Roanoke or Lynchburg (Richmond, Harrisonburg, Staunton: job market, YMCA, high schools)

[Waterfront]

I'm off topic here, but just had to ask if BWX is Babcock & Wilcox? Long, long ago my first 'real' job out of college was as a COBOL programmer at the Mt. Athos facility. Was wondering how B&W was doing these days?

[floridabear77]

Hey I love the going back and forth. You should be bias for the city you live in. I think it is great you two are up for a debate between the two cities. That shows me you really care and feel strongly about your home. Also, it shows be it Lynchburg or Roanoke I will have chosen well.

Is there actually a Lynchburg forum? I have not seen it.

Thanks and keep it up, every post I get a bit for info.

Tony

[badger74]

Over the past 5 years (2003-2007) Lynchburg has had far more new jobs than Roanoke despite the smaller size (5700 to 7,000). Lynchburg has also enjoyed better home price increases over the same period. Roanoke gets the ink but Lynchburg is quietly doing very well for itself and has a better placed industrial/economic base for the future.

[Dusty Rhodes]

Well, if given a choice of those two, I would have to say that there is a third choice, Waynesboro, the ski resort is there, also one of the friendliest towns in the state. Close enough to shop in D.C. but far enough away that the "hot air" politician generated causes no ill-effect. Is also close enough to Lynchburg. Example----- Waynesboro, the town thereof, decided to build several basketball courts for the kids around town to have a place to play outdoors, I believe it was four of them. When they finished each court, the crew placed a brand new basketball on the foul line of the half court. Three years later, they brought new basketballs for the courts. They took the old one, still on the court, and left a new one. In three years none of the original basketballs were stolen or taken away, they were still on the courts.

[sregorat3]

I like Wboro. In the sticks, yet it has basically all you need, or no more than a 30 min. drive to get what it doesn't have. The land is beautiful, but the tract developments leave a bit to be desired. One thing that the Burg and Roanoke have on it (besides size and jobs) is trees. Wboro has been carved out of farmland- nothing wrong with that. We are lucky to live in such a diverse and great state, close enough, but not too close to the Urban Crescent.

[badger74]

We looked at Waynesboro and passed. Did not have the large older home neighborhoods we were looking for and seemed to be a one horse town. New retail in the area has perked things up some but it just seeemd a little dead.

[ThePiedPiper]

I'm a UF grad and for much of the time, I worked at horse barns, including a couple of farms in Ocala. If you're into horses a lot, the Lexington area has developed a vibrant horse culture because the state horse show grounds are there. Virginia used to be known for its hunt country, which was primarily Fauquier county west of Washington. But the Lexington area has really grown in that regard. That's about an hour north of Roanoke, give or take. And if you have horses, Virginia Tech is just down the road from Roanoke and the vets there are phenomenal. They rebuilt one of my cats with stellar results (albeit a bit Frankenkitty).

I agree you should check out the areas yourself. It's a great area to visit for tourist and historical reasons anyway, so if you come up to visit, you won't be bored.

[JGallimore]

The Roanoke area hands down! I do not see how anyone could possibly pick the Lynchburg area over the Roanoke area. Having said that, Lynchburg does have it's own unique character and historical integrity. However, its days as a crown jewel are long gone and there is very little vitality in the Lynchburg area. Most of the growth there has taken place outside Lynchburg in areas such as Bedford County. Roanoke has a much better arts and culture scene and a more active business community which should bode well for the future. Roanoke seems to be headed in a good direction, a new art museum enviable by many, continued improvements to the Roanoke downtown area, a growing number of unique galleries and restaurants, a new medical school in association with VT, a new biomedical research center, as well as numerous new retail developments. The people of Roanoke are also much, much more diverse and there is at least a variety of political thought here, whereas Lynchburg is at its core very, very conservative. Also close to Roanoke you may want to check out Salem. Best of luck in your journey.

[badger74]

Little Vitality?? It has better job growth than Roanoke, better home price growth, LOWER crime, and has had tons of new retail come in the last 5 years. Of course some of that growth is in the suburbs--most people say if you want to live in Roanoke look at the suburbs. The fact that L has had STRONG growth in the suburbs means the entire area is vital. One growth area not in R that L has is the local colleges. I also strongly prefer the L location with it's quicker access to C'Ville and DC without dealing with the horrible traffic out on the interstate. L has added dozens of new restaurants and has an emerging arts scene. Also the colleges produce dozens of great shows for cheap. With the rise of nuclear power all over the world and soon here in the uS L has some companies that are rapidly ramping up hiring of scores of highly paid engineers and such. With a more progressive attitude taking over in the town growth has really started to take off.

http://www.newsadvance.com/lna/busin...b_growth/5255/

[seanpecor]

I think both Lynchburg and Roanoke have positive qualities that speak well to both of them. One should really take stock of both in person in order to decide which area they favor.

I chose the Roanoke area for its natural beauty. From virtually every vantage point in the Roanoke Valley you have beautiful mountain views. Lynchburg is more rolling and if mountains are visible they are quite distant. If you prefer rolling to flat land then Lynchburg will have more to offer.

Local colleges and universities are actually quite strong within the Roanoke metro, contrary to Badger's assessment. These include Roanoke College, Hollins University, Ferrum College, Jefferson College of Health Sciences and Virginia Western Community College. Furthermore, Carilion and Virginia Tech are partnering on a new medical college that is under construction on the Carilion Clinic campus in Roanoke City. Roanoke is Virginia Tech's "second home" of sorts, and Tech has a growing presence in Roanoke.

Lynchburg has a great many colleges, and the residential student population is indeed higher than it is in Roanoke. The dominant university in Lynchburg is Liberty University which has 26,000 students (if you count the 13,000 or so distance learners). Liberty U is essentially a Christian-based institution of higher learning. As such, the student and academic population is predominantly devout Christian. Liberty U opened in 1971 and it has had a dramatic effect on the demographics of Lynchburg. Lynchburg has _not_ been moderating in recent times. According to some statistics online, Republican growth in the region is outpacing Democratic growth 3 to 1. Lynchburg is seen as a very Christian-friendly metro, and many new grads from Liberty U feed directly into the local economy. This is an important consideration for someone considering Roanoke or Lynchburg as their next home town. If you're hoping to find a more conservative small city metro to grow roots, then Lynchburg has its advantages. If you're looking for a more moderate mix of center-left and center-right folks, then Roanoke may be a better choice.

I think it's best to discuss the differences of both small metros in as constructive a way possible. Everyone is different and has different needs. We're all guilty in this forum of being highly biased towards our own home towns, but I think its important not to be overly critical of other towns, particularly because Virginia is chock full of great places to live.

Sean