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SLUG: NA_HOUSTON DATE: June15, 2008 PLACE: Bayou Vista, TX CREDIT: jahi chikwendiu/twp Waterfront houses in Bayou Vista, TX, are backed by the oil refineries and chemical plants of Texas City, TX. As most of the nation suffers through a pronounced economic downturn, the city of Houston is booming. Employment has grown 2.8 percent in the past year, more than nine times the national rate. Building permits are up over the past year, as is port tonnage and total retail sales. The big driver in Houston's boom and bust economy has been oil. The record oil prices have led to 1,800 plus rigs pumping oil-- a level not seen since 1985. In nearby Texas City, oil refineries are expanding. Machine shops are whirring and skilled labor comes at a premium price, the mayor says. Home sales are down some, but not nearly as much as other parts of the country and it has not crippled the overall economy. In part, that is because the Houston area, like much of Texas, did not see the big price run ups that caused bubbles in places like California, Florida, Las Vegas and Phoenix. Houston is like a number of places in the country, mainly in the farming and energy belts, riding a wave of high commodity prices.. (Photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The The Washington Post via Getty Images)