The ALON USA Big Spring Refinery is not like the world’s other oil refineries.

For starters, it’s located inland rather than on the coast, and it’s the last operating refinery of any kind in the central part of the Permian Basin. ALON is also a major player in Big Spring’s economy.

The facility produces 70,000 barrels of fuel products a day and has 170 employees, many of whom have been with the refinery for more than 20 years.

“The history of the Big Spring Refinery is woven into the very fabric of the Howard County community,” says Jeff Morris, president and CEO of ALON USA. “Generations of local residents have worked at the plant, and their contribu­tions to the refining industry, as well as to the city, are as important today as they were when it began operating.”

The Big Spring site was constructed in 1928 by Joshua Cosden, then expanded during World War II and again in the 1950s and 1960s. It was purchased by American Petrofina in 1963, expanded again in the 1980s and was finally bought by ALON USA in 2000.

The refinery transforms crude oil into gasoline, low sulfur diesel, asphalt, solvents and emulsions, and supplies these products to customers throughout West Texas, Arkansas, Arizona, New Mexico and southern Oklahoma. Many of its fuel customers are FINA and 7-Eleven gas stations.

“In the 2006 Solomon Reports, the Big Spring Refinery was rated No. 1 in maintenance and operational reliability compared to other refineries of its size,” Morris says. “Presently, nearly 1,500 people are working around the clock to rebuild the refinery following a February 2008 explosion with the goal of returning it to its previous No. 1 status.”

The company also strives to be a good corporate citizen with annual contri­butions to local charities such as United Way, Christmas in April, the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life, the American Heart Association’s Heart Walk and the Multiple Sclerosis Walk. The Big Spring Refinery also sponsors Little League and softball programs, college sporting events and memberships for youngsters at the YMCA.

“To celebrate the refinery’s 75th anniversary [in 2003], we purchased 75 computers for a Big Spring Independent School District computer learning lab,” Morris says. “We also sponsor and under­write many major events in Big Spring, such as the Big Spring Area Chamber of Commerce Health Fair.”

In addition, the refinery is, and has been for decades, the largest taxpayer to Howard County and the Big Spring ISD.

“The bottom line is that we annually produce 4 million tons of fuel products and asphalt intended for the Southwestern United States,” Morris says. “We have also received many awards and honors and are very active in our community.”


Big Spring is big on health care – the Texas town boasts three different medical facilities.

At Scenic Mountain Medical Center, the 150-bed hospital admits 3,400 patients each year, while its emergency department annually sees 14,000 people. Over the past three years, SMMC has added nine new physicians.

In 2008, the hospital expanded its services to include lithotripsy treatment and a sleep lab. A recent upgrade to its magnetic resonance imaging equipment allows physicians to examine a patient’s blood vessels in order to quickly and precisely diagnose health problems. A Level IV Trauma Center designation, first earned in 2005, certifies that the Emergency Department at Scenic Mountain provides the equipment and resources to care for patients with traumatic injuries.

“This designation was given after SMMC voluntarily underwent the intensive survey process by the Texas Department of State Health Services to demonstrate its commitment to high-quality trauma care for the residents of Howard County and the surrounding area,” says George N. Parsley, CEO of Scenic Mountain Medical Center. “We will continue to work to set new standards of excellence in providing emergency care.”

SMMC has a staff of more than 300 employees and an annual payroll of $17 million, and it is involved in several community nonprofit efforts.

“The hospital spends about $1 million annually on capital equipment upgrades to keep abreast of the ever-changing technology available in the marketplace,” Parsley says. “We are creating a great place for people to work, physicians to practice medicine and, most impor­tantly, for patients to receive great care.”

Meanwhile, two other hospitals in town are just as dedicated to providing quality care to patients.

Big Spring State Hospital, which is known for its innovative methods in treating mental illness, is a 200-bed psychiatric facility that serves 58 counties in West Texas and the Texas Panhandle. It was founded in 1938 and is the largest employer in Howard County with a staff of 600, including doctors, nurses and social workers.

And the West Texas Veterans Administration Health Care System, commonly referred to as the VA hospital, welcomes approximately 19,000 patients each year to its 25-bed facility in Big Spring. The hospital only treats veterans, and its service area spans 47 counties in West Texas and Lea County, N.M.

“Our main campus is Big Spring, but we also have veterans’ outpatient clinics in Abilene, San Angelo, Odessa, Fort Stockton, Stamford and Hobbs, N.M.,” says Iva Jo Hanslik, community relations coordinator for the West Texas Veterans Administration Health Care System. “The area we serve is actually larger than 33 of the U.S. states.”

Besides extensive outpatient ambula­tory care, the VA hospital also performs several hundred eye surgeries each year at its Big Spring site.

“Our ophthalmology department actu­ally provides the training for all the ophthalmology residents at Texas Tech University,” Hanslik says. “We do a lot here at this hospital so that our veterans receive the absolute best care we can provide them.”

Not only does Howard College enjoy a large presence in the Big Spring area, it was recently named among the top 20 fastest-growing community colleges of its size in the nation.

The school’s main campus sits on 120 acres in Big Spring, and the college’s SouthWest Collegiate Institute for the Deaf is also located here. Furthermore, there are satellite campuses in Lamesa and San Angelo.

“We have a multifaceted role in the communities we serve,” says Cindy Smith, director of information for Howard College. “Of course, we offer several traditional certificate and associate’s degree programs, with many of our students going on to earn four-year degrees after completing their time at Howard.

In addition, we also have several programs for students wanting to quickly enter the workforce. They can enroll in our Workforce Education Program and study nursing, dental hygiene, agriculture, criminal justice or the oil industry.”

The college also has an extensive non-credit program through continuing education classes and coordinates several workforce training programs for area businesses.

Howard College also offers distance learning and dual credit classes for high school juniors and seniors throughout the service area.

The Howard College Hawk athletic programs have seen their own share of success throughout the years.

“The Howard College Hawks team sports in men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball and rodeo have repre­sented our school well,” Smith says. “We have outstanding athletes and athletic facilities, such as the Dorothy Garrett Coliseum – home of Hawk basketball – Jack Barber Field for baseball, Foundation Field for softball and our own rodeo arena. In addition to these organized sport facilities, we have a football stadium and sand volleyball court on campus to serve students in our intramural sports as well.”

Meanwhile, the college’s SouthWest Collegiate Institute for the Deaf is located on the former Webb Air Force Base in Big Spring and has approximately 130 students enrolled each fall. It was founded in 1980 and is one of the only post-secondary institutions in the United States dedicated solely to the pro­vision of education and career training for deaf students.

“We are very proud of our SWCID campus and students,” Smith says. “We have students come to our campus from all over the country to receive their education or career training here in Big Spring, and we are very pleased to be a part of their educational journey.”

The SWCID campus is fully equipped with dormitories, a recreation center, classroom space and excellent lab facilities to accommodate its students.

“Howard College continues to see record growth,” Smith says. “We like it like that and want to continue to grow and evolve to meet the ever-changing needs of the communities we serve – all 13,000 square miles of them.”

Debbye ValVerde says that being a member of the Big Spring Area Chamber of Commerce lends more credibility and respect to a business.

“A majority of phone calls we receive are from people asking if a business is a chamber member,” says ValVerde, executive director of the Big Spring Area Chamber of Commerce. “The callers regard the chamber as something similar to the Better Business Bureau. They figure that if a company is good enough to be a chamber member, they can be trusted. A lot of people go by that.”

The Big Spring Area Chamber of Commerce was established in 1919 and today has 380 members. Besides ValVerde, the staff consists of Nancy Newell and Vicki Stewart.

“Here in Big Spring, people call us for just about everything,” ValVerde says. “We get calls on everything from why isn’t the post office answering the phone, to when is the next arts and crafts show. People are just comfortable calling us.”

ValVerde says some businesses have been members for several generations.

“As family businesses change hands, the new family members remain with the chamber,” ValVerde says. “Examples are Elrod’s Furniture, Harris Lumber & Hardware, Al’s & Son Bar-B-Que, The Harley-Davidson Shop – the oldest Harley store in Texas – and Red Mesa Grill. All have been members for generations.”

ValVerde adds that the chamber also organizes yearly events such as a Community Health Fair, the Leadership Big Spring Program and a Big Spring Ag Expo. Other community volunteers work on the Pops in the Park Symphony Concert on July 3, Festival of Lights Dec. 15 – Dec. 31, Keep Big Springs Beautiful and many more events throughout the community.

“We even organize drives to get people to vote,” she says. “The chamber is truly involved with just about everything in this area. It is not what the chamber can do for me, it is what can the chamber and my investment do for the better of the community.”

Adventures from mild to wild make Big Spring an interesting place to live – and visit.

“Once the Settles Hotel is renovated downtown, we want our city to truly become a tourism destination for West Texas, and we think that can happen,” says Debbie Wegman, coordinator of the Big Spring Convention & Visitors Bureau. “There is a lot to see and do in Big Spring.”

For starters, there’s golf. The Comanche Trail Golf Course just com­pleted a $2 million upgrade to its 18-hole public facility, and Big Spring Country Club provides another option to res­idents wanting to hit the links.

“We are also trying to make Big Spring a destination for hunters and fishermen, especially with a new hunting lodge called Moss Creek Ranch. The Quahadi Wildlife & Ranch Retreat is also a local hunting destination,” Wegman says. “As for fishing, Moss Creek Lake as well as Comanche Trail Lake in Comanche Trail Park both provide anglers with opportunities for good catches.”

Comanche Trail Park also hosts a number of events, including a patriotic concert at its amphitheater every July 3.

“The amphitheater was built in the 1930s and can seat up to 6,000 people,” Wegman says. “It is packed on July 3 with a 6:30 p.m. Pops in the Park show that ends with our symphony playing to a fireworks display.”

Yes, Big Spring is home to its own symphony, making it the smallest city in Texas with a professional orchestra. The Big Spring Symphony Orchestra performs most of its concerts at the Big Spring Municipal Auditorium, which also dates back to the 1930s.

“As for sports, work has begun on a youth sports expansion at Roy Anderson Sports Complex to increase our softball, baseball, soccer and Little League foot­ball offerings,” Wegman says. “Those upgrades will allow Big Spring to attract regional and perhaps state competitions, which will bring thousands of visitors to our city.”

Wegman points out that Big Spring also has an 18-hole disc golf course, museums, a Vietnam Memorial, an annual dog show, an annual American Indian powwow and the “Funtastic Fourth,” a celebration of the Fourth of July with a full day of music in the Heart of the City Park downtown. There are other celebrations held throughout the year. The Festival of Lights holiday event features 1 million lights and 40-foot-tall poinsettias at Comanche Trail Park.

“Big Spring has a low cost of living, great medical facilities, a nice college, and we welcome retirees,” she says of the city of 25,000 residents. “This is a nice place to live. And being at the cros­sroads of West Texas, the intersection of Interstate 20 and U.S. Highway 87, we are a great and easy place to visit, too.”

Here is a wind-wind situation for Howard County and Big Spring.

Five different developers have planned construction projects to install 300 alternative energy windmills on various private properties in the area. Once construction is completed in 2009, the 300 windmills will be able to supply electricity to 90,000 homes.

“The electricity generated by the wind turbines flows into the ERCOT electrical distribution grid and supplies energy to West Texas, as well as metropolitan areas such as Dallas-Fort Worth,” says Terry Wegman, executive director of the Big Spring Economic Development Corp. “With 300 windmills, this is one of the larger wind energy developments in West Texas.”

Wegman says wind energy only accounts for 1 percent of all energy produced nationwide, but the Texas Legislature wants the state to increase its own renewable energy to 10 percent by 2012.

“Wind energy will really begin to grow as part of the overall mix of electrical production in Texas,” he says. “In Howard County, it has already begun.”

To erect the windmills, the developers are leasing private land from ranchers and farmers. Besides annual lease payments, the ranchers and farmers will also receive royalty percentages from the electricity sold.

From an economic standpoint, the five projects represent an investment of $650 million to $700 million in Howard County.

“School districts will benefit from this investment,” Wegman says. “Plus, the city of Big Spring is benefiting because the hundreds of people working on these projects are living in town and spending money at our gas stations, grocery stores and restaurants. While parts of the United States are experiencing a slumping economy, that’s not true here in West Texas – and much of the reason is because of energy.”

Elvis Presley and Lawrence Welk stayed there, and so did President Herbert Hoover.

The Settles Hotel, which opened in 1930, is a 15-story landmark that is still considered one of the most famous his­toric buildings in West Texas. But like so many older buildings in downtowns throughout the United States, it had fallen into disrepair over the years.

In fact, the Settles Hotel has been vacant since the early 1980s.

Enter Brint and Kristopher Ryan. The businessmen brothers purchased the hotel in 2006 from the city of Big Spring, founded the Settles Hotel Development Co., and are currently drawing up blue­prints to completely resurrect it.

“Brint and I were born in nearby Luther and have wanted to invest in our hometown area for quite awhile,” Kristopher Ryan says. “Brint owns the largest state and local tax consulting firm in North America and wants to give back. So we are.”

What the brothers are doing is in the planning stages right now, but they hope to have the hotel reconstruction project started in late 2008. The entire restoration is expected to take 18 to 24 months to complete.

“We envision retail spaces on the first and second floors and are also consid­ering amenities like a fitness center, restaurant and conference center,” Ryan says. “The ballroom and lobby will also be restored according to the original architectural plans from the late 1920s. It is our goal to eventually nominate the Settles Hotel for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places.”

As for floors three through 15, Ryan says they will all be hotel suites – no apartments. The 15th floor will feature one large penthouse.

“These will all be large suites with perhaps full kitchens in each, or at least a bar area,” he says. “All rooms will have plasma TVs, and the interiors will look like $300 to $400 rooms found in Dallas. But the Settles Hotel won’t charge any­where near those prices.”

The brothers have also hired a top hotel consultant who has worked on similar landmark renovation projects in New York, Las Vegas and Miami.

“It is a very complicated endeavor and, because of the age of our building, we must get approval for any improvements from the Texas Historical Commission in Austin,” Ryan says. “A lot of the work will involve demolishing and rebuilding walls on floors three through 15, and the commission must monitor everything.”

Ryan says the entire project is expected to cost between $17 million and $18 million.

“We certainly won’t make any money on this – it is simply a labor of love for our hometown,” Ryan says. “We want to help turn Big Spring into a major West Texas destination and believe it is possible. I hope this project inspires other downtown building owners to reinvest in their older properties, too.”