PECOS, Texas-Ted and Murlene Godfrey nearly tripled the size of their RV park, and people are still clamoring to live there.
The Midland Reporter-Telegram reports as oil field-related jobs draw people to Reeves County, the Godfreys receive up to 30 inquiries per day.
"It is a big problem to find housing here," Murlene Godfrey said. "It's either extremely expensive, or mostly it's just not available."
The Godfreys started Duval Road RV Park in 2013, a time when they said few spaces for the vehicles existed in the area. What started as a way for the pair to earn income became a venture that continued to expand.
"By the time we got it finished-each segment of it-it was all rented," Ted Godfrey said. "It's been that way all the time. Even now, we could put in another 50 (spaces) and rent them out before we get them done because there's a big demand for it."
The Godfreys' RV park is about 4 miles outside the city limits of Pecos, where people have also turned to temporary living options. As government leaders address housing and other impacts of population growth, they say the change also brings increased sales tax.
For 33 years, Kenneth Winkles Jr. has witnessed ups and downs in the Pecos economy. But recently, the growth hasn't slowed down.
"That's what everybody's been waiting on for the last five, six, seven years-is for this boom to go away," he said.
Winkles, executive director of the Pecos Economic Development Corp. (PEDC), said sales tax collection in 2018 is double what it was in 2016. He credits increased oil activity with allowing the city to generate more money for infrastructure projects.
The industry has brought well-paying jobs and other opportunities to Pecos, according to Mayor Venetta Seals.
"For our local people that have gotten some of these jobs, they're now able to do a lot of improvements to their homes, where before they just didn't have the income to do that," she said.
Traditionally a small town, Pecos is now welcoming several new businesses, including Tractor Supply Co., Dickey's Barbecue Pit and Domino's. But with few places for employees to live, attracting additional retailers has been difficult.
"As most people will tell you, retail will not come without rooftops," Winkles said. "So, if you don't solve your housing issues, you have an extremely hard time really looking at the national franchises."
To recruit businesses, the PEDC has entered a three-year agreement with the company Retail Strategies. In terms of housing, the corporation has been involved with creating a 16-home subdivision. Apartment complexes and a larger home project are being planned.
For now, Seals said some people live in temporary housing, such as RVs, travel trailers, hotels and man camps.
Pecos can't count those transient residents as a part of its overall population, which stands at nearly 9,000, according to Seals. She thinks at least twice that many people are in her city, and that discrepancy makes it challenging to attract housing builders to the area.
"When they look at our demographics, it says we aren't growing," Seals said. "But we know we're growing because of the lack of housing that's here."
When Tameka McKay heads into Reeves County, she tries to leave early or late to beat traffic. It's an adjustment she has made as she sees clogged roads in the Pecos area.
"Even our bosses tell us to avoid certain highways, to go around just to make sure we make it home and back every day," said McKay, who has lived in the region on and off since 2014.
Many in Pecos pointed toward traffic on U.S. Highway 285 as an indicator of the area's recent growth. The highway-one of the city's main arteries and a northern route to Carlsbad, New Mexico-is sometimes dubbed "dead man's road" because of vehicle fatalities.
The two-lane highway was sufficient until oilfield traffic increased in the area, according to Seals. She said the situation has created concern for those who have long traveled on the road.
"You'd be lucky if you'd see three, four vehicles maybe," Seals said. "Now, it's a very heavily traveled highway."
Between Pecos and the state line, seven fatalities occurred on Highway 285 through the end of July, according to Gene Powell, public information officer for the Odessa District of the Texas Department of Transportation. That volume of fatalities equals the total for all of 2017.
TxDOT has started work on about $100 million in projects on the highway. Plans include adding passing lanes north of Pecos so that drivers can move around slower vehicles.
"I think it will improve the situation, but the real key to improve the situation is driver behavior," Powell said via phone.
While driving a different route to his Pecos job, William Steverson estimates that he sees one wreck daily. As a former paramedic, he said that volume of vehicle crashes stands out. Steverson has also noticed the toll commercial vehicles put on the region's roads.
"I drive in from Midland every day, so the construction has definitely not helped," he said. "But it's got to be done because the roads are in bad shape because of all of the big trucks."
Within city limits, the Pecos Police Department does what it can to enforce commercial vehicle permits and maintain traffic safety.
The department this year received 922 traffic accident calls as of July 30. The figure represents an increase from 2014, when the department received 524 of those calls the entire year, according to data provided to the Reporter-Telegram.
Lisa Tarango, interim police chief, thinks traffic volume and driving speeds contribute to the spike in accidents.
"We have a lot of different vehicles in a small area," Tarango said. "Everyone's trying to get somewhere a lot faster than traffic should allow."
In response to the increased volumes, Pecos Police Department has hired additional personnel to handle calls and law enforcement duties. Tarango said recent pay increases have helped the department to meet the demand.
"What the city was having trouble with was finding quality candidates," she said. "We wouldn't have a lot of people in our application pool."
Margie Pena was raised in the food service industry, but she never remembers working as hard as she does now. She dedicates time toward continuing her grandparents' traditions at the increasingly busy Old Mill Restaurant.
"It's been very frustrating for locals that are used to coming in and sitting down and eating and getting their food promptly," said Pena, manager at the Pecos restaurant. "Where it used to be a few customers, now we're overwhelmed."
Pena enjoys welcoming newcomers to Old Mill, which she said is known for its customer service and fresh-made tortillas. As the economy grows, the business has raised wages and offered other incentives to keep workers on board.
A few years ago, Old Mill operated with about 20 employees. The staff has since doubled in size and could still use extra help. Pena said the restaurant can't afford to lose its current employees, even those who don't work their shifts consistently.
"When they pick and choose their hours, our attitude is: Well, at least they showed up today," she said. "It's just so frustrating because this is a hard job."
As a Pecos native, John Venegas has watched people fill restaurants and retail stores. He said the trend has been going on for about two years.
"I'd call it a surprise," he said. "I don't think we saw this amount of people coming into town and just changing everything the way it's changed."
In addition to the crowding, Venegas said some people in the area are confronting another issue related to economic growth: increased cost-of-living.
At Duval Road RV Park, monthly prices have increased up to $100 since the business first opened. McKay, who lives at the site, said she can't complain about the spike but expressed concern for people in the community who don't have lucrative oil industry jobs.
"I hate it because they're jacking the prices on not only the housing, but the gas and the food for the local people," said McKay, who is originally from Louisiana. "You're not hurting us. But you're hurting the local people."
To expand affordable living options, the PEDC plans to use some of its land for sites that are in the starter-home price range, Winkles said.
Limited housing in Pecos has put a strain on the ability to draw health care and education sector workers, according to City Manager Seth Sorensen. He said some people travel on weekends to visit their families and estimates retail leakage is 85 to 95 percent. The city leader hopes more people call Pecos their home in the future.
"We want to have a permanent tax base inside the city," Sorensen said. "RVs are meeting the temporary need, but they don't do anything for our property values."
Sorensen said the city is using money from record-setting sales tax collections to address infrastructure needs. He expects the oil-related activity will continue to drive economic growth.
"It's a blessing and a curse-a blessing that it's bringing us so many opportunities but a curse that we can't move fast enough to keep up with everything," Sorensen said.