SINTON, Texas — As aspiring job candidates prep for a major hiring event this weekend in Sinton, many nearby business are making a push to let others know that, not only are they open amid a pandemic, but they’re ready for growth.
Steel Dynamic, Inc. has an “Open Application Day” on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. at the Sinton Community Center at 1300 E Sinton St.
Roger Kenne owns and manages the Butter Churn Restaurant in Sinton. While he admits COVID-19 has come with its own set of challenges, he’s made it a point to avoid making any cuts for his employees.
“I could do with fewer staff, but I didn’t feel like that’s the right thing to do,” he said. “I’m doing my best to keep everybody on the payroll and — maybe a fewer hours than they’ve had in the past, but everyone seemed to be surviving that way.”
Flyers for Steel Dynamics’ hiring event are posted inside and outside the restaurant.
Kenne said the Butter Churn Restaurant was able to submit a bid to run the facility’s cafeteria — a partnership that could dynamically improve its business.
Either way, he’s looking forward to the likelihood that traffic to his restaurant will increase.
“This will be excellent to have extra people around that are hopefully gonna set foot in here and enjoy a good meal,” Kenne said. “We could really use the extra business and help us grow beyond what we are now, so it’s exciting.”
While Sinton City Hall said there were no permits recently submitted related to large-scale housing, an official from San Patricio County said there are “a few” subdivision plans in the works.
San Patricio County Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Foster Edwards said there will be new apartments built, as well as some new single-family dwellings coming to the Sinton area.
“There’s no doubt about that,” he said. “There are some housing subdivisions in the works. They’re not quite at their permitting phase yet; they’re in the planning stages — the engineering stages.”
In terms of temporary housing, Robert Knox manages Creekside RV Village, which is less than four miles away from Steel Dynamics. The RV park opened in March — right when the novel coronavirus pandemic began to reshape peoples' daily lives.
“It was a little disheartening, but actually it turned out that lemon turned out to be some lemonade,” Knox said, adding that the time allowed him toimprove his facility. “It just so happened that Steel Dynamics chose Sinton as a location, and so, we benefit from them choosing us as a location.”
Knox said he already has some workers from the site staying at his facility. He said he anticipates more to come.
“Being a born-and-raised Sinton resident, it’s nice to see each just the effect this influx of revenue from Steel Dynamics is gonna have on all the businesses,” Knox said. “The local hotels, restaurants, grocery stores and contractors — so we’re all looking forward to it.”
