Why do the scenic regions have bad economies? (unemployment rate, college)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
For starters, I grew up in East Texas and Omaha, NE. Recently (2 years ago) headed west to Oregon and now reside in Tucson, AZ. Basically, I always disliked living in the middle part of the country. The coasts always seemed more attractive (to me). Turns out (aesthetically, to me) they are, but the economies suck... i.e. high unemployment rates in OR. All these lame "Best places..." lists seem to point to really bland, cookie cutter, and generally uninteresting places to live. Any thoughts on this? Any places that are beautiful and have strong economies? ** More specifically... good places to raise a family? **
BTW I'm aware this is highly subjective, but I would love some opinions on this...
Last edited by InLimbo520; 10-28-2009 at 11:52 PM..
Reason: rephrasing my question...
Large coastal metros have very diversified economies. If you have the requisite skills that are in demand in certain fields there are position openings.
Many scenic places are boom/bust type of places for starters. They're wildly popular, like the pretty cheerleader, but then people realize that looks aren't everything.
Politics often ruin such places.
Out on the plains, the politics are more of the moderate, steady-as-she-goes variety, and they're also very pro-business.
In some cases what makes a place "beautiful" does not make it particularly livable. There are many beautiful mountainous places that have bad soil or can't support a large population. This is less true now that it's easier to ship food long distances, but the past can still have an effect on the present.
Also many of the bland looking places tend to be stable more than anything. So you don't get the lows of the current recession, but you also don't get quite the same highs either. I think Gateway or one of those is headquartered in South Dakota, but I don't think South Dakota became a tech-center. At least not the way parts of the Pacific Coast did.
Up until this lousy recession/depression east tennessee had a good economy and that is a beautiful place.
Ive never really seen much of the east coast mountains... any favorite areas? I hear Asheville, NC is nice. But im beginning to think this economy is a crapshoot no matter where you go...
Turns out, as my username implies, things are InLimbo right now for us. Once you pick up and leave your roots its hard to begin again in a new place and while unemployed.
sf la seattle san diego denver ... all horrible economies.
Denver isn't so bad, comparatively.
You have to add Portland to that. Well... the whole West Coast actually. Scenic with a terrible economy. The only part that I know that's kind of alright is Benton County in Oregon which is basically a little unscenic slice of Iowa set down in the middle of Oregon. It's got strong education and healthcare industries (college town of Corvallis) bolstering its economy.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.