No traditional newsletter this week, as I was working on this piece — the result of talking at length with three dozen people who live who live full-time in rural/resort areas (or who are debating leaving the city for their second homes). I was trying to get at the larger story of how the privilege to “escape” cities is going to ravage rural communities, and was assisted mightily by several rural studies scholars who’ve been working and analyzing and writing about these issues for years.
I live in Big Bear, California and appreciated this article a LOT. We are being inundated with people taking "Corona Vacays." They come here from Coronavirus hotspots like San Diego, bring their entire families, raid our [only] two markets for supplies, and do not, unfortunately, bring with them their own medical supplies or hospital beds to augment our single, 12-bed hospital. They have interpreted "shelter at home" to mean "shelter indoors wherever you happen to have driven to today." The locals are spitting mad (well, not literally) but there is nothing we can do about it. The weekend rentals have been suspended, but the problem lies with people who own vacation homes up here & are spending weekends AND bringing different groups of friends & family every Friday night. I can't say I see much of a difference between this and weekenders, to tell you the truth. Anyway, the article helped to legitimize the worry of local, full-time residents, and I thank you.
I think about this a lot. As someone who relocated from southwestern Florida to northern Florida a few years ago due in part to sea level rise concerns I wrestle with urging everyone else to do the same and also wanting to physically wall off the lovely rural place that I now live. Great piece.
I live in Big Bear, California and appreciated this article a LOT. We are being inundated with people taking "Corona Vacays." They come here from Coronavirus hotspots like San Diego, bring their entire families, raid our [only] two markets for supplies, and do not, unfortunately, bring with them their own medical supplies or hospital beds to augment our single, 12-bed hospital. They have interpreted "shelter at home" to mean "shelter indoors wherever you happen to have driven to today." The locals are spitting mad (well, not literally) but there is nothing we can do about it. The weekend rentals have been suspended, but the problem lies with people who own vacation homes up here & are spending weekends AND bringing different groups of friends & family every Friday night. I can't say I see much of a difference between this and weekenders, to tell you the truth. Anyway, the article helped to legitimize the worry of local, full-time residents, and I thank you.
I think about this a lot. As someone who relocated from southwestern Florida to northern Florida a few years ago due in part to sea level rise concerns I wrestle with urging everyone else to do the same and also wanting to physically wall off the lovely rural place that I now live. Great piece.