COUSHATTA — Red River School Board employees might want to kiss the ground when they open their semiannual supplemental check Friday because it's the trapped natural gas reserve under their feet they have to thank for the significant increase.

The checks to teachers, aides, janitors, bus drivers and everyone in between are for $900. Last year: $455.

"That's pretty substantial for us," Finance Director David Jones said.

Economists can only speculate what the true impact of the Haynesville Shale will be for northwest Louisiana in the long-run. But for Red River, the instant influx of leasing and drilling activity and feet on the ground is just the pick-me-up the struggling parish has needed.

Financial troubles have made headlines the past 10 years. Big employers closed, leaving the unemployed with few options for local work and scores of empty buildings. Earlier this year, Hood Industries, a major employer, closed and 100 jobs disappeared.

Unknown at the time was the emerging oil and gas play that was about to consume Red River and many of its neighboring parishes. Quietly, for a year or so, many oil and gas companies had been sinking test wells to gauge the potential of the Haynesville Shale, a deep rock formation that has begun to belch up natural gas — and dollar signs.

And the money continues to be spread around many facets of the community despite the gloomy financial news that clouds the rest of the country.

Take, for example, the receipts of the Red River Sales and Use Commission. Executive Director Elaine Moore is almost giddy at the prospect of opening each day's mail. Sales tax collections that have steadily grown since the Haynesville Shale set up shop pushed the parish to a new record in October.

"We had our first $1 million month," Moore said. "I was so excited."

The $1 million and some change represents sales in September that were collected in October. But for the prior three months — or the first quarter of the 2008-09 fiscal year — collections exceeded $1.6 million, an increase of more than $357,000 from the previous quarter and almost $700,000 more than last year's first quarter.

The bump started last year. For fiscal year 2007-08, which ended June 30, $4.8 million in sales tax revenue were reported. By comparison, fiscal year 2006-07 generated $4.1 million and 2005-06 produced $3.1 million.

"When I first started here, if we got $200,000 we did good. Normally, we get about $400,000. ... So this is really good. I was expecting $500,000," Moore said.

She cites natural gas activity and the spinoffs. "They are eating with local restaurants, buying at local grocery stores, they are buying at the local dollar stores, the fast-food places. ... It's all increasing."

Two cents of the tax collections goes to the Red River School Board. One cent is dedicated to salaries and benefits, and 40 percent of the second penny is for the semiannual salary supplements. The remainder is split with transportation, schools and debt retirement.

"We'll take it as long as we can get it," Jones said.

EnCana stakes claim

The small parish with an equally small population — 9,428, according to the 2006 census estimate — is about as far removed as one can get from the Calgary, Alberta, Canada, headquarters of EnCana Corp. Red River and neighboring DeSoto Parish is EnCana Oil & Gas USA's first focus, Mid-Continent Business Unit Vice President Paul R. Sander said. About 370,000 net acres are under lease in both parishes. Other operations are planned in Bossier, Caddo, Natchitoches and Sabine parishes.

"This should be a very busy place for some time to come," Sander said.

EnCana has a team on the ground under the direction of Ron Stark, group leader for the Louisiana Field Operations. But most of those involved in the drilling operations are contract workers.

EnCana officials hope to have six to eight drilling rigs in operation by year's end. Six of those would be solely EnCana-operated rigs and the others operated through a partnership with Shell Exploration and Production.

That means even more job opportunities for a job-hungry parish.

Red River's unemployment rate has hovered around 8 percent most of the year, while the state average was 5.2 percent in September. The parish's jobless numbers have ebbed and flowed along with the closure of once rock-solid employers. The rate went from 6.4 percent in January 2000 to 10.2 percent a year later. It edged up to 11.3 percent in June 2004 then dropped to 4.4 percent in April 2006.

Downtown sees new life

EnCana picked a site in the Red River village of Martin to base its operations. But a drive through parts of downtown Coushatta, the parish seat, signals another benefit of the Haynesville Shale.

Businesses that cater to or are associated with the natural gas business are pulling the plywood off long boarded-up buildings or pushing modular buildings into empty lots. One of the businesses, J7 Contractors, installs pipeline to transmit gas from the rigs. The 80 employees travel with the company, so their stay may not be long. Meantime, their travel trailers are stationed at Grand Bayou Resort, giving the popular tourist spot needed income during the off-season.

A welding business will fill an empty building at Edgar at Front streets, and an oil and gas construction services business will occupy the former Red River Chevrolet building. About 70 or more jobs will be created there.

Realtor Edgar Gaddis, of United Country Real Estate, so far is having success with the sale of one downtown building and leases on three others, but there are no available houses to sell or rent.

"No one is turning land loose," Gaddis said. "I guess everyone is just holding on and waiting to see what happens."

That reflects Red River's economic drought of the past decade.

"We haven't had many new homes built in the past 20 years. ... I'm hurting really," Gaddis said. "My inventory is the lowest it's been in the six years I've been in business. "

Still, Gaddis, who formerly headed the Coushatta-Red River Chamber of Commerce, is seeing the effects of the oil and gas boom, and especially the extra payrolls the new businesses are producing.

"Oh, we're feeling it, yes. I just wish I had some houses to sell them."

But not all of the sprucing up in Coushatta is oil- and gas-related. Last month, Red River hit the lottery of sorts when ADA-ES held a groundbreaking for its $350 million activated carbon plant. The facility will be the only one of its kind in the United States, while providing steady, good-paying jobs.

BE&K Building Group, which is constructing the ADA-ES plant, has established an office in Coushatta.

Connie Mabile, Coushatta-Red River Chamber of Commerce president, is glad to see more parish residents will have the opportunity to take advantage of the expanding job opportunities locally.

As owner of Mabile's Corner Pharmacy, she is seeing that money from mineral rights leases to property owners have relieved some from living paycheck to paycheck. She anticipates the truest test of the local economy will come during the Christmas shopping season.

"As far as seeing a big impact, it's not that great yet. But I think by Christmas we will see if people go out and shop, shop, shop or put it in the bank. Some are buying new vehicles, but others are being conservative."

Even though the frenzied activity associated with the early shale leasing has slowed, the impact still has been positive for Red River, American Bank & Trust City President Les Gray said.

"Especially in the times we've been in right now. ... It is too early in the game. Long term, it will be the best thing to ever hit this area," Gray said. "We'll probably see it in the ad valorem tax collections next year. The more pipelines they put in here, the more rigs they put in here.

"It all came at a good time because of the Hood closing. ... This came and kind of helped us get through that time," Gray said. "It has insulated this area to the economy that's in the rest of the U.S.; but it's only an insulation, it's not a protection."