Facebook has been an economic stimulus for Prineville when it could sure use it.

About 200 workers are putting up the company’s new building. Local restaurants are feeding the workers. Miller Lumber in Prineville reports some $100,000 in business from the construction. There are local workers working on the construction, but others are disappointed they were not chosen for the work.

When such a high-profile company picks Prineville, there’s bound to be excitement. Idled workers may have hoped Facebook would be the light at the end of this great recession, or even a spark.

Instead, some got zilch. The Facebook fallout might even be worse for some local contractors than zilch. Now, just up the road, they see somebody else busily doing a job they believe they could do themselves.

Facebook’s arrival can’t be expected to single-handedly lift all of Prineville. But it is going to help. Remember the six-figure community fee that will be going annually to Prineville and Crook County. Remember the 35 full-time jobs it will create in the community. Remember that there may be hundreds of thousands of dollars in franchise fees for the city from power consumption.

Facebook did get tax breaks — about $2.8 million annually for the next 15 years. If it hadn’t gotten them, Facebook likely wouldn’t be building today in Prineville. Some other town would be having the building go up. Construction companies there would be angling to work on the project in their backyard. That wouldn’t be better for Prineville.