At exactly 10:05 a.m. Tuesday, a chorus of whoops cut through the Times Free Press newsroom, followed by a smattering of applause.

News of Volkswagen of America’s decision to build a $1 billion auto assembly plant here had just been posted to the newspaper’s Web site. (How much is a billion? Think of it this way: A billion seconds ago it was 1977.)

On one level, the cheers were for the speedy online delivery of landmark news, an invigorating feeling for some of us ink-stained old newspaper folks. On another level, though, the cheers seemed to rise up from a deeper place. In the gathering gloom of the U.S. economy, it was as if the clouds parted Tuesday and a beam of hope shone down on Chattanooga.

It is about time. As a native Middle Tennessean — I moved away in 1980 — I had become weary of going back and hearing about all of the midstate’s epic economic-development conquests: Nissan trucks, Saturn cars, Bridgestone-Firestone tires, Dell computers.

“Did you hear we’re building a new tourist attraction in Chattanooga?” I’d insert, as friends and relatives nodded sympathetically.

You almost had to grow up in Middle Tennessee to see the transforming effect that the auto industry can have on a region.

In Franklin, Tenn., which is nestled between the Nissan assembly plant in Smyrna, Tenn., and the Saturn plant in Spring Hill, Tenn., the median home price today is about $300,000. Median family income is $91,731. Money magazine ranks it in the top 50 places in America to live.

A generation ago, the Franklin I remember was a sleepy little town, separated from Nashville by miles of rolling hills — and cows. Now it’s a suburban wonderland filled with high-end subdivisions and high-performing public schools. That’s what two nearby auto assembly plants and a generation of regional growth can do.

How can a 2,000-worker plant like Volkswagen will build here transform a whole city?

Here’s how: U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp noted this week that the VW plant might indirectly create 14,000 related jobs. That’s about as many jobs as four of the city’s biggest employers — TVA, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee, Unum Corp. and McKee Foods Corp. — put together.

Two cautions from the midstate experience: The pace of economic change might be slower than some expect, and its sustainability will depend on the quality of the cars made here.

After General Motors announced in 1985 that it would anchor its new Saturn brand in Spring Hill, I remember that real-estate speculation ran wild for a while in my native Maury County. More than two decades later, much of the land surrounding the site remains undeveloped, and the plant is being retooled to make more popular models.

Ultimately, though, the midstate area was lifted by a steady improvement in living standards, and the tax base was enriched after the carmakers arrived.

Expect a lot of chatter in the coming months about how the new Volkswagen sedans to be produced here will compete for market share with the bulletproof offerings from Toyota, Honda and others.

In the ultra-competitive midsize sedan market, Volkswagen will have to combine its engineering prowess and value pricing with market-competitive durability if the new car is to succeed.

The promise of thousands of new, family-wage jobs has rightfully lifted all of our spirits. But there is much work to be done if Chattanooga workers are going to produce a true “people’s car.”

I was explaining to my 6-year-old son this week that one day soon, people in every town in America will own cars made right here in Chattanooga. I could see the excitement in his eyes.

I say we’re ready for this.

Let’s roll.

A new book by Mark Kennedy, “Life Stories: A Collection of Columns,” is available at publishedbywestview.com. E-mail him at 757-6645.

Comments