I invite my Spearfish neighbors to review these figures from Thursday night's annual meeting of the Spearfish Economic Development Corporation:

The numbers revealed during Spearfish Economic Development Corporation’s (SEDC) annual meeting of the membership Thursday far exceeded those in years passed. Nearly 650 more jobs were created, which resulted in the direct payroll impact to increase to more than $44 million, compared to $38 million in 2011. The biggest uptick in the local economy was the 97 percent increase in residential valuation, the 68 percent increase in commercial valuation and the staggering 105 percent increase in building permits for new homes, resulting in the overall building permit valuations to increase by 31 percent — going from 280 permits issued in 2011 to 367 permits issued in 2012 [Heather Murschel, "Economic Growth on the Uptick in Spearfish," Black Hills Pioneer, 2013.02.02].

Spearfish saw a lot of job creation in the past year... but it apparently saw even more job destruction. Let's look at the numbers from one of my favorite websites, the South Dakota Department of Labor:

Spearfish Labor Force Jobs Unemployed Unemp Rate
Dec 2011 13,245 12,600 645 4.9%
Dec 2012 12,445 11,845 600 4.8%
Change -800 -755 -45
%change -6.0% -6.0% -7.0%

800 people jumped out of the Spearfish/Lawrence County workforce last year (funny—it doesn't feel less crowded here). The Queen City metro area lost a net 755 jobs. Those declines are significantly below the job stagnation seen statewide over the past year:

SD Labor Force Jobs Unemployed Unemp Rate
Dec 2011 445,275 425,105 20,170 4.5%
Dec 2012 441,640 421,735 19,905 4.5%
Change -3635 -3370 -265
%change -0.8% -0.8% -1.3%

Hey, that reminds me: how has Madison done in its first year without Dwaine Chapel dragging down the Lake Area Improvement Corporation's performance?

Madison Labor Force Jobs Unemployed Unemp Rate
Dec 2011 6,575 6,290 285 4.3%
Dec 2012 6,605 6,350 255 3.9%
Change 30 60 -30
%change 0.5% 1.0% -10.5%

Holy cow, Julie! You bucked a state trend and got sixty more jobs! You beat Spearfish! Take the credit, now!

Of course, in his first year, 2006, Dwaine saw the county add 70 jobs. And Madison's current total is still 200 fewer jobs than Madison and Lake County's December peak of 6,550 jobs at the end of 2007, early in Dwaine Chapel's rein of error. Still lots of work to do, on both sides of the state!