Brought to you by Scott P. Rogers, Funkhouser Real Estate Group, 540-578-0102, scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com
Brought to you by Scott P. Rogers, Funkhouser Real Estate Group, 540-578-0102, scott@HarrisonburgHousingToday.com
Friday, September 17, 2010
Retirement doesn't come at age 55 for everyone -- and an increasing number of people are continuing to work past that age given the current economy and financial markets. Even after retirement, many people are looking for second careers, and U.S. News & Word Report recently (yesterday) ranked Harrisonburg as one of the ten best places to launch your second career. Click here to read the article.
Here's what they have to say about our area....
A few observations....
Here's what they have to say about our area....
The centerpiece of this rural town is James Madison University and its 17,000 undergrads. It's hard to miss the purple-and-gold-clad students around town. Eastern Mennonite University is here as well.
Agriculture and JMU fuel the economy. Healthcare provider Centra Healthcare Solutions is also one of the region's major employers. Getting to Washington will take a two-hour drive, but Charlottesville (home of the University of Virginia) is just an hour away by car.
It's the area that surrounds Harrisonburg that often clinches the deal. The Blue Ridge Mountains, Skyline Drive, and the Shenandoah Valley, along with its namesake river, are a magnet for outdoor enthusiasts from skiers and spelunkers to hikers and kayakers. And the 1.8 million-acre George Washington and Jefferson National Forests extend along virtually the entire western edge of Virginia; Crabtree Falls Trail features one of the most impressive vertical-drop waterfalls east of the Mississippi River. Toss in the wineries and apple orchards tucked away on winding back-country roads, and it's an appealingly bucolic picture. Meanwhile, the downtown area is showing signs of new life, with an active farmers' market and a handful of hip coffee shops and ethnic restaurants.
Agriculture and JMU fuel the economy. Healthcare provider Centra Healthcare Solutions is also one of the region's major employers. Getting to Washington will take a two-hour drive, but Charlottesville (home of the University of Virginia) is just an hour away by car.
It's the area that surrounds Harrisonburg that often clinches the deal. The Blue Ridge Mountains, Skyline Drive, and the Shenandoah Valley, along with its namesake river, are a magnet for outdoor enthusiasts from skiers and spelunkers to hikers and kayakers. And the 1.8 million-acre George Washington and Jefferson National Forests extend along virtually the entire western edge of Virginia; Crabtree Falls Trail features one of the most impressive vertical-drop waterfalls east of the Mississippi River. Toss in the wineries and apple orchards tucked away on winding back-country roads, and it's an appealingly bucolic picture. Meanwhile, the downtown area is showing signs of new life, with an active farmers' market and a handful of hip coffee shops and ethnic restaurants.
A few observations....
- I suppose it is true that Centra is a major regional employer, though RMH / Sentara seem to be more specifically pertinent to the immediate Harrisonburg and surrounding area.
- It is fascinating that they (writers at US News & World Report) are picking up on the fact that downtown Harrisonburg and the Harrisonburg Farmers' Market have gained momentum over the past several years.
