Don't know where Sperling gets his info but textiles have been long gone as has the railroad and more. Emphasis is on luring people to VTech-Carilion located in a culturally and commercial defunct area. A huge challenge is trying to leave after "investing" in real estate, avoiding foreclosure and/or loosing your shirt otherwise. Closed in many ways, many "nice" well heeled people.
Gale | Roanoke, VA | Report Abuse

I grew up in Norwich in SW I moved from roanoke to Sullivan county new york a very rural county in foothills of the catskills were there is no real work ya either work for the county as its the biggest employer in the county or you work retail at tractor supply wal mart or shop rite....... There are 77000 people in Sullivan county theres no mall theres only two bowling alleys a movie theatre spread sparling around the county..... It used to be a Jewish enterainment capital called the borsch belt but ing 70s 80s 90s a lot of the resorts closed the Jews still come up every summer and there's work for three months....... Yall don't understand how good yall got it yall have everything except for an international airport other than that everything is in city limits or in the metro area so please stop complaining the schools are okay the hospitals are great better the crmc in Sullivan county which is essentially just a big urgent care becaise they only have a level 1 trauma center and no peds wing..... And from were I live in Monti-"ghetto" the hospital is not village limits the movie theatre isn't either or the bowling alley or roller rinks or shopping malls I see deer in broad daylight and I live in the most populated village in the whole county theres no mass transit (I.e.valley metro) theres no Amtrak station in the county as a matter of fact theres no trains in the county at all so if you want to leave this hell hole you either have to catch a coach or drive your own vehicle if you have a car if you dont you're screwed.... And then the worst part of it all in Sullivan county everybody claims that're from NYC and everybody's a "gangbanger" god get me back home were there's convenience and shopping and the arts there's no symphony orchestras theres no plays musicals minor league sports nothing you all really do not understand how good yall got it and I grew up on the border of virginia hieghts and Norwich I grew up on Lexington ave a dead and street off of memorial ave walking distance to downtown the grandson village and the roanoke river greenway.... My father lives downtown across the rails from the wells Fargo tower and he absolutely loves it but then again hes new york native who moved us down to the valley back in 96 when it was essentially a small city it wasnt really a growing when we moved down there but id say from living in the city for 18 yrs and it has grown soon much there's new growth downtown and buildings be being built downtown which hasnt been done since the early 90s in tired of people taking Roanoke for granted because it could always be worse and thats the truth cuz look at me I live in a very rural area of New York state I hate it and id like to move me and my new family down back to my home but the lack of non-dead-end or seasonal work makes it very hard to save any money for move like that...... But I really think those who have spent there whole lives in the valley and have never lived anywhere else please bite your tongue because yall really have no idea about how much worse it really could be, because I have first hand experience in an underserved area.
Tyler | Monticello, NY | Report Abuse

I grew up in No.VA... Roanoke reminds me of the area I grew up in, back in the 60s, 70s, 80s... quaint, behind the times, provincial... slow to embrace new technologies... wages and jobs running about 20 years behind the rest of the state. Jobs you get either don't pay enough, or if you're lucky to get a job, mostly based on who you know, not WHAT you know. I've struggled here for 22 years now.
Rebecca | Buchanan, VA | Report Abuse