My Town. Tell me about Yours.

[Mike 03]

Population: About 16,000

Breakdown of occupations:

Construction: 20%
Real Estate: 30%
Retirees: 30%
Work in Retail: 20%

According to our Mayor, 10% to 15% of the population here has just left. Just got out of town, because there is no work. These are the construction workers.

From what I have heard, the real estate industry is dead here, but these folks live here anyway.

On my street, approximately one out of ever seven homes is either up for sale, being auctioned off, or is "for rent."

Dozens of our small shops and many of our restaurants are closing. Nobody cares about buying antiques, unique items, souvenirs, stuff like that.

In the past three months I have directly encountered several women begging for money to buy food for their families. In Los Angeles, I used to see that ever day, but for this town it is rare, and shocking.

Our grocery stores are empty, and the people who are there are price shopping, they are recipients of food stamps, many are elderly and struggling to exist on social security.

And everyone here knows the worst is yet to come.

[H2O Man]

1. I live in

a rural area. (This was a "crossroads community" in 1800, but now there are only 5 homes in the "neighborhood.) People travel anywhere from 8 to 60 miles a day to get to work. The hamlets in the area are becoming empty, and the towns are hurting, too.

[Mike 03]

6. I hear you. Wow. You reminded me of something I forgot to mention, is how many people

here have one to three hour communtes. I know of one guy, a male nurse, who commutes three hours each way. I can't even imagine doing that.

[H2O Man]

13. One of my nephews

lives about 5 miles from me. He has his degree. He travels a round trip of about 160 miles to work for a decent wage. His brothers had to move four states away to find good jobs in the fields they are educated in. (He travels further than anyone else I know.)

Another nephew (their cousin) travels about 60 miles, round trip.

Both of my sons are in college now. It used to give people choices. But those choices are evaporating, rapidly.

[ThomWV]

8. Out here in the country

Let's see, the next neighbor up the road was laid off last week. He's a coal miner. This wouldn't be uncommon with low prices but he says they are shutting the mine down - this one isn't coming back. He said he'll find work elsewhere, he was a boss of some sort. His Uncle and most of the rest of his family lives directly across the road. Of the three men two of them are miners too and both are working reduced hours. Bunky is above ground because of an injury and he has years of seniority over his son-in-law is a roof-bolter or something so his job will be gone soon.

We're retired and have a government check coming in so we don't give a shit.

Next house down the road belongs to Jack but Jack died last fall so the place is empty. His son still comes and mows weekly. Then there's Bill and Dixie, they are both disabled but Bill cleans up at a slaughter house at night to make enough money for them to get along. Winter is hard on them. After that there are three trailers, all in the same family. They are all truck drivers and none of them is driving. The trucks (tri-axle dumps used to haul coal locally) sit idle all day. There might be some work hauling crushed limestone but I've been told the guys are far behind on their fuel bills and until they are paid there will be no more credit for new fuel. Everyone's hurtin'. After that there's another old couple just like us, but he worked for the state. And the guy after him does odd jobs, builds a house now and then, sells used cars, has a backhoe and loader, just a jack of all trades. He's got two of his trucks for sale and I don't see the machine being hauled around anymore so its pretty clear he isn't getting much work.

And that's about it for this coummunity. Retired or nearly so, laid off or nearly so. Nobody's got jack shit.

[XemaSab]

2. I can't give facts and figures

but my town has been in an economic "slump" for over 20 years.

We have 100,000 people, and the biggest industries in town are law and medicine. Law so you have someone to defend you when you get a DUI, and medicine so you have someone to patch you up when you wrap your car around a tree. No university: the nearest one is an hour and a half away.

Logging used to be big up here, but that ended a ways back.

Poverty and drugs are everywhere up here.

The city fathers (and mothers) have all these schemes to get businesses to come here, but I don't know why they would. :shrug:

[Mike 03]

10. Fascinating. Law and Medicine... Like the other posters, your post

reminded me that we are having a sort of epidemic in methamphetamine abuse.

Also, I listen to the police scanner sometimes, and there is much more domestic violence here than there used to be. Not to mention "crazy" driving (probably drunken driving or drugs).

In general, people seem much more aggressive here.

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

3. My town, huh.

Population about 30,000.

We're mostly a bedroom community for Boston, Worcester and Providence, since we're conveniently placed equidistantly from them and lie on the intersection of a couple of highways. The major industries around us (and in the major cities) are finance, biotechnology/medicine, engineering, education, and retail.

During the housing market surge, developers couldn't get their hands on land fast enough here. They'd raise one McMansion after enough and sell them at very inflated prices. As a result, all of the houses in my town experienced an upswing in value (for example, a 3 bedroom 1 bath colonial in my parents' neighborhood sold for around $400,000 in 2006. When my parents bought their house, which is similar to the sold one, in the early 80s, they paid less than $100,000 for it). And the town began to derive most of its income from ever-increasing property taxes.

Now that the housing market has collapsed, things have gotten tough. Homeowners are foreclosing and the town's budget is in trouble. We've let go of 30 teachers system-wide and are having trouble keeping the high school up to code, which is threatening our accreditation status. Other services like that library are also feeling the pinch. Even semi-private charities like the town's food pantry are being hit unusually hard.

[Mike 03]

12. Thanks for the post. You have a larger population than here, but I definitely understand

the real estate price issues. If we were not constrained by water issues, real estate developers would be buying up everything here. They have definitely tried.

This town here is very schizophrenic. On the one hand, it wants to be a small humble town, but on the other hand, it wants to be a vacation resort, so we have $50,000 homes and $2 Million dollar homes. But none of them are selling, and many of the expensive ones are crashing in price, and others are simply going straight into foreclosure.

I hope your town makes it through this mess.

[Siwsan]

4. I live in Flint, Michigan

Need I say more??

[TomInTib]

7. 'nuff said

And a hearty welcome to DU, Siwsan.

Tom

[Siwsan]

19. Thanks!

Flint is still a great town. There are major efforts to diversify, mainly through educational institutions. We've got about 5 great schools, including the University of Michigan-Flint and Kettering University (formerly GMI). Our downtown is slowly redeveloping. If you've ever seen Roger and Me, you will know what we were, what we became, and what a huge effort this will take to reclaim a portion of what we've lost.

[NEOhiodemocrat]

21. Ouch

wellcome to DU!

[TomInTib]

5. I live in one of the highest-demograhic ZIPs in the country.

(from Wikipedia)

As of the year 2000 census<3>, there were 8,666 people, 3,712 households, and 2,409 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,914.9 people per square mile (738.6/km²). There were 3,893 housing units at an average density of 860.2/sq mi (331.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 90.92% White, 0.87% African American, 0.22% Native American, 4.42% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 0.75% from other races, and 2.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.66% of the population.

There were 3,712 households out of which 27.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.3% were married couples living together, 7.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% were non-families. 27.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.82.

In the town the population was spread out with 21.9% under the age of 18, 2.8% from 18 to 24, 24.4% from 25 to 44, 34.3% from 45 to 64, and 16.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 88.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.1 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $106,611, and the median income for a family was $149,041. Males had a median income of $100,000+ versus $60,773 for females. The per capita income for the town was $85,966. About 1.6% of families and 3.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.0% of those under age 18 and 1.5% of those age 65 or over.

Belvedere/Tiburon was ranked by Forbes magazine as among the 20 most expensive real-estate markets in the US.


And we retailers are dying, here.

Tom

[trof]

17. I really liked Tiburon.

Used to take the ferry over when I had layovers in San Fran.
Spend all day poking around the shops and then drink and eat until the last ferry back left.
Good times.

[OhioChick]

9. Cleveland......Enough said. n/t

[ColbertWatcher]

11. My town- Los Angeles.

We're often confused with our louder, more conservative step-child: Hollywood.

We're home of the LAPD, which is by far the biggest embarrassment not only for the city of Los Angeles and the state of California, but the United States as a whole.

Despite the shameful history of the LAPD, we have a wide variety of restaurants and cultural events, which are indicative of the diversity of the communities.

Our great weather lures people in from all over the world adding that much more to that diversity, but we also have earthquakes, wildfires, riots and mudslides to keep the less resilient newcomers from staying too long (LOL).

Nothing compares to the range of options available for every taste, which sadly includes conservatives. But, hey, we welcome damn near everyone and they can to stay as long as they don't mind the "special California seasons" (earthquakes, wildfires, riots and mudslides) and do their best to genuinely get along with their fellow Angelenos.

[proud patriot]

14. here's what I found .. Suberb of SF Ca

Population, 2003 estimate 124,977 35,484,453
Population, percent change, April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2003 2.5% 4.8%
Population, 2000 121,780 33,871,648
Population, percent change, 1990 to 2000 9.5% 13.6%
Persons under 5 years old, percent, 2000 7.1% 7.3%
Persons under 18 years old, percent, 2000 25.3% 27.3%
Persons 65 years old and over, percent, 2000 10.7% 10.6%
Female persons, percent, 2000 50.6% 50.2%
White persons, percent, 2000 (a) 70.7% 59.5%
Black or African American persons, percent, 2000 (a) 3.0% 6.7%
American Indian and Alaska Native persons, percent, 2000 (a) 0.8% 1.0%
Asian persons, percent, 2000 (a) 9.4% 10.9%
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, percent, 2000 (a) 0.5% 0.3%
Persons reporting some other race, percent, 2000 (a) 9.7% 16.8%
Persons reporting two or more races, percent, 2000 5.9% 4.7%
Persons of Hispanic or Latino origin, percent, 2000 21.8% 32.4%
Living in same house in 1995 and 2000, pct 5 yrs old & over 51.5% 50.2%
Foreign born persons, percent, 2000 23.4% 26.2%
Language other than English spoken at home, pct age 5+, 2000 30.3% 39.5%
High school graduates, percent of persons age 25+, 2000 84.7% 76.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher, pct of persons age 25+, 2000 25.9% 26.6%
Mean travel time to work (minutes), workers age 16+, 2000 31.9 27.7

Housing units, 2000 45,083 12,214,549
Homeownership rate, 2000 62.6% 56.9%
Median value of owner-occupied housing units, 2000 $233,700 $211,500

Households, 2000 44,020 11,502,870
Persons per household, 2000 2.74 2.87
Median household income, 1999 $55,597 $47,493
Per capita money income, 1999 $24,727 $22,711
Persons below poverty, percent, 1999 7.6% 14.2%




Wholesale trade sales, 1997 ($1000) 1,264,560 548,864,451
Retail sales, 1997 ($1000) 1,654,950 263,118,346
Retail sales per capita, 1997 $14,328 $8,167
Accommodation and foodservices sales, 1997 ($1000) 141,786 42,312,641
Total number of firms, 1997 9,629 2,565,734
Minority-owned firms, percent of total, 1997 22.1% 28.8%
Women-owned firms, percent of total, 1997 20.2% 27.3%


Land area, 2000 (square miles) 30 155,959
Persons per square mile, 2000 4,041.0 217.2

[trof]

15. Foley, AL Pop. 9000

Biggest employers/businesses are tourism (Gulf Beaches), retail (WalMart Super Center and huge Tanger Outlet Center), real estate/construction, farming.

Construction is practically nil, real estate is down the crapper, and retail sales are way down.

Our biggest farms grow turf for landscaping, but that may change since no new homes are being built.
I'd much rather see them grow something we can eat.

The only bright spot is tourism.
Our beaches are within a day's drive for folks in the southeast and even parts of the midwest.
Occupancy rates are still high, but beach retailers and restaurants say receipts are way down.
Vacationers are still coming, but not spending much when they get here.

Oh yeah, our very best local seafood restaurant, just across the bay from me, burned to the ground last Sunday morning.
60 people out for work for the foreseeable future.
:-(

[patriotvoice]

16. Overall, not too bad here... we still have 15% manufacturing.

Population: 258,671
Area: 131 square miles

Municipality:
 Fire Stations: 23
 Libraries: 7
 Parks, Open Space, Beautification Areas: 8.5 square miles
 Recreation Centers: 10

Housing
 Total Units: 108,140
 Occupied:    100,361
 Designated Public Housing: 5,093 (4.7%)

Tax Valuation: $22,495,000,000

Median income (2005): $54,065

Distribution:
Construction:                            5%
Manufacturing:                          15%
Transportation, Information, Utilities:  9%
Trade:                                  17%
Finance, Insurance, Real Estate:         7%
Service:                                30%
Government:                             11%
Other:                                   6%

[Blue_In_AK]

18. My city, Anchorage,

has about 260,000 people. Here's the demographics blurb from Wikipedia

As of the 2000 census, there were 260,283 people, 94,822 households and 64,099 families residing in the municipality; in all, the Anchorage Municipality is home to almost two-fifths of Alaska's population. The population density was 59.2/km² (153.4/sq mi). There were 100,368 housing units at an average density of 59.1/sq mi (22.8/km²). Anchorage is also the most ethnically diverse city in Alaska: the ethnic makeup of the municipality is approximately 72.23% White, 7.28% (apx. 19,000) Alaska Natives and American Indians, 5.55% (approximately 14,500 people) Asian Americans, 5.84% (apx. 15,200) African Americans, 0.93% Pacific Islanders, 2.19% are from other ethnic groups, and 5.98% were from two or more ethnic groups. 5.69% were Hispanics or Latinos of any ethnic group. 4.00% reported speaking Spanish at home, while 1.49% speak Tagalog and 1.44% Korean.<9>

The median income for a household in the city is $55,546, and the median income for a family is $63,682. Males have a median income of $41,267 versus $31,747 for females. The per capita income for the city is $25,287. 5.1% of families and 7.3% of the population are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 8.8% of those under the age of 18 and 6.4% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

As of September 7, 2006, 94 languages were spoken by students in the Anchorage School District.

----------------

I don't think too much has changed since 2000 except we're maybe even more ethnically diverse.

While oil prices have been high, Alaska's economy has been humming along. Things could get a little tighter now, but the legislature socked away quite a bit of cash last year knowing that the price of oil wouldn't hold. Our unemployment rate was 7.4% as of October (unemployment always goes up here in the winter because so many workers are seasonal).

The biggest employer here is "Government," followed by "Trade, Transportation and Utilities," and "Private education and health services."

[cali]

20. My town is actually going through a minor renaissance

Here's a bit about the town:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardwick_(VT)

I actually live in a small unincorporated village about 5 miles outside of town. It consists of a few hundred people, a post office and a general store.

What's happening is very cool. It's about how Hardwick is building its economy around sustainable food- from Pete's organic vegetables, to Jasper Farms artisan cheeses and HIgh Mowing seeds, to Claire's Restaurant and Vermont Soy products- and much, much more. There was a great article in the NYT about what's happened in Hardwick that ran a couple of months ago. And one in Grist.