July 16, 2026 • 44 mins
- Monica James - AVP Commercial Relationship Manager for First Financial Bank
Monica serves as the Assistant Vice President and Commercial Relationship Manager at First Financial Bank. She has been with the bank for nearly five years and is currently based at the Orange location. Monica will join the team opening First Financial Bank's newest Beaumont branch on College Street, where she looks forward to continuing to serve local businesses and build lasting relationships throughout Southeast Texas.
Payton Keith - Director (Texas) - Harris Deville & Associates, Inc. (HDA)Payton specializes in public opinion research, opposition research, strategic planning, governmental relations, and community outreach logistics. As the “boots” on the ground in Texas, Payton brings a depth of local and state knowledge to the table when assessing critical issues facing industry clients in the region. His positioning in Southeast Texas ensures that matters of local governmental relations and community outreach receive personal attention. Payton currently provides comprehensive research, strategic planning, and guidance on local issues for global leaders in the petrochemical and refining industry. Other duties have included legislative and public opinion analysis for a leading industry group in the region, due diligence on facility and siting investment, management of charitable outreach efforts, and site support for clients. A graduate of Southern Methodist University, Payton has more than six years experience in state governance and campaign politics in Texas.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Well, hello, Southeast Texas, Welcome to the Dana Simmons Show.
We are excited that you have decided to join us
this Saturday. We have some special guests that you are
gonna love. Peyton Keith. He is with Harris Devillean Associates.
And if you're wondering what in the world is going
on at Beaumont, we have so many things happening, you're
going to be shocked. There is so much more to come.
(00:23):
So Peyton's gonna give us a little insight into that
world and also maybe even a little bit into the
political world. We'll see what he has to say. I
know that can be a little questionable sometimes, but we're
gonna visit with him about that. Also with us is
Monica James, and she is with First Financial Bank and
she is a commercial lender there and they are going
(00:45):
to be opening a new branch and so we're gonna
talk a little bit about what First Financial Bank is
doing and is what is that new location that's coming soon.
Before we do that, though, I'd like to give you
a little bit of an update as to what is
going on here in Southeast Texas in the morning. In
the in the morning, Yeah, well, no longer morning, we're afternoon,
(01:05):
but in the current situation we're in. So what we've
seen in the last month is a pretty decent increase.
So while we closed last year about three hundred and
forty seven homes, in the last month in this year,
we closed three hundred and sixty eight. But let me
tell you where the biggest in impact is that total
(01:26):
amount of soul dollar volume was eighty two million in
twenty twenty five. Last month, the total closed volume in
twenty twenty six is one hundred and two million. That's
a twenty million dollar increase in one month. So our
average sales price has gone from about two thirty to
(01:49):
about two thirty five. But what is really also I
think important, is our days on market has gone from
one hundred and two to ninety one. So we're seeing
houses on the market for less time, and we're seeing
them sell at a decent price. Another very good statistic
is our pending volume. Our pending volume in twenty five
(02:12):
was sixty almost sixty two million, but our pending volume
right now here in Southeast Texas is almost eighty four million.
So you know, we've talked about on this show for
the last several years about the fact that it has
been softer, that people are not moving as much as
they were, that there was a little bit of a
(02:32):
softer market. But we are seeing a pickup and we're
so grateful, and we're going to talk to Peyton about
potentially could that be some of the things that are
coming into our area that are generating that additional activity.
Whatever it is, We're thrilled. We're so happy to see
that growth happening and people getting back in the market
and we are getting busy again. Before we get into
(02:54):
the part about what you guys do for a living
and what you do every day, I want to hear
about your personal lives and who you are. Our audience
always likes to know a little bit about you, So
Peyton Keith tell everyone a little bit about who you are.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
Absolutely, thank you, Dana. It's a pleasure of being here
with you today. Of course I have the privilege of
serving on the board, the chamber board with you, and
I have to say, you're the best chair that we have.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
I'm the only chair we have right now. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (03:21):
That's right. Well, don't tell Craig I said that. I'm
sure we'll probably listen in my name is Peyton Keith.
I work for a company called Harris Deville and Associates,
and it's an issues management firm, which is a very
vague term for strategic communications, public affairs, and government relations.
We're based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, but I am the
(03:42):
director for the Texas side of the business and we
have a different approach organizationally in Texas from Louisiana.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
Yeah, I think everything's a little different.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
It is. In Louisiana we kind of a standard lobby shop.
We lobby at the state legislature there and we do public,
public affairs and relations services for clients. In Texas, it's
a little different. We're decentralized. I'm based here in Beaumont,
Port Arthur. We have associates in Houston, Corpus Christi, and
(04:12):
Dallas as well, and we do a lot of work
with the citing and development of large scale manufacturing projects
or industrial projects and it's a great business to be in.
Everybody asked me, well, what is it that you actually do.
I'm happy to go into that and talk about it
a little bit more. And then on top of that,
(04:34):
you know, I'm not from Southeast Texas originally, but I
got here quickly. I met my wife here. I'm actually
grew up in Connecticut. I was born in Houston, though,
so I am a Texan. I like to remind people
that I do have the birth certificate. Oh but I
worked in Austin. I've worked in Washington, d C. My
(04:54):
background is in political campaigns and state governance. Happy to
talk a little bit more about that. I was actually
a geology major in college before I moved into political science, and.
Speaker 1 (05:07):
Is so funny, It is funny. Those are not the same.
Speaker 2 (05:11):
No, they are not the same whatsoever. My freshman year
of college, we took a field trip to Oklahoma and
a tornado ripped through our campsite and I got pink
eye in both my eyes, and I said, this is
this is not for me. I'm not doing this. So
I changed majors. It worked out, thank you, Yes it did.
My wife is from Portnahius, and as most people around
(05:34):
here know, you get indoctrinated quickly. And so I moved
to Port n Ahius. And I have three daughters. I
have two step daughters, and then I have an eight
year old who's over at golf camp right now at
five hunder And that's it. I've been here. I've been
in Southeast Texas since twenty twelve, so fourteen fourteen years,
fifteen years, twenty eleven is when I first really moved here.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
Yeah, So we're thrilled to have you. I absolutely love
serving with you on the chamber board. And you are
the chair of the Advocacy Committee, and that is a
part of the Chamber that that we are very much
involved in what's going on in our community. I mean,
we're about small businesses, so we need advocacy, uh, and
(06:19):
and your your whole group to be able to move
in a direction to improve things for small business here
in Southeast six It's not just small business, any business,
but specifically, Uh, small business is one of the things
that the Chamber wants to focus on. So thank you
for serving in that capacity. Uh, it's your second.
Speaker 2 (06:37):
Year, and that is my second year.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Yes, and you're also chairing Golden Triangle Days. That's right, Yeah,
and that's coming up. So tell everyone a little bit
about what Golden Triangle Days, what you what that is,
and how they can participate if they want to.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
Absolutely so, Golden Triangle Days is in other parts of
the state they call them legend Slate of days. But
we have the benefit of having three really great chambers,
regional chambers here in Southeast Texas, and that's the Greater
Beaumont Chamber of Commerce, Orange and then Port Arthur, and
those three chambers team up to host a big event
in Austin where they bring everybody from those chambers to
(07:17):
Austin to advocate on issues important to Southeast Texas. And
this year, the Beaumont Chamber is responsible for organizing that
and it's a big year for us. We last I
think last year, we had three hundred and fifty plus
members of the Chamber go to Austin and talk about
the issues, and there's a legislative agenda that we use
(07:39):
to guide those discussions. The goal is to go and
advocate for Southeast Texas and Southeast Texas businesses with every
legislator in the state capitol and then also the Governor's office,
the Lieutenant Governor's office, the Speaker's office, and various agencies
as well. And as you can see as an example,
(08:00):
it's hard not to drive anywhere in Southeast Texas right
now and not see road construction taking place. I think
we're all feeling the pinch a little bit there but
those are really important projects for Southeast Texas and that's
a sign of progress and growth. And even though they
are causing headaches for a lot of us, it took
a lot of effort to get those projects. We've had
(08:22):
people in leadership positions who have helped get those projects.
And this year, I think is particularly important as we
educate not just our local legislators, but the rest of
the state. We have three we're going to have three
legislators representative, so two new state representatives, I'm sorry, one
(08:43):
new state Representative, Dave Feelin is retiring, and then two
new state senators. And so in politics, seniority is an
important thing. You lose a lot of knowledge and influence
when someone like a Senator Robert Nick retires, and so
we need to work to fill in that gap and
(09:04):
educate our legislators and make sure that they're working on
behalf of the constituents here in Southeast Texas.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
And it's why it's so important to have a good
group there. It's the numbers, the numbers of people, the
conversations that you have that face to face contact makes
a difference.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
Absolutely. It's their strength in numbers, especially when you're advocating
on issues, and all of these legislators like to hear
from their constituents. So if you have the opportunity to
go to Austin visit with them in Austin, it gives
these legislators who are fighting for your issues a little
added boost and it shows that this is a really
(09:44):
important issue, not just to them, but for the state itself.
And we'll talk a little bit of that about that interconnectedness,
because this area is very impactful and very important, not
just for the rest of the state, but almost the
entire country exactly.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
Yeah, it impacts so many different parts of our nation
and what we do here. I'm so excited to get
to more of that in our next segment. But we
were gonna go ahead and introduce Monica James and so
tell us a little bit about you. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (10:14):
So I'm also a transplant to Texas but graduating from
Katie So you can't tell me I'm not from here,
but my mom's a travel nurse. So we started in Missouri,
hopped around quite a bit. I've been to almost every state,
so got to travel a lot. And I graduated from Lamar,
so I came to Lamar. I've been in the area
(10:35):
for about eight to nine years. Gosh, I feel old.
So I've been here since then, and honestly, Southeast Sex
has just captured my heart. It's so fun. I love
the localness and things like that. And so now I'm
a commercial lender with First Financial Bank. Been there for
about five years, started as a teller, worked my way
up until my role today. So super excited because I
(10:58):
get to help customers when they first come in and
now on the commercial side to help them get that loan.
So it's been really fun.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Yeah that I love the fact that your mom was
a travel nurse. I didn't know that about you. And wow,
what flexibility and uh, just the ability to adapt is
something you had to learn at a very young age.
And how that impacts what you do at the bank,
I'm sure is so beneficial. Yes, for sure.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
Yeah, I feel like, you know, when you're traveling that
much or moving every six months, you kind of just
give in the habit of trying to make the best
connections you can as quick as you can. And so
I think as a relationship banker now that is so important.
I'm not just trying to do a loone for someone.
I'm trying to build that relationship with them. And so
now that I've actually settled, it's kind of weird that
(11:45):
I'm not moving all the time. And my mom's actually
in Colorado right now, and so she's like, you should
just take a travel nurse assignment up here, and I'm like,
I don't do that. So, you know, it's just it's
fun doing that and seeing that a lot of my
customers actually business outside of the state. Like he was saying,
South East Sexes is so important and this is their headquarters,
(12:06):
but you know, what they do impacts the state. And
so one of them actually went to my small town
in Missouri and they were doing an assignment there and
I was like, that's so crazy. That town is five thousand.
What are you all doing out there? And so yeah,
they're kind of crazy. Yeah, So stuff like that is
just really fun to see on this side of things.
But yeah, just building those connections really quick.
Speaker 1 (12:26):
Well, So glad that you got here, and so excited
to share a little bit more about what's going on
with you and the new bank that's coming to Southeast
Texas with First Financial. We have such an exciting show.
I hope that you will continue to join us and
we'll be back after this break. This is Dana Simmons.
(12:46):
Welcome back. This is Dana Simmons. I am joined today
by Peyton Keith. He is with Harris Deavillan Associates and Peyton.
We talked a little bit about any other segment, a
little bit about what you do, but help us understand
what it is that your position is, how you've got
there and how you got here.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Sure. I started with Harris de Ville and Associates in
twenty twelve and my boss, Rennie Deville, who's the namesake
of the company, quite literally picked me up off the
side of the road in Beaumont. It's funny. I actually
walked into the Chamber of Commerce after I ran a
congressional campaign locally. We didn't make it out of the primary,
(13:29):
and I had met my wife at that point and
decided I was going to stay in Southeast Texas and
I was looking for opportunities. And the president of the
Chamber at the time, Jim Rich, actually connected me with
Rennie Dedville and Rennie is I call him the Cajun
Yoda because he's wise. He's been in this line of
(13:49):
work for almost his entire life. He was the first
Energy director for the State of Louisiana when he was
in his twenties, and I interviewed with him, and he
needed someone in Southeast Texas because of a number of projects.
We had a number of clients in the area at
the time, and there was a lot of announced investment
(14:10):
in Southeast Texas in the early two thousands excuse me,
twenty tens, and that's on the back of the hydraulic
fracturing boom or fracking boom and the dramatic change or
increase in natural gas and the flow of that to
Southeast Texas and to Gulf Coast industrial communities. And I
(14:31):
started out with HDA with a pretty limited industry background.
My dad was a landman, so I had some understanding
of the oil and gas industry, at least the upstream
side of things, but I didn't understand just how pronounced
it actually was and how impactful or influential it is
(14:54):
across this entire country and now globally. And I started
working on projects throughout Southeast Texas. Beaumont Port Arthurs Ha
been passed. And I'm a history nerd. I was a
history minor in college, and that opened the floodgates to
learning more about the area. And this is one of
(15:16):
the most dynamic places I think I've ever come across.
And everybody likes to talk about Spindletop as the birthplace
of the modern oil and gas industry, and everybody kind
of accepts that, but we need to dig in a
little bit more there to truly understand why that is
and what caused that. And you know, we look at
(15:39):
the Lucas gusher in nineteen oh one. It's pictured on
everything right. The Spindletop Award at the Beaumont Chamber has
a picture of the first gusher, which is the discovery
of oil at Spindletop Hill right near Lamar University off
sixty nine what is now sixty nine.
Speaker 1 (15:56):
We have the museum there.
Speaker 2 (15:57):
We have the museum, and that was it wasn't the
first time that a gusher had been discovered. It was
the first time in Texas and in the United States.
Russia previously in the Baku region had their own gusher
and that led to a lot of people looking for
(16:18):
for the same thing in the United States. And Spindletop
wasn't the first well that was ever drilled in Texas either.
There were other areas that had oil discoveries. The big
one was Corsicana, but that was a mound or a
mole hill compared to what Spindle Top would end up being.
(16:40):
And it gave rise to the modern oil and gas
industry in that Texico came out of it, Gulf came
out of it, the Humble Excavation Company which is now
Exon from Exon Mobile. Well, the papers were signed right
off of Calder back in the nineteen hundreds, and then
you we had just a number of people and notable
(17:04):
world figures who came here. Thomas Edison came down because
he realized the potential for fuel gas or fuel oil.
Speaker 1 (17:13):
Hence the Edison Plaza.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
The Edison Plaza, the museum right behind it. Fuel oil
is really what came out of it. The Fords, the Packards,
all of those old automobile companies would not exist without
fuel oil, and Spindle Top opened up that potential to them.
And so there was this rush to develop Spindle Top.
(17:37):
And I believe, if you adjust for inflation, within that
first year, about eight or nine billion dollars of investment
came immediately to Beaumont, and you saw the population in
a matter of months jump from nine thousand people to
thirty thousand people, which is great for the real estate market,
of course, and I think ultimately it peaked in that
(17:58):
time around fifty thousand residents, and that was that was
sustained for a period of time as long as the
Spindle Top oil field was producing, which was I think
at nineteen oh three nineteen oh four. It began to
really taper out, but that set off this rush to
(18:19):
capitalize and then look for oil elsewhere, and you saw
Sour Lake develop right on the heels of Spindle Top,
and Sour Lake used to be an old resort town.
I don't know if you all knew that. I did
not know that it had a It was like the
a spa for the era. People would travel from all
over the country to bathe in the Sour Lake baths
(18:42):
and called the Sour Lake because of the sulfur content
of the water. And eventually they determined they said, okay,
there's there's something here, and the geologic formations underneath Sour
Lake were similar to Spindletop. So they started to to.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Drill, here's your geology coming out, here's the geology.
Speaker 2 (19:03):
Yeah. So I didn't completely lose it when I least
like that career path. But what makes this area special
is the geography and the geology. Being on the coast
is so important. Having a waterway like the Subineatious Waterway
is an economic multiplier. And then the geology, the subsurface
geology is conducive to minerals, and we learned that at
(19:26):
Spindle Top. It grew from there. There were multiple booms
at Spindle Top as technological advancements were discovered or made,
and so in the nineteen twenties you saw another big
boom at Spindletop. The nineteen fifties was also another big
moment for Spindle Top. But in the course of that
as well, we had world wars and there was a
(19:49):
rush to develop fuels and other byproducts, and around World
War Two, slightly before that's when chemical manufacturing and using
natural gas to create other products plastic products primarily started
to be incentivized by the federal government, and the federal
(20:11):
government has played a very important role in the economic
development of this region. It starts mainly with the ship Channel,
which was privately held. In the nineteen hundreds, it was
turned over to the federal government and they started to
deepen the waterway. Jack Brooks was a big proponent of
doing that when he was a congressman, and that's continued
(20:31):
and now we're in the process of deepening the waterway
again and that has major, major ripple effects for industries
in this area.
Speaker 1 (20:39):
Our port, isn't it like one of the top ports
in all of the United States.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Yes, So if you take the waterway itself, the cargo totals,
I think place us at number three or number four.
That's the Port of Beaumont and Port of Port Arthur primarily,
and it is the second longest inland waraway on the
Gulf Coast outside of the Mississippi River, and it has
(21:05):
almost a direct path to the Panama Canal. So that
makes it perfectly placed to go to global markets, either
Europe or to Southeast Asia.
Speaker 1 (21:15):
So, in the situation we have been in politically, has
that increased the number of ships coming into our port
and into our waterways over where there is potential risk.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
Yes. The great thing about our waterway and our industries
on this waterway is that ninety nine percent of our
products go to the domestic markets of the United States
by pipeline or by waterway, or to the rest of
the world. So we are a net exporder, which is
a good thing. It means that we contribute positively to
(21:52):
the US trade deficit, meaning we're helping them cut the
trade deficit globally. And that's on the basis of pretty
much the liquid bulk cargo, So all of the crude oil,
liquefied natural gas, refined petroleum products that we send around
the world. Those we're doing tens of if not hundreds
(22:13):
of millions of dollars a day in transactions on this waterway.
We're shipping out so much cargo, and that falls within
the current administration's energy dominance agenda, And really that's on
the basis of understanding that our energy supplies as as
(22:33):
a country are a huge geopolitical advantage for US. We
can help our allies overseas by giving them low cost,
secure fuel product or natural gas, and that's going to
benefit this nation. And when I first started here, it
(22:54):
was at the beginning of a series of refinery expansions
in Beaumont and Port Arthur. There were a number of
investments into liquified natural gas export terminals. These are multi
billion dollar investments, and I think in the twenty ten
to twenty twenty timeframe, there is over one hundred billion
dollars of investment just on the waterway in southeast Texas alone,
(23:17):
and if you take a fifteen year snapshot, or probably
over one hundred and twenty billion dollars with a bee
and still more coming, more coming.
Speaker 1 (23:26):
So I mean, we see, we can see what's going
on in south east Texas because we see these plants
coming up. And so when we come back, we're going
to talk more about what are some of those the
things that are that are here right now in the
process of being built. But also there are some additional
(23:47):
things that you may be able to talk about or
may not be able to talk about, but just be
able to share if there are additional infrastructure, additional people
coming to the area to expand in what you've been discussing.
And let me just say everything that you just went over,
(24:08):
it's such an amazing history of Beaumont, and so often
it's easy to get caught up in all of the negative,
but there is so much positive. There are so many
good things happening here and if we can cling to
those and be a part of the change, be a
(24:28):
part of helping make the difference. And what I love
is that for you. It started at the chamber. You
had that connection with the chamber and that connected you
to this new position. So if you're not a Chamber
member and you are out there and you want to
begin to continue to make connections here locally, you can
(24:50):
go to the Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce commerce website
and click on a link there, or give me a
call touch base with me. I'm happy to connect you
with Jay who can help you be able to get
your membership going. It is an incredible asset. I know Monica,
you're involved. I think you're an ambassador now for the Chamber,
and we'll talk more about that in a minute. But
(25:12):
if you're not connected in your community, to your chamber
or to the things that are growing and making an
impact in your community, I want to encourage you to
do that. When we come back, we're going to talk
more with Peyton about some of the things that are
here in Southeast Texas and what he sees happening. So
don't go away. This is the Dana Simmons Show. Welcome back.
(25:32):
This is Dana Simmons and I am joined by Peyton Keith.
He is with Harris Deville and associates and we've been
talking about the history of Beaumont and the history of
Spindletop and lots of incredible stories that you were revisiting about,
and Jim just came in in the break and had
a conversation about in that time, there were some interesting
(25:52):
places people were sleeping because there wasn't enough lodging.
Speaker 2 (25:56):
That's right, that's right. They would come in on a
train from all over the country and they because they're
really the dramatic buildout of Beaumont in just a short
period of time. None of the buildings were fit for purpose.
So the hotels couldn't accommodate everybody, and so they would
rent out barbershop chairs overnight or sofas in the lobbies
(26:17):
of these hotels so that they could at least get
a peaceful night's sleep.
Speaker 3 (26:22):
Amazing.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
There's a people sense the opportunity and it's really one
of the most fascinating. It's a wild West story, even
though we don't really attribute it to the wild West.
But there were no rules. They were making everything up
as they went along, and so a lot of what
we see in the oil and gas industry today was
(26:44):
done early and started because of spindle time.
Speaker 1 (26:47):
Well, super incredible and we have so much. You were
talking about the billions of dollars of investment into our
area over the last fifteen years. We're seeing that right
now and huge numbers. So talk a little bit about
I know, like when I drive down sixty nine ninety
six and that split going to Mid County, you see
(27:07):
it every day you are on that road. The huge
plant that's there, that is a recent investment. Talk a
little bit about that.
Speaker 2 (27:16):
Spindletop put Southeast Texas at the frontier of the energy industry,
and this area is still very much pioneering those industries.
So if you look at on sixty nine, there are
a series of new investments that are taking place in
that complex. It's not just one company, but it's around
clean energy and those are multi billion dollar investments and
(27:40):
that's driven by markets around the world that are looking
for lower carbon fuels products and natural gas has been
a key component of helping get us to that point.
And what is specifically being produced that those those plants
(28:02):
is ammonia. It's sometimes referred to as blue ammonia or
clean ammonia, but that's a product that takes out the
CO two, the carbon dioxide at the front end, and
so you have a lower carbon fuel source. And ammonia
is used for a number of applications. It's in fertilizers,
(28:23):
it's in cleaning products. But it is also a safer
method of transportation or form of transportation for hydrogen. So
if you wanted to export ammonia overseas or excuse me,
hydrogen overseas, you do it as you convert it into
ammonia and then convert it back to hydrogen overseas. And
hydrogen is something that's being looked at as a as
(28:43):
a transportation fuel. China, Southeast Asia, Japan, they have these
cars where they have these fuel cells, hydrogen fuel cells
that they just plug into vehicles. We're looking at that too.
In the United States, there are long haul trucking companies
that have model available. We're not quite there yet, but
(29:03):
it speaks to kind of being on that frontier.
Speaker 1 (29:07):
On the edge of what's happening. So talk a little
bit about there are other things also that are in
the works. And as we talk, you know, in the
first segment, I talked about how the market is picking up,
and I do feel like some of that is the
influx the cpkim plant in Orange that new plant that
(29:28):
you were just talking about, the hydrogen plant. What are
some of the other things that you're seeing here locally.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
Yes, probably the largest is the growth of the liquefied
natural gas export industry. In the two thousands, we were
looking to import natural gas. We knew we had an
abundance of it in the United States, we just didn't
know how to unlock it at a low cost. And
then fracking happened and all the import terminals that were
(29:57):
being built at that time were made obsolete by that advancement,
and so they had to change their business model and
they said, okay, well we need to export instead. Let's
reverse this and send this out to the rest of
the world. That requires tens of billions of dollars. And
they're three separate projects at the southern part of this
county on our waterway. You have Shineer Sabine Pass Energy
(30:21):
Terminal in Louisiana, which is the largest exporter in the
entire country. You have the Golden Pass Energy Export Project
in Sabine Pass, Texas, which is newly they've just started
to export. They had their first cargo back in April
of this year. And then you have the Port Arthur
energy project as well also in Sabine Pass, and those
(30:43):
three projects make our waterway the largest energy export in
the entire country. The United States collectively is the largest
energy export in the world at this point. And that
comes with a tremendous ripple effect for this area. And
we're talking fifty sixty billion dollars if not more, of
investment across those projects. And that doesn't happen simply because
(31:09):
they've picked Southeast Texas. There's a lot that goes into that. Namely,
you have to have a great location, it has to
have check all the boxes for these companies, but you
also have to incentivize those companies to come here. And
so one of the things about Southeast Texas we compete
on a global level. We compete for projects that could
(31:30):
be put in Singapore or Africa, which also has a
lot of natural gas development. And mainly we compete against Louisiana.
So we're competing against a state that has an office
economic development office that comes up with incentive packages to
attract all of these projects, these billions of dollars. So thankfully,
(31:51):
we have a great county judge and a great Commissioner's
Court that understands that and they've created a good economic
incentive program through taxi baits that has helped land a
lot of these large scale projects for this reagion.
Speaker 1 (32:04):
And Judge Brannick is very active in all of that.
I loved having him on the show and him talking
about what he does. And I think our area doesn't
recognize many do, but the impact he has on what
happens here and all that he contributes. And so I
love that you mentioned Judge Brannick. I think very highly
(32:27):
of him, and he works really hard, and I know
you work hand in hand with him.
Speaker 2 (32:31):
We do. These are long term bets. You're hoping to
land these large scale projects and their investments because it's
going to create great jobs. I think that the industrial
manufacturing positions in Southeast Texas, the salaries are some of
the highest in the state, and when you have companies
(32:51):
that are looking to hire hundreds of employees, that flows
back into the community.
Speaker 1 (32:58):
All trickle down. People live here, shop here.
Speaker 2 (33:02):
Shop here. They're buying homes, they're buying boats, they're buying trucks,
they're buying everything locally, and so you're seeing the capture
of those dollars across the board and same thing with
local business as you're these and that's one of the
criteria for the tax patement, and something that the commissioners
are very intent on. I'm preserving is the use of
(33:26):
local business by these these companies.
Speaker 1 (33:29):
So that you're building and in constructing and or you.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
Can capture the full benefit of the investment locally.
Speaker 1 (33:35):
Yeah, which is so important. Well, Peyton, we could talk
for hours, and I'm going to have to have you
back again because you have so much good insight and
information and gave us a great history lesson that you know,
I've lived her my whole life and I didn't know
all of that. I feel like there should be a movie.
Speaker 2 (33:53):
There should be a movie, there should be books, there
should be TV shaped. I gu someone needs to call
up Taylor shared In and get him get it.
Speaker 1 (34:00):
Let me just say, it's so interesting. I think it
would make a great movie and for us to see
the full picture of what happened here in Southeast Texas
a long time ago and the impact it still has here.
So Peyton, thank you so much for joining me today,
and yes, we will have you back as a guest pleasure.
When we come back, We're going to visit with Monica
(34:20):
James and speaking of growth and expansion. First Financial seeing
that as well. They see what's going on here, and
so don't go away, you don't want to miss it.
This is the Dana Simmons Show. Thank you so much,
Welcome back. This is Dana Simmons. I have been visiting
with Peyton Keith and if you have missed the first
part of this show, let me just say you're going
(34:42):
to want to go back and listen. Peyton has given
us a wonderful history lesson of Spindle top of things
I've lived here my entire life, things I had no
idea about. So this podcast will also be on Spotify,
or this radio show will be on Spotify as a podcast.
So you can go to Spotify search Dana Simmons and
(35:03):
you will find our Spotify account and our radio show
will be there, so don't miss it, go check it out.
Also with us we have Monica James and Monica. While
Peyton was talking about all of the growth happening here
in Southeast Texas, you know First Financial has been aware
of that and they have seven locations all over Southeast
(35:23):
Texas to serve everyone anywhere that they are. But you
guys have just also you're going to be opening a
new location in Beaumont.
Speaker 3 (35:31):
Yeah, yeah, super excited. So our location, we've just seen
a lot of growth down on College with the new
VA clinic coming in, the Baptist Cancer Center that just opened,
and so we just want to be a part of
the growth of Southeast Texas. So I am leading that
opening along with Kimberly and Brian for that location, and
(35:52):
we're just super excited to see how it growth. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (35:54):
So let me tell you that section of College Street
over the last five or so after cons left. I
don't know how long that's spent time Flas for me,
but that stretch has been kind of dead for a while,
but now all of a sudden in the last year,
it is incredible the growth that you have there. We
(36:16):
have several restaurants that have popped up. I know Firehouse
Subs is one of them right there, and then the
VA Hospital coming there. Then you're right the cancer center
with Baptists, and now First Financial is going to be
right there to service all of the people in that
general area. And that's one of the things I know
that you guys have as a priority to be where
(36:39):
you need to service your clients.
Speaker 3 (36:41):
Yeah, for sure. Yeah, everyone's like, how did y'all come
up with this location? Because we have our location on Doallen.
We're pretty much in every little city around Southeast Texas.
And it really was there's a stretch between our location
in mid County and our location on Dollen that our
customers are at and we weren't at. So that is
how we decide I did on that location. We have
(37:02):
a ton of customers down on Washington Street downtown and
stuff like that, or we can reach them. It's actually
funny because during college when I worked at Lamar, I
actually helped open the Raising Canes on College. So I'm
coming back to college, which is really funny to think about.
Speaker 1 (37:18):
Opening a new business on college. Yeah, you've been there,
done that. This is your second rodeo.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Yeah so yeah. So and you know, at Raising Canes
they saw that growth coming too, and that's why they
put that location there. And so it's great that as
a bank we see that growth happening there, so we're
able to be there.
Speaker 1 (37:34):
I'm so excited for you guys. And when is that
grand opening going to happen? I know that the date
is probably still up in the air, but thinking sometime
in August.
Speaker 3 (37:44):
Yeah, so we're looking at mid to end August. We've
had quite a bit of rain over the last couple
of months and that's just Southeast Texas. So I think
our moving date is August tenth, and then we're hoping
sometime after that to have our grand opening. But you'll
see of advertising, we'll let the chamber, we'll do an
opening and stuff like that.
Speaker 1 (38:04):
So yeah, i'll know it. Well, let's talk a little
bit about what you do there.
Speaker 3 (38:08):
Yeah, So, like I said earlier, I'm a commercial lender,
so it's just been cool to see things starting off.
Some of my time in banking I spent underwriting. So
with that you get to see loans all over Texas
happen because First Financial Bank is great in South eat Texas,
but we're actually all over Texas with State lad Yeah,
(38:30):
a lot of people don't know. And so with that,
I got to do ad loans. I've seen so many
cattle loans, which I have never touched a cow in
my life, never write it to cow, never done anything
with cattle, and I got to do a loan. I've
done many loans on those and seen the underwriting on
that and learned about the trade and stuff like that.
So we as a commercial lender, we look at any
(38:54):
and everything, and so I've looked at ad loans, I've
looked at real estate loans, I've looked at industrial loans,
just anything that someone kind of wanted to start. So
it's great being on this side of things where we
get to meet those customers where they kind of need
us at and just see how we can help them
kind of either start their business, grow their business, or
(39:14):
expand their business.
Speaker 1 (39:15):
Yeah, I think that is such an important part. So
many people are considering a business or maybe considering getting
into investing in real estate, and so I always say,
get with a commercial lender who can walk you through
the process from beginning to end and help to guide you.
(39:37):
You don't just make the loan. I know what our
banker at First Financial did and still does, is helps
us to see the big picture, helps us to make
the right decisions, helps us to stay on the right path,
to ensure that our business is going to grow and
that we're protected, that we're not making decisions that might
(39:58):
challenge us, and that guidance, that consultation is always very helpful.
But I know you also have an impact on people
who are just considering buying homes. There are lots of
people right now who are thinking, Okay, should I continue
to rent or should I buy? So let's talk a
little bit about what advice you would give to those people.
Speaker 3 (40:21):
Yeah, so I actually had conversations with my friends about this,
just because I'm in banking, so they automatically come to me.
Even though I do commercial I do know quite a
bit more than the average show about, you know, purchasing
a home, and it's really hard when you're young, of
you know. I think when I was young, I was
installed the twenty percent role make sure you don't buy
(40:42):
a house because you don't want PMI and things like that,
and I think that was great a couple years ago
and generations ago, but it's really shift where you are
really missing out on gaining equity in your house by
renting longer and waiting for that twenty percent. I think
if you looked at a right now that you're buying,
let's say three hundred thousand, and you're waiting to save
(41:04):
up sixty thousand, that seems like a lot and lofty goal.
But I mean, you can do it. It just might
take a couple of years. I think when you look
at how much you're going to spend in rent and
not gain any equity on it, it's does that PMI
payment make sense? So PMI is a insurance for the
bank to have because you're not at eighty percent loan
(41:27):
to value. And when you look about I don't know,
seven years in, you'll see that you purchasing and making
that PMI payment actually pays off four years into the
loan versus if you just rented that whole seven years.
So I think there's many many reasons to look into that.
(41:48):
But sorry I'm getting a little wordy, but there's so many,
so many different products that banks can offer that kind
of help with PMI. PMI, I think the myth is
that it's your whole loan. That's not all loans, that's
just certain products on loans, and really just going to
a banker or mortgage lender on which type of loans
(42:09):
you can qualify for I think really does alleviate some
of that.
Speaker 1 (42:12):
I agree education is key, and so for those who
are thinking about should I buy or should I rent?
Sitting down with a trusted mortgage lender who's not going
to push you into a decision, you shouldn't be making
and who will help to walk you through what do
I need to do is critically important, and First Financial
(42:33):
has some very good mortgage lenders who can do that.
I know Kimberly Piper, or Lette Sorseto. Those are just
a few of those who can assist you, who can
sit down with you face to face and connect with
you to see if it's the right time. I had
someone the other day tell me, well, you know, my
(42:53):
credit's not that good, and I said, you know, that's
not a problem. Go ahead and make the call and
let them walk you through what do you need to
do to get your credit to a place that you
can buy. They don't just give you a loan. They
help you get to where you can get a loan.
If that's the thing you want to do, So go
(43:13):
ahead and tell us where you are now, even though
you're going to be at the college branch. Where can
someone contact you now, Monica, Yes.
Speaker 3 (43:21):
So it's kind of funny. I'm in Orange, Texas. I
live in Beaumont. We have a house here in area,
but I drive to Orange. But I'm getting customers all
over South East Texas. So like today, I'm going to
Mid County you could see me. I work a lot
at the Dowlan branch, but my home office right now
is in Orange at our main location.
Speaker 1 (43:41):
But the good thing is you travel.
Speaker 3 (43:43):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (43:43):
Yes, If someone needs your assistance, they can just reach
out to you and you can meet with them. So
if there's someone out there considering making the decision to
open a business, or they have a business and maybe
they need a little guidance, how would they connect with you?
Speaker 3 (43:57):
Yeah, the first thing is shooting me to email m
James at FFI in dot com. That is the easiest
way to reach me. I have my email with me
all the time, and with that, I'll send you my
cell phone number and you can reach me on their
text phones. Those are the easiest to give to me.
Speaker 1 (44:16):
Great well, Monica. So excited for the new branch opening
in toward the end of August, and excited to have
you on the show. If you have any questions about
real estate or mortgages or anything that we talked about today,
don't hesitate to give me a call four O nine
eight six six eight three two six. That phone is
answered eight to eight every single day by an agent
(44:39):
in our office. So give us a call, let us
help you Thank you for joining us. I hope you
enjoyed the show. Have a great Saturday. This is the
Danas Simmons Show. Thanks
Well, hello, Southeast Texas, Welcome to the Dana Simmons Show.
We are excited that you have decided to join us
this Saturday. We have some special guests that you are
gonna love. Peyton Keith. He is with Harris Devillean Associates.
And if you're wondering what in the world is going
on at Beaumont, we have so many things happening, you're
going to be shocked. There is so much more to come.
(00:23):
So Peyton's gonna give us a little insight into that
world and also maybe even a little bit into the
political world. We'll see what he has to say. I
know that can be a little questionable sometimes, but we're
gonna visit with him about that. Also with us is
Monica James, and she is with First Financial Bank and
she is a commercial lender there and they are going
(00:45):
to be opening a new branch and so we're gonna
talk a little bit about what First Financial Bank is
doing and is what is that new location that's coming soon.
Before we do that, though, I'd like to give you
a little bit of an update as to what is
going on here in Southeast Texas in the morning. In
the in the morning, Yeah, well, no longer morning, we're afternoon,
(01:05):
but in the current situation we're in. So what we've
seen in the last month is a pretty decent increase.
So while we closed last year about three hundred and
forty seven homes, in the last month in this year,
we closed three hundred and sixty eight. But let me
tell you where the biggest in impact is that total
(01:26):
amount of soul dollar volume was eighty two million in
twenty twenty five. Last month, the total closed volume in
twenty twenty six is one hundred and two million. That's
a twenty million dollar increase in one month. So our
average sales price has gone from about two thirty to
(01:49):
about two thirty five. But what is really also I
think important, is our days on market has gone from
one hundred and two to ninety one. So we're seeing
houses on the market for less time, and we're seeing
them sell at a decent price. Another very good statistic
is our pending volume. Our pending volume in twenty five
(02:12):
was sixty almost sixty two million, but our pending volume
right now here in Southeast Texas is almost eighty four million.
So you know, we've talked about on this show for
the last several years about the fact that it has
been softer, that people are not moving as much as
they were, that there was a little bit of a
(02:32):
softer market. But we are seeing a pickup and we're
so grateful, and we're going to talk to Peyton about
potentially could that be some of the things that are
coming into our area that are generating that additional activity.
Whatever it is, We're thrilled. We're so happy to see
that growth happening and people getting back in the market
and we are getting busy again. Before we get into
(02:54):
the part about what you guys do for a living
and what you do every day, I want to hear
about your personal lives and who you are. Our audience
always likes to know a little bit about you, So
Peyton Keith tell everyone a little bit about who you are.
Speaker 2 (03:08):
Absolutely, thank you, Dana. It's a pleasure of being here
with you today. Of course I have the privilege of
serving on the board, the chamber board with you, and
I have to say, you're the best chair that we have.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
I'm the only chair we have right now. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (03:21):
That's right. Well, don't tell Craig I said that. I'm
sure we'll probably listen in my name is Peyton Keith.
I work for a company called Harris Deville and Associates,
and it's an issues management firm, which is a very
vague term for strategic communications, public affairs, and government relations.
We're based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, but I am the
(03:42):
director for the Texas side of the business and we
have a different approach organizationally in Texas from Louisiana.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
Yeah, I think everything's a little different.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
It is. In Louisiana we kind of a standard lobby shop.
We lobby at the state legislature there and we do public,
public affairs and relations services for clients. In Texas, it's
a little different. We're decentralized. I'm based here in Beaumont,
Port Arthur. We have associates in Houston, Corpus Christi, and
(04:12):
Dallas as well, and we do a lot of work
with the citing and development of large scale manufacturing projects
or industrial projects and it's a great business to be in.
Everybody asked me, well, what is it that you actually do.
I'm happy to go into that and talk about it
a little bit more. And then on top of that,
(04:34):
you know, I'm not from Southeast Texas originally, but I
got here quickly. I met my wife here. I'm actually
grew up in Connecticut. I was born in Houston, though,
so I am a Texan. I like to remind people
that I do have the birth certificate. Oh but I
worked in Austin. I've worked in Washington, d C. My
(04:54):
background is in political campaigns and state governance. Happy to
talk a little bit more about that. I was actually
a geology major in college before I moved into political science, and.
Speaker 1 (05:07):
Is so funny, It is funny. Those are not the same.
Speaker 2 (05:11):
No, they are not the same whatsoever. My freshman year
of college, we took a field trip to Oklahoma and
a tornado ripped through our campsite and I got pink
eye in both my eyes, and I said, this is
this is not for me. I'm not doing this. So
I changed majors. It worked out, thank you, Yes it did.
My wife is from Portnahius, and as most people around
(05:34):
here know, you get indoctrinated quickly. And so I moved
to Port n Ahius. And I have three daughters. I
have two step daughters, and then I have an eight
year old who's over at golf camp right now at
five hunder And that's it. I've been here. I've been
in Southeast Texas since twenty twelve, so fourteen fourteen years,
fifteen years, twenty eleven is when I first really moved here.
Speaker 1 (05:54):
Yeah, So we're thrilled to have you. I absolutely love
serving with you on the chamber board. And you are
the chair of the Advocacy Committee, and that is a
part of the Chamber that that we are very much
involved in what's going on in our community. I mean,
we're about small businesses, so we need advocacy, uh, and
(06:19):
and your your whole group to be able to move
in a direction to improve things for small business here
in Southeast six It's not just small business, any business,
but specifically, Uh, small business is one of the things
that the Chamber wants to focus on. So thank you
for serving in that capacity. Uh, it's your second.
Speaker 2 (06:37):
Year, and that is my second year.
Speaker 1 (06:39):
Yes, and you're also chairing Golden Triangle Days. That's right, Yeah,
and that's coming up. So tell everyone a little bit
about what Golden Triangle Days, what you what that is,
and how they can participate if they want to.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
Absolutely so, Golden Triangle Days is in other parts of
the state they call them legend Slate of days. But
we have the benefit of having three really great chambers,
regional chambers here in Southeast Texas, and that's the Greater
Beaumont Chamber of Commerce, Orange and then Port Arthur, and
those three chambers team up to host a big event
in Austin where they bring everybody from those chambers to
(07:17):
Austin to advocate on issues important to Southeast Texas. And
this year, the Beaumont Chamber is responsible for organizing that
and it's a big year for us. We last I
think last year, we had three hundred and fifty plus
members of the Chamber go to Austin and talk about
the issues, and there's a legislative agenda that we use
(07:39):
to guide those discussions. The goal is to go and
advocate for Southeast Texas and Southeast Texas businesses with every
legislator in the state capitol and then also the Governor's office,
the Lieutenant Governor's office, the Speaker's office, and various agencies
as well. And as you can see as an example,
(08:00):
it's hard not to drive anywhere in Southeast Texas right
now and not see road construction taking place. I think
we're all feeling the pinch a little bit there but
those are really important projects for Southeast Texas and that's
a sign of progress and growth. And even though they
are causing headaches for a lot of us, it took
a lot of effort to get those projects. We've had
(08:22):
people in leadership positions who have helped get those projects.
And this year, I think is particularly important as we
educate not just our local legislators, but the rest of
the state. We have three we're going to have three
legislators representative, so two new state representatives, I'm sorry, one
(08:43):
new state Representative, Dave Feelin is retiring, and then two
new state senators. And so in politics, seniority is an
important thing. You lose a lot of knowledge and influence
when someone like a Senator Robert Nick retires, and so
we need to work to fill in that gap and
(09:04):
educate our legislators and make sure that they're working on
behalf of the constituents here in Southeast Texas.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
And it's why it's so important to have a good
group there. It's the numbers, the numbers of people, the
conversations that you have that face to face contact makes
a difference.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
Absolutely. It's their strength in numbers, especially when you're advocating
on issues, and all of these legislators like to hear
from their constituents. So if you have the opportunity to
go to Austin visit with them in Austin, it gives
these legislators who are fighting for your issues a little
added boost and it shows that this is a really
(09:44):
important issue, not just to them, but for the state itself.
And we'll talk a little bit of that about that interconnectedness,
because this area is very impactful and very important, not
just for the rest of the state, but almost the
entire country exactly.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
Yeah, it impacts so many different parts of our nation
and what we do here. I'm so excited to get
to more of that in our next segment. But we
were gonna go ahead and introduce Monica James and so
tell us a little bit about you. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (10:14):
So I'm also a transplant to Texas but graduating from
Katie So you can't tell me I'm not from here,
but my mom's a travel nurse. So we started in Missouri,
hopped around quite a bit. I've been to almost every state,
so got to travel a lot. And I graduated from Lamar,
so I came to Lamar. I've been in the area
(10:35):
for about eight to nine years. Gosh, I feel old.
So I've been here since then, and honestly, Southeast Sex
has just captured my heart. It's so fun. I love
the localness and things like that. And so now I'm
a commercial lender with First Financial Bank. Been there for
about five years, started as a teller, worked my way
up until my role today. So super excited because I
(10:58):
get to help customers when they first come in and
now on the commercial side to help them get that loan.
So it's been really fun.
Speaker 1 (11:05):
Yeah that I love the fact that your mom was
a travel nurse. I didn't know that about you. And wow,
what flexibility and uh, just the ability to adapt is
something you had to learn at a very young age.
And how that impacts what you do at the bank,
I'm sure is so beneficial. Yes, for sure.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
Yeah, I feel like, you know, when you're traveling that
much or moving every six months, you kind of just
give in the habit of trying to make the best
connections you can as quick as you can. And so
I think as a relationship banker now that is so important.
I'm not just trying to do a loone for someone.
I'm trying to build that relationship with them. And so
now that I've actually settled, it's kind of weird that
(11:45):
I'm not moving all the time. And my mom's actually
in Colorado right now, and so she's like, you should
just take a travel nurse assignment up here, and I'm like,
I don't do that. So, you know, it's just it's
fun doing that and seeing that a lot of my
customers actually business outside of the state. Like he was saying,
South East Sexes is so important and this is their headquarters,
(12:06):
but you know, what they do impacts the state. And
so one of them actually went to my small town
in Missouri and they were doing an assignment there and
I was like, that's so crazy. That town is five thousand.
What are you all doing out there? And so yeah,
they're kind of crazy. Yeah, So stuff like that is
just really fun to see on this side of things.
But yeah, just building those connections really quick.
Speaker 1 (12:26):
Well, So glad that you got here, and so excited
to share a little bit more about what's going on
with you and the new bank that's coming to Southeast
Texas with First Financial. We have such an exciting show.
I hope that you will continue to join us and
we'll be back after this break. This is Dana Simmons.
(12:46):
Welcome back. This is Dana Simmons. I am joined today
by Peyton Keith. He is with Harris Deavillan Associates and Peyton.
We talked a little bit about any other segment, a
little bit about what you do, but help us understand
what it is that your position is, how you've got
there and how you got here.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Sure. I started with Harris de Ville and Associates in
twenty twelve and my boss, Rennie Deville, who's the namesake
of the company, quite literally picked me up off the
side of the road in Beaumont. It's funny. I actually
walked into the Chamber of Commerce after I ran a
congressional campaign locally. We didn't make it out of the primary,
(13:29):
and I had met my wife at that point and
decided I was going to stay in Southeast Texas and
I was looking for opportunities. And the president of the
Chamber at the time, Jim Rich, actually connected me with
Rennie Dedville and Rennie is I call him the Cajun
Yoda because he's wise. He's been in this line of
(13:49):
work for almost his entire life. He was the first
Energy director for the State of Louisiana when he was
in his twenties, and I interviewed with him, and he
needed someone in Southeast Texas because of a number of projects.
We had a number of clients in the area at
the time, and there was a lot of announced investment
(14:10):
in Southeast Texas in the early two thousands excuse me,
twenty tens, and that's on the back of the hydraulic
fracturing boom or fracking boom and the dramatic change or
increase in natural gas and the flow of that to
Southeast Texas and to Gulf Coast industrial communities. And I
(14:31):
started out with HDA with a pretty limited industry background.
My dad was a landman, so I had some understanding
of the oil and gas industry, at least the upstream
side of things, but I didn't understand just how pronounced
it actually was and how impactful or influential it is
(14:54):
across this entire country and now globally. And I started
working on projects throughout Southeast Texas. Beaumont Port Arthurs Ha
been passed. And I'm a history nerd. I was a
history minor in college, and that opened the floodgates to
learning more about the area. And this is one of
(15:16):
the most dynamic places I think I've ever come across.
And everybody likes to talk about Spindletop as the birthplace
of the modern oil and gas industry, and everybody kind
of accepts that, but we need to dig in a
little bit more there to truly understand why that is
and what caused that. And you know, we look at
(15:39):
the Lucas gusher in nineteen oh one. It's pictured on
everything right. The Spindletop Award at the Beaumont Chamber has
a picture of the first gusher, which is the discovery
of oil at Spindletop Hill right near Lamar University off
sixty nine what is now sixty nine.
Speaker 1 (15:56):
We have the museum there.
Speaker 2 (15:57):
We have the museum, and that was it wasn't the
first time that a gusher had been discovered. It was
the first time in Texas and in the United States.
Russia previously in the Baku region had their own gusher
and that led to a lot of people looking for
(16:18):
for the same thing in the United States. And Spindletop
wasn't the first well that was ever drilled in Texas either.
There were other areas that had oil discoveries. The big
one was Corsicana, but that was a mound or a
mole hill compared to what Spindle Top would end up being.
(16:40):
And it gave rise to the modern oil and gas
industry in that Texico came out of it, Gulf came
out of it, the Humble Excavation Company which is now
Exon from Exon Mobile. Well, the papers were signed right
off of Calder back in the nineteen hundreds, and then
you we had just a number of people and notable
(17:04):
world figures who came here. Thomas Edison came down because
he realized the potential for fuel gas or fuel oil.
Speaker 1 (17:13):
Hence the Edison Plaza.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
The Edison Plaza, the museum right behind it. Fuel oil
is really what came out of it. The Fords, the Packards,
all of those old automobile companies would not exist without
fuel oil, and Spindle Top opened up that potential to them.
And so there was this rush to develop Spindle Top.
(17:37):
And I believe, if you adjust for inflation, within that
first year, about eight or nine billion dollars of investment
came immediately to Beaumont, and you saw the population in
a matter of months jump from nine thousand people to
thirty thousand people, which is great for the real estate market,
of course, and I think ultimately it peaked in that
(17:58):
time around fifty thousand residents, and that was that was
sustained for a period of time as long as the
Spindle Top oil field was producing, which was I think
at nineteen oh three nineteen oh four. It began to
really taper out, but that set off this rush to
(18:19):
capitalize and then look for oil elsewhere, and you saw
Sour Lake develop right on the heels of Spindle Top,
and Sour Lake used to be an old resort town.
I don't know if you all knew that. I did
not know that it had a It was like the
a spa for the era. People would travel from all
over the country to bathe in the Sour Lake baths
(18:42):
and called the Sour Lake because of the sulfur content
of the water. And eventually they determined they said, okay,
there's there's something here, and the geologic formations underneath Sour
Lake were similar to Spindletop. So they started to to.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
Drill, here's your geology coming out, here's the geology.
Speaker 2 (19:03):
Yeah. So I didn't completely lose it when I least
like that career path. But what makes this area special
is the geography and the geology. Being on the coast
is so important. Having a waterway like the Subineatious Waterway
is an economic multiplier. And then the geology, the subsurface
geology is conducive to minerals, and we learned that at
(19:26):
Spindle Top. It grew from there. There were multiple booms
at Spindle Top as technological advancements were discovered or made,
and so in the nineteen twenties you saw another big
boom at Spindletop. The nineteen fifties was also another big
moment for Spindle Top. But in the course of that
as well, we had world wars and there was a
(19:49):
rush to develop fuels and other byproducts, and around World
War Two, slightly before that's when chemical manufacturing and using
natural gas to create other products plastic products primarily started
to be incentivized by the federal government, and the federal
(20:11):
government has played a very important role in the economic
development of this region. It starts mainly with the ship Channel,
which was privately held. In the nineteen hundreds, it was
turned over to the federal government and they started to
deepen the waterway. Jack Brooks was a big proponent of
doing that when he was a congressman, and that's continued
(20:31):
and now we're in the process of deepening the waterway
again and that has major, major ripple effects for industries
in this area.
Speaker 1 (20:39):
Our port, isn't it like one of the top ports
in all of the United States.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
Yes, So if you take the waterway itself, the cargo totals,
I think place us at number three or number four.
That's the Port of Beaumont and Port of Port Arthur primarily,
and it is the second longest inland waraway on the
Gulf Coast outside of the Mississippi River, and it has
(21:05):
almost a direct path to the Panama Canal. So that
makes it perfectly placed to go to global markets, either
Europe or to Southeast Asia.
Speaker 1 (21:15):
So, in the situation we have been in politically, has
that increased the number of ships coming into our port
and into our waterways over where there is potential risk.
Speaker 2 (21:31):
Yes. The great thing about our waterway and our industries
on this waterway is that ninety nine percent of our
products go to the domestic markets of the United States
by pipeline or by waterway, or to the rest of
the world. So we are a net exporder, which is
a good thing. It means that we contribute positively to
(21:52):
the US trade deficit, meaning we're helping them cut the
trade deficit globally. And that's on the basis of pretty
much the liquid bulk cargo, So all of the crude oil,
liquefied natural gas, refined petroleum products that we send around
the world. Those we're doing tens of if not hundreds
(22:13):
of millions of dollars a day in transactions on this waterway.
We're shipping out so much cargo, and that falls within
the current administration's energy dominance agenda, And really that's on
the basis of understanding that our energy supplies as as
(22:33):
a country are a huge geopolitical advantage for US. We
can help our allies overseas by giving them low cost,
secure fuel product or natural gas, and that's going to
benefit this nation. And when I first started here, it
(22:54):
was at the beginning of a series of refinery expansions
in Beaumont and Port Arthur. There were a number of
investments into liquified natural gas export terminals. These are multi
billion dollar investments, and I think in the twenty ten
to twenty twenty timeframe, there is over one hundred billion
dollars of investment just on the waterway in southeast Texas alone,
(23:17):
and if you take a fifteen year snapshot, or probably
over one hundred and twenty billion dollars with a bee
and still more coming, more coming.
Speaker 1 (23:26):
So I mean, we see, we can see what's going
on in south east Texas because we see these plants
coming up. And so when we come back, we're going
to talk more about what are some of those the
things that are that are here right now in the
process of being built. But also there are some additional
(23:47):
things that you may be able to talk about or
may not be able to talk about, but just be
able to share if there are additional infrastructure, additional people
coming to the area to expand in what you've been discussing.
And let me just say everything that you just went over,
(24:08):
it's such an amazing history of Beaumont, and so often
it's easy to get caught up in all of the negative,
but there is so much positive. There are so many
good things happening here and if we can cling to
those and be a part of the change, be a
(24:28):
part of helping make the difference. And what I love
is that for you. It started at the chamber. You
had that connection with the chamber and that connected you
to this new position. So if you're not a Chamber
member and you are out there and you want to
begin to continue to make connections here locally, you can
(24:50):
go to the Greater Beaumont Chamber of Commerce commerce website
and click on a link there, or give me a
call touch base with me. I'm happy to connect you
with Jay who can help you be able to get
your membership going. It is an incredible asset. I know Monica,
you're involved. I think you're an ambassador now for the Chamber,
and we'll talk more about that in a minute. But
(25:12):
if you're not connected in your community, to your chamber
or to the things that are growing and making an
impact in your community, I want to encourage you to
do that. When we come back, we're going to talk
more with Peyton about some of the things that are
here in Southeast Texas and what he sees happening. So
don't go away. This is the Dana Simmons Show. Welcome back.
(25:32):
This is Dana Simmons and I am joined by Peyton Keith.
He is with Harris Deville and associates and we've been
talking about the history of Beaumont and the history of
Spindletop and lots of incredible stories that you were revisiting about,
and Jim just came in in the break and had
a conversation about in that time, there were some interesting
(25:52):
places people were sleeping because there wasn't enough lodging.
Speaker 2 (25:56):
That's right, that's right. They would come in on a
train from all over the country and they because they're
really the dramatic buildout of Beaumont in just a short
period of time. None of the buildings were fit for purpose.
So the hotels couldn't accommodate everybody, and so they would
rent out barbershop chairs overnight or sofas in the lobbies
(26:17):
of these hotels so that they could at least get
a peaceful night's sleep.
Speaker 3 (26:22):
Amazing.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
There's a people sense the opportunity and it's really one
of the most fascinating. It's a wild West story, even
though we don't really attribute it to the wild West.
But there were no rules. They were making everything up
as they went along, and so a lot of what
we see in the oil and gas industry today was
(26:44):
done early and started because of spindle time.
Speaker 1 (26:47):
Well, super incredible and we have so much. You were
talking about the billions of dollars of investment into our
area over the last fifteen years. We're seeing that right
now and huge numbers. So talk a little bit about
I know, like when I drive down sixty nine ninety
six and that split going to Mid County, you see
(27:07):
it every day you are on that road. The huge
plant that's there, that is a recent investment. Talk a
little bit about that.
Speaker 2 (27:16):
Spindletop put Southeast Texas at the frontier of the energy industry,
and this area is still very much pioneering those industries.
So if you look at on sixty nine, there are
a series of new investments that are taking place in
that complex. It's not just one company, but it's around
clean energy and those are multi billion dollar investments and
(27:40):
that's driven by markets around the world that are looking
for lower carbon fuels products and natural gas has been
a key component of helping get us to that point.
And what is specifically being produced that those those plants
(28:02):
is ammonia. It's sometimes referred to as blue ammonia or
clean ammonia, but that's a product that takes out the
CO two, the carbon dioxide at the front end, and
so you have a lower carbon fuel source. And ammonia
is used for a number of applications. It's in fertilizers,
(28:23):
it's in cleaning products. But it is also a safer
method of transportation or form of transportation for hydrogen. So
if you wanted to export ammonia overseas or excuse me,
hydrogen overseas, you do it as you convert it into
ammonia and then convert it back to hydrogen overseas. And
hydrogen is something that's being looked at as a as
(28:43):
a transportation fuel. China, Southeast Asia, Japan, they have these
cars where they have these fuel cells, hydrogen fuel cells
that they just plug into vehicles. We're looking at that too.
In the United States, there are long haul trucking companies
that have model available. We're not quite there yet, but
(29:03):
it speaks to kind of being on that frontier.
Speaker 1 (29:07):
On the edge of what's happening. So talk a little
bit about there are other things also that are in
the works. And as we talk, you know, in the
first segment, I talked about how the market is picking up,
and I do feel like some of that is the
influx the cpkim plant in Orange that new plant that
(29:28):
you were just talking about, the hydrogen plant. What are
some of the other things that you're seeing here locally.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
Yes, probably the largest is the growth of the liquefied
natural gas export industry. In the two thousands, we were
looking to import natural gas. We knew we had an
abundance of it in the United States, we just didn't
know how to unlock it at a low cost. And
then fracking happened and all the import terminals that were
(29:57):
being built at that time were made obsolete by that advancement,
and so they had to change their business model and
they said, okay, well we need to export instead. Let's
reverse this and send this out to the rest of
the world. That requires tens of billions of dollars. And
they're three separate projects at the southern part of this
county on our waterway. You have Shineer Sabine Pass Energy
(30:21):
Terminal in Louisiana, which is the largest exporter in the
entire country. You have the Golden Pass Energy Export Project
in Sabine Pass, Texas, which is newly they've just started
to export. They had their first cargo back in April
of this year. And then you have the Port Arthur
energy project as well also in Sabine Pass, and those
(30:43):
three projects make our waterway the largest energy export in
the entire country. The United States collectively is the largest
energy export in the world at this point. And that
comes with a tremendous ripple effect for this area. And
we're talking fifty sixty billion dollars if not more, of
investment across those projects. And that doesn't happen simply because
(31:09):
they've picked Southeast Texas. There's a lot that goes into that. Namely,
you have to have a great location, it has to
have check all the boxes for these companies, but you
also have to incentivize those companies to come here. And
so one of the things about Southeast Texas we compete
on a global level. We compete for projects that could
(31:30):
be put in Singapore or Africa, which also has a
lot of natural gas development. And mainly we compete against Louisiana.
So we're competing against a state that has an office
economic development office that comes up with incentive packages to
attract all of these projects, these billions of dollars. So thankfully,
(31:51):
we have a great county judge and a great Commissioner's
Court that understands that and they've created a good economic
incentive program through taxi baits that has helped land a
lot of these large scale projects for this reagion.
Speaker 1 (32:04):
And Judge Brannick is very active in all of that.
I loved having him on the show and him talking
about what he does. And I think our area doesn't
recognize many do, but the impact he has on what
happens here and all that he contributes. And so I
love that you mentioned Judge Brannick. I think very highly
(32:27):
of him, and he works really hard, and I know
you work hand in hand with him.
Speaker 2 (32:31):
We do. These are long term bets. You're hoping to
land these large scale projects and their investments because it's
going to create great jobs. I think that the industrial
manufacturing positions in Southeast Texas, the salaries are some of
the highest in the state, and when you have companies
(32:51):
that are looking to hire hundreds of employees, that flows
back into the community.
Speaker 1 (32:58):
All trickle down. People live here, shop here.
Speaker 2 (33:02):
Shop here. They're buying homes, they're buying boats, they're buying trucks,
they're buying everything locally, and so you're seeing the capture
of those dollars across the board and same thing with
local business as you're these and that's one of the
criteria for the tax patement, and something that the commissioners
are very intent on. I'm preserving is the use of
(33:26):
local business by these these companies.
Speaker 1 (33:29):
So that you're building and in constructing and or you.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
Can capture the full benefit of the investment locally.
Speaker 1 (33:35):
Yeah, which is so important. Well, Peyton, we could talk
for hours, and I'm going to have to have you
back again because you have so much good insight and
information and gave us a great history lesson that you know,
I've lived her my whole life and I didn't know
all of that. I feel like there should be a movie.
Speaker 2 (33:53):
There should be a movie, there should be books, there
should be TV shaped. I gu someone needs to call
up Taylor shared In and get him get it.
Speaker 1 (34:00):
Let me just say, it's so interesting. I think it
would make a great movie and for us to see
the full picture of what happened here in Southeast Texas
a long time ago and the impact it still has here.
So Peyton, thank you so much for joining me today,
and yes, we will have you back as a guest pleasure.
When we come back, We're going to visit with Monica
(34:20):
James and speaking of growth and expansion. First Financial seeing
that as well. They see what's going on here, and
so don't go away, you don't want to miss it.
This is the Dana Simmons Show. Thank you so much,
Welcome back. This is Dana Simmons. I have been visiting
with Peyton Keith and if you have missed the first
part of this show, let me just say you're going
(34:42):
to want to go back and listen. Peyton has given
us a wonderful history lesson of Spindle top of things
I've lived here my entire life, things I had no
idea about. So this podcast will also be on Spotify,
or this radio show will be on Spotify as a podcast.
So you can go to Spotify search Dana Simmons and
(35:03):
you will find our Spotify account and our radio show
will be there, so don't miss it, go check it out.
Also with us we have Monica James and Monica. While
Peyton was talking about all of the growth happening here
in Southeast Texas, you know First Financial has been aware
of that and they have seven locations all over Southeast
(35:23):
Texas to serve everyone anywhere that they are. But you
guys have just also you're going to be opening a
new location in Beaumont.
Speaker 3 (35:31):
Yeah, yeah, super excited. So our location, we've just seen
a lot of growth down on College with the new
VA clinic coming in, the Baptist Cancer Center that just opened,
and so we just want to be a part of
the growth of Southeast Texas. So I am leading that
opening along with Kimberly and Brian for that location, and
(35:52):
we're just super excited to see how it growth. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (35:54):
So let me tell you that section of College Street
over the last five or so after cons left. I
don't know how long that's spent time Flas for me,
but that stretch has been kind of dead for a while,
but now all of a sudden in the last year,
it is incredible the growth that you have there. We
(36:16):
have several restaurants that have popped up. I know Firehouse
Subs is one of them right there, and then the
VA Hospital coming there. Then you're right the cancer center
with Baptists, and now First Financial is going to be
right there to service all of the people in that
general area. And that's one of the things I know
that you guys have as a priority to be where
(36:39):
you need to service your clients.
Speaker 3 (36:41):
Yeah, for sure. Yeah, everyone's like, how did y'all come
up with this location? Because we have our location on Doallen.
We're pretty much in every little city around Southeast Texas.
And it really was there's a stretch between our location
in mid County and our location on Dollen that our
customers are at and we weren't at. So that is
how we decide I did on that location. We have
(37:02):
a ton of customers down on Washington Street downtown and
stuff like that, or we can reach them. It's actually
funny because during college when I worked at Lamar, I
actually helped open the Raising Canes on College. So I'm
coming back to college, which is really funny to think about.
Speaker 1 (37:18):
Opening a new business on college. Yeah, you've been there,
done that. This is your second rodeo.
Speaker 3 (37:24):
Yeah so yeah. So and you know, at Raising Canes
they saw that growth coming too, and that's why they
put that location there. And so it's great that as
a bank we see that growth happening there, so we're
able to be there.
Speaker 1 (37:34):
I'm so excited for you guys. And when is that
grand opening going to happen? I know that the date
is probably still up in the air, but thinking sometime
in August.
Speaker 3 (37:44):
Yeah, so we're looking at mid to end August. We've
had quite a bit of rain over the last couple
of months and that's just Southeast Texas. So I think
our moving date is August tenth, and then we're hoping
sometime after that to have our grand opening. But you'll
see of advertising, we'll let the chamber, we'll do an
opening and stuff like that.
Speaker 1 (38:04):
So yeah, i'll know it. Well, let's talk a little
bit about what you do there.
Speaker 3 (38:08):
Yeah, So, like I said earlier, I'm a commercial lender,
so it's just been cool to see things starting off.
Some of my time in banking I spent underwriting. So
with that you get to see loans all over Texas
happen because First Financial Bank is great in South eat Texas,
but we're actually all over Texas with State lad Yeah,
(38:30):
a lot of people don't know. And so with that,
I got to do ad loans. I've seen so many
cattle loans, which I have never touched a cow in
my life, never write it to cow, never done anything
with cattle, and I got to do a loan. I've
done many loans on those and seen the underwriting on
that and learned about the trade and stuff like that.
So we as a commercial lender, we look at any
(38:54):
and everything, and so I've looked at ad loans, I've
looked at real estate loans, I've looked at industrial loans,
just anything that someone kind of wanted to start. So
it's great being on this side of things where we
get to meet those customers where they kind of need
us at and just see how we can help them
kind of either start their business, grow their business, or
(39:14):
expand their business.
Speaker 1 (39:15):
Yeah, I think that is such an important part. So
many people are considering a business or maybe considering getting
into investing in real estate, and so I always say,
get with a commercial lender who can walk you through
the process from beginning to end and help to guide you.
(39:37):
You don't just make the loan. I know what our
banker at First Financial did and still does, is helps
us to see the big picture, helps us to make
the right decisions, helps us to stay on the right path,
to ensure that our business is going to grow and
that we're protected, that we're not making decisions that might
(39:58):
challenge us, and that guidance, that consultation is always very helpful.
But I know you also have an impact on people
who are just considering buying homes. There are lots of
people right now who are thinking, Okay, should I continue
to rent or should I buy? So let's talk a
little bit about what advice you would give to those people.
Speaker 3 (40:21):
Yeah, so I actually had conversations with my friends about this,
just because I'm in banking, so they automatically come to me.
Even though I do commercial I do know quite a
bit more than the average show about, you know, purchasing
a home, and it's really hard when you're young, of
you know. I think when I was young, I was
installed the twenty percent role make sure you don't buy
(40:42):
a house because you don't want PMI and things like that,
and I think that was great a couple years ago
and generations ago, but it's really shift where you are
really missing out on gaining equity in your house by
renting longer and waiting for that twenty percent. I think
if you looked at a right now that you're buying,
let's say three hundred thousand, and you're waiting to save
(41:04):
up sixty thousand, that seems like a lot and lofty goal.
But I mean, you can do it. It just might
take a couple of years. I think when you look
at how much you're going to spend in rent and
not gain any equity on it, it's does that PMI
payment make sense? So PMI is a insurance for the
bank to have because you're not at eighty percent loan
(41:27):
to value. And when you look about I don't know,
seven years in, you'll see that you purchasing and making
that PMI payment actually pays off four years into the
loan versus if you just rented that whole seven years.
So I think there's many many reasons to look into that.
(41:48):
But sorry I'm getting a little wordy, but there's so many,
so many different products that banks can offer that kind
of help with PMI. PMI, I think the myth is
that it's your whole loan. That's not all loans, that's
just certain products on loans, and really just going to
a banker or mortgage lender on which type of loans
(42:09):
you can qualify for I think really does alleviate some
of that.
Speaker 1 (42:12):
I agree education is key, and so for those who
are thinking about should I buy or should I rent?
Sitting down with a trusted mortgage lender who's not going
to push you into a decision, you shouldn't be making
and who will help to walk you through what do
I need to do is critically important, and First Financial
(42:33):
has some very good mortgage lenders who can do that.
I know Kimberly Piper, or Lette Sorseto. Those are just
a few of those who can assist you, who can
sit down with you face to face and connect with
you to see if it's the right time. I had
someone the other day tell me, well, you know, my
(42:53):
credit's not that good, and I said, you know, that's
not a problem. Go ahead and make the call and
let them walk you through what do you need to
do to get your credit to a place that you
can buy. They don't just give you a loan. They
help you get to where you can get a loan.
If that's the thing you want to do, So go
(43:13):
ahead and tell us where you are now, even though
you're going to be at the college branch. Where can
someone contact you now, Monica, Yes.
Speaker 3 (43:21):
So it's kind of funny. I'm in Orange, Texas. I
live in Beaumont. We have a house here in area,
but I drive to Orange. But I'm getting customers all
over South East Texas. So like today, I'm going to
Mid County you could see me. I work a lot
at the Dowlan branch, but my home office right now
is in Orange at our main location.
Speaker 1 (43:41):
But the good thing is you travel.
Speaker 3 (43:43):
Yes.
Speaker 1 (43:43):
Yes, If someone needs your assistance, they can just reach
out to you and you can meet with them. So
if there's someone out there considering making the decision to
open a business, or they have a business and maybe
they need a little guidance, how would they connect with you?
Speaker 3 (43:57):
Yeah, the first thing is shooting me to email m
James at FFI in dot com. That is the easiest
way to reach me. I have my email with me
all the time, and with that, I'll send you my
cell phone number and you can reach me on their
text phones. Those are the easiest to give to me.
Speaker 1 (44:16):
Great well, Monica. So excited for the new branch opening
in toward the end of August, and excited to have
you on the show. If you have any questions about
real estate or mortgages or anything that we talked about today,
don't hesitate to give me a call four O nine
eight six six eight three two six. That phone is
answered eight to eight every single day by an agent
(44:39):
in our office. So give us a call, let us
help you Thank you for joining us. I hope you
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