Mt Jackson and Edinburgh (Roanoke, Woodstock: ski resort, rental, mobile home)

[niceguy19125]

I posted here once before, but focused on an area south of Roanoke. I've decided being closer to the DC metro area, as well as points north was important to me.

I'm a 40-something single gay WM living in Philadelphia wanting to drop out of the dirty/grimy/polluted urban-east coast rat race into a smaller touristy/winery/antiques oriented town in the VA mountains. The gay part of my life isn't so important, I'm discreet and not into the wild side often associated with being gay. I just don't want to live in a bigoted place with little if any tolerance for people who are "different".

I've been near Woodstock and Mt Jackson while visiting wineries there years ago but can't recall much anything about the towns.

My goal is to start a small food store (take-out prepared foods/limited selection of gourmet food items and coffee/baked goods all with a locally grown/produced and organic origin where possible). Obviously I would need to be in a town able to support such a place through residents/tourists, etc.
and wonder if either Mt Jackson or Woodstock would be best geared toward such a business.

I would rent a place to live so housing costs aren't that important, though availability of decent rental properties, preferably downtown, and NOT mobile homes is important to me.

Lastly, I had considered Fauquier County but thought many towns there have been "built out" so to speak, and kind of expensive in terms of commercial rent. Is that accurate?

Thanks for any and all feedback.

[Wickler11]

Niceguy:

I live near D.C. but have a weekend place at a ski resort called Bryce Mt. (actually Basye, Va.) which is a short 20 minute drive from Mt. Jackson (the closest "larger" city). Bryce has about about 1,500 people living there full time, most have come from D.C. or other metro areas, so its a small upscale "liberal" pocket in a much more conservative landscape in Shenandoah County. I have heard that there is a fairly active gay population at Bryce but can't confirm that. It's a beautiful area & might support the kind of store you are interested in. There is a local produce store close to Bryce now. Of course, living at Bryce (rent, etc.) would be more expensive than living in Mt. Jackson or Edinburg. Just a thought.

Oldy

[niceguy19125]

So is Mt Jackson the place to go shopping for the resort area or do the folks there bring in provisions from DC for the weekend?

[TN Lily]

I would question whether Mt. Jackson or Edinburgh could support the type of store you are considering.

Have you considered contacting a trade organization to obtain information on the demographics needed to support your type of business?