After just one year in operation, Fayette County's hospital is generating millions of dollars through the county's churning economic engine.

After years of fighting to obtain a hospital of their very own, Fayette's residents started repaing some of the economic rewards.

Last year, Fayette Community Hospital employed 400 citizens and had an annual payroll of $8.2 million, according the hospital's executive coordinator of Finance, Ed Mower.

Mower added that nearly 75 percent of the employees come from Fayette and Coweta counties, which translates into extra spending at the restaurants, shops and service industries in the county.

Executive director of the Fayette County Development Authority John Boothby said the impact on the local economy is well into the millions.

"No matter how you slice it, an $8.2 million payroll is significant," he said.

Even before the hospital opened, it had a huge impact on the economic life of the community. The $33 million building employed hundreds during the construction phase and sent several million dollars flowing through the community.

In addition to the impact on the economy, the hospital is also having an impact on other quality of life issues, Boothby said.

Specifically, since many local people work and get services at the facility, the roads going into Atlanta are less clogged with commuters and sick residents.

"It helps keep some cars from heading to the northside, which cuts down on our air quality problems," he said.

When the hospital opened, a number of physicians opened satellite offices in the county, which added more dollars to the economy, Mower said.

Another significant impact the hospital has had is on the county's tax base. In 1997, the hospital paid $140,194 to rank as the 20th biggest taxpayer in the county.

"That's even more than Evander Holyfield paid," Boothby quipped.

Fayette's economic guru calculated the hospital paid the equivalent taxes of 65 $200,000 homes.

As he's showing potential companies the benefits of building or bringing their company to the county, Boothby said it's a large asset to finally have a hospital located in the county.