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It wasn't really my intention, but I was part of the
rural renaissance
of the 1970s when, for the first
time in generations, many rural areas starting gaining
population. My wife and I, both Baby Boomers, moved from
the civilized Front Range piedmont of Colorado to a rather
remote rural area -- the town of Kremmling in Grand County,
Colorado, which then had about 5,000 people.
We weren't moving back to the land,
since about
all you could grow in Middle Park was hay, on account of
less than a month of frost-free growing season. The move
came because the only newspaper job I could find was
editing the weekly Middle Park Times in Kremmling.
But we've remained in rural Colorado ever since with its ups (1970s and 1990s) and downs (1980s and perhaps the 2000s).
It may be time for another Baby Boomer migration to the boondocks, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture summarized on newgeography.com, one of my favorite websites.
As many boomers end child-rearing duties, enter peak
employment earnings and ponder retirement options they are
now poised to significantly increase the population of
55-75 year olds in rural and small town America through
2020, with major social and economic implications for their
chosen locations,
the summary says.
It predicts that growth will come to rural places
with high levels of natural amenities and affordable
housing that are already popular as second-home
destinations. For these areas the economic future looks
good as a potential influx of spending power and seasoned,
footloose talent boosts development prospects.
I can't say I'm thrilled about development
prospects,
but as recent history demonstrates, these
things tend to come and go.
Rural Renaissance: link
Retiring Boomers: link
Full Report: link< /P>
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