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Old 04-29-2008, 11:04 AM   #57
Mr. V
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Sorry, my bad.

My point: NH is a beautiful place, no doubt about it.

The Lakes Region has many charms, and has enticed many people, including members of my family, to relocate there.

Which is fine; I almost moved there myself.

As the years pass by, I cannot help but note how difficult it seems for people to really get ahead there, economically.

Oh sure, it's easy enough to get by, but to really reach the brass ring seems very difficult.

Waldo Peppers offers a great product, and great people, and yet: the owners have to do other things in order to help them achieve their slice of the American Dream.

This is based on the Feast or Famine nature of the lakes region being a summer resort location, I suppose, coupled to the lack of population base, and a waning industrial / job base in Laconia.

Ask yourself this: do your best and brightest young people, those who are smart and ambitious and want to set the world on fire, stay in Laconia / the lakes region, or do they go elsewhere when ready to settle down and try to get things done?

People who arrive at the lake with money, especially those who are retired or who otherwise need not work, are in the best position to enjoy the area.

A young man or woman, in contrast, has little economic incentive to stick around; where are the jobs, the opportunities?

Of course, they can live there and commute, e.g. to Concord or Manchester, if they can find a good job, but it seems to me that there are too few jobs to go around, and commuting with gas approaching four bucks a gallon would seem less and less attractive.
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