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In the downtown area, nope...no stoplights that I can remember.
One thing that's funny about towns in that region compared to towns that are closer to cities, they tend to be a lot more self-sufficient. You won't find everything you want in Harvey, but you'll find everything you need. Even a lot of the small towns around the Fargo-Moorhead area here don't have the scope of businesses that smaller towns further from any metro area have. Heck, I grew up looking forward to going to Harvey to shop. Got my first jack knife at Hardware Hank.
As far as 1980s pickups, I guess it's fairly common. It takes a long time for a pickup to die in a farming community--it just rolls on down the line from "good pickup" to "work pickup" until it becomes a field pickup or sprayer pickup, and then hits the junkyard. Actually, it's surprising how much money you can spend on something like a 1982 Chevy 4x4 (in good shape, they still fetch a good bit of money). They're tough (except they rust out at the drop of a hat), they're cheap to fix, and they're easy to work on.
I was looking at the statistics on City Data for Harvey, ND, and I noticed a few things. One is that the average age is 48.9 (!) and the other is that it is absolutely hemorrhaging population. I can't imagine why the average age would be so high (I'm 23, and hoping to be around others near my age) unless the place was a retirement community. As for the population drop, I can't find any info online about why this may be: no reports of the usual factors like plant closings or military base closures that would cause such a huge drop in population. Is there something I'm not seeing here? The city website and Google streetview look nice enough, and there are nothing but positive posts about the town on this forum. Maybe the stats are erroneous. Could some locals fill me in on the details?
No stop lights. There is a flashing yellow on the southeast part of town. As for homes for sale, a few, but not a large selection. Pick-ups. This is ND country. Even here in Minot, every other vehicle at the mall parking lot is a pick up, mainly 4 wheel drive. Actually Harvey is in the rolling hills. It just looks flat. With the open sky, when you drive out in the country during a -20 night, you should see the northern lights. Franchises do not normally come to the small towns except for DQ or Pizza Hut.
I was looking at the statistics on City Data for Harvey, ND, and I noticed a few things. One is that the average age is 48.9 (!) and the other is that it is absolutely hemorrhaging population. I can't imagine why the average age would be so high (I'm 23, and hoping to be around others near my age) unless the place was a retirement community. As for the population drop, I can't find any info online about why this may be: no reports of the usual factors like plant closings or military base closures that would cause such a huge drop in population. Is there something I'm not seeing here? The city website and Google streetview look nice enough, and there are nothing but positive posts about the town on this forum. Maybe the stats are erroneous. Could some locals fill me in on the details?
The average age of 48.9 would strongly indicate an out-migration of college educated individuals (rural brain drain) and younger people to the urban center that have a more diverse array of employment opportunities. A town like Harvey could actually use some talented younger folks due to the fact that so many have moved out.
The average age of 48.9 would strongly indicate an out-migration of college educated individuals (rural brain drain) and younger people to the urban center that have a more diverse array of employment opportunities. A town like Harvey could actually use some talented younger folks due to the fact that so many have moved out.
I fully agree with you. I'm not one for following the herd, otherwise I'd be on my way to Texas. Towns like Harvey do need young people to stick around and believe in the place.
Part of the difference in demographic is due to agriculture. There are a good number of younger people farming in the area, but aren't counted in the city statistics because they are from out of town. Likewise, because Harvey has a nursing home, they draw elderly from outside of town. Consequently, I think the statistics get a bit skewed.
I live near Harvey, it's a pretty good town for a rural area. No stop lights there that I can think of.
I was in Harvey recently and stopped at the bakery and hardware store. The bakery has some pretty good donuts! The hardware store is a very good one and has nearly anything you might need. I'm pretty sure I had the oldest vehicle parked on the street that day haha, mine is about 10 years old.
The closest city with any box stores is either Devils Lake or Minot. Minot has about 30k-40k people and is fairly diverse as there is a university there and an air base.
Hope some of that information helps, and I hope you find Harvey a welcoming place!
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