Flood Returns

(2 of 2)

While thousands of new arrivals have been able to land good jobs quickly, more than a few end up dealing with freelance employment "agents." Typically, they hire down-and-out job seekers to work at the wells for $4.50 an hour. The catch: the agent gets the $4.50 and takes $2 for himself before passing it on. Another severe problem is housing, which has failed to expand to accommodate the explosive growth of Odessa's population—from 93,000 to 102,500 last year. Even those with money are often forced to leave for lack of a home, and Odessa churches and citizens have bought dozens of bus tickets for the destitute. Housing is somewhat more plentiful in Midland but is far too expensive —and distant—for the average oil-patch laborer. "Midland is a good place to raise children," goes the local saying, "Odessa is a good place to raise hell."

Indeed, the restaurant and nightclub business in Odessa is thriving along with the boom. Patrons often have to wait for 45 minutes on weekends for a table at the Oilpatch, one of the most expensive spots in town. For Herbert Graham, 35, and his brother Phillip, 34, business is so good that they have been able to earn back their original $100,000 investment in The Other Place, a discotheque they opened a year ago, in just five months. Last month they opened another nightclub, the Continental Cowboy. "We were thinking of going out of town to build," says Herb, "but our bankers said don't do it. This is where the action will be for the next ten years."