A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD

https://www.ci.cumberland.md.us/1787/Choose-Cumberland-Relocation-Program

by vxxzy • 2 years ago

107 176 2 years ago

ci.cumberland.md.us

billsmithaustin• 2 years ago

For you cyclists, the Great Allegheny Pass trail and the Chesapeake & Ohio towpath meet there.

tantalor• 2 years ago

Also has an Amtrak station!

op00to2• 2 years ago

How many trains a day?

ktosobcy• 2 years ago

Eh... I'm always mind-blown by the amazing nature the USA has... :(

khuey• 2 years ago

One of the program requirements is that you buy a house there and live in it for five years.

anticorporate• 2 years ago

This is pretty important. I suspect the people who are motivated by $2k a year to move there are not the people who are going to be bringing a large influx of capital to a place that very much needs it.

Although actually, it looks like there are two separate programs, which you can be eligible for both of: The relocation credit, and the restoration or down payment credit, which is more of a match, so the actual amount is more like $20k total.

delichon• 2 years ago

I suspect the people who are motivated by $2k a year to move there are not the people who are going to be bringing a large influx of capital to a place that very much needs it.

You are correct, they are the people who will be available to be employed by those considering bringing a large influx of capital and taxable revenue. They're the bait.

j_m_b3• 2 years ago

That actually explains a lot. They are trying to expand their tax base. The improvements stipend will allow them to assess the property at a higher value!

e1g• 2 years ago

"Reduced local taxes by $2k/yr for five years" doesn't have the same ring.

beowulfey• 2 years ago

Yes I would guess this is to try and encourage remote workers to move there, would be a valuable influx

more_corn• 2 years ago

But houses there cost about a nickel.

yergi• 2 years ago

...and at the current admin's burn rate of almost 10% GDP deficit / year via printing of money, that 10K gonna be worth more like 5k at the present clip in 5 years. Honestly, reducing gov't spending by 50% to fit within the confines of the tax base simply isn't going to happen. So, with that in mind, that 5k (in future real terms) to move to a state with terrible rental laws for landlords (if that's the long term goal) just simply doesn't make any sense at all.

PaulDavisThe1st2• 2 years ago

There is no linear relationship between national debt and inflation. There is no possible way to conclude that because of any particular change in the deficit or debt that $1 today will be worth more or less in 5 years. You don't know, and neither does anybody else.

j_m_b3• 2 years ago

I just got back from a visit with family in Cumberland. It's the epitome of rust belt. What used to be a thriving manufacturing area has become an abandoned service-sector economy with low-wage jobs. Property values are dirt cheap, even for nice houses. There isn't much nearby, you have to travel hours from Pittsburgh to even get there by plane. Tales of theft of items like power tools from relatively remote farms are common. It doesn't look quite as bad as videos I've seen of poorer parts of Appalachia, but it's pretty close. I don't know how they will be able to afford this as the tax base has all but left and Cumberland is trying to pinch every penny they can to afford their over-compensated government staff. It's a pretty sad state of affairs, this seems more like a last-ditch marketing effort.

dccoolgai• 2 years ago

When the railroad was the internet, it was really the Silicon Valley of its day. Really makes you think.

samstave5• 2 years ago

Maybe youre not familiar with Qwest Communications?

Man does SV have stories to tell that will be lost to us old BOFH ilk:

Qwest communications came about when the railroad realized they had rights to the easement lanes on either side of ALL their train tracks, that allowed them to basically do anything they wanted with that strip of land.

So Qwest Communications was born to run fiber along all the tracks and built a huge fiber infra.

There was a huge scandal with the telecom giants, and Qwest's CEO was convicted:

---

Dossier: Qwest Communications

Creation and Early Years

- Qwest Communications was formed in 1996 as a spin-off from the Southern Pacific Railroad Company. The railroad company had been granted easement rights to lay fiber-optic cables along their tracks, which Qwest leveraged to build a massive fiber-optic network.

Fiber-Optic Network Expansion

- Qwest used the easement rights to lay fiber-optic cables along the railroad tracks, expanding their network across the western United States. This strategic move allowed Qwest to:

- Reduce costs: By utilizing existing railroad easements, Qwest avoided the need to purchase or lease land for their fiber-optic cables.

- Increase efficiency: The railroad tracks provided a direct route for fiber-optic cables, reducing the need for detours and minimizing signal degradation.

Scandal and Conviction of CEO Joseph Nacchio

- In 2005, Qwest CEO Joseph Nacchio was convicted of insider trading and sentenced to six years in prison. The scandal involved Nacchio selling millions of dollars' worth of Qwest stock while aware of the company's financial struggles.

Scale of Fiber Plant

- Qwest built an extensive fiber-optic network, spanning over 190,000 miles across the United States. This massive infrastructure enabled Qwest to offer high-speed data and voice services to customers.

hosh• 2 years ago

I had been thinking about looking at history from the lens of information technology.

China is an interesting example, in that it was so well ahead of the curve until around 1700s. In the 1800s, when telegraphs were connecting the Western world together, the Qing dynasty China would not have been able to participate unless pictographs could be encoded as easily as letters (let alone the century of uprisings, rebellions, and civil war).

But look at Tang Dynasty China. The Silk Road was a part of a global trade network reaching through the Middle East, and into Africa, along with maritime routes from India.

It wasn’t just trade goods that travelled. Ideas — religious, cultural, technological, flowed along the network. But they travelled only as fast as trade goods.

I think it is when information is able to flow faster than the physical items that, we might find some insights about what is going on now.

thephyber• 2 years ago

Categorical mistake.

A rural community based on a single industry is always high risk for economic sustainability.

Silicon Valley is has cities older than the USA, was grown by the gold rush, the early movie studios, the defense industry (plus some world class universities), NASA contractors, microelectronics, etc. The most recent iteration is software startups.

Cities are always more resilient than isolated rural communities because they are inherently more diversified in both economy and workforce.

tonymet2• 2 years ago

And makes you humble.

rjsw• 2 years ago

How good is internet access there?

xeromal2• 2 years ago

With Starlink, this question is getting less important. Loads of my family in N. Georgia have started using it and it's crazy how much better it is than the local competition

tunesmith• 2 years ago

The brochure says "95% broadband", whatever that means.

reducesuffering4• 2 years ago

70% of households in the county have internet speeds >25 Mbps. Is that metric meaningful to you? What would ideally mean "good internet access?"

I'm working on a project[0] where I sourced this from the FCC Broadband data and am curious about what people are looking for in that respect.

[0] https://www.exoroad.com/us/Maryland/Allegany-County/housing

jhawk28• 2 years ago

You can get always get starlink if the fiber/cable is bad.

fasa992• 2 years ago

If you're in cumberland proper, your main option is cable, which is fine, fast and stable. since the culture is blue collar, their lineman due a perfectionist tier type guys who pride themselves in their craft. they have a guy there who does fibre and is pretty chill but ironically he only runs line rurally (not in the main urban core of cumberland). they have a startup-ish grass roots wireless based internet which is cool but kind of hard to plug into.

They also have various speakeasies fully in the classic unlicensed since but for obvious reasons I won't say where. I would call it a "deregulated" region. Whereas in most of MD you have vehicle emissions and all that redtape, none of it in cumberland.

there are methheads about but police force and community are hand in hand and highly functional

if you're in cumberland proper all you could want is walkable, including an amtrak station that links you directly to DC and chicago, walking distance

there is an aspect of xenophobia but generally if you live there a while, well, if you're willing to live in cumberland that's good enough for most people to welcome you. it does have a small town vibe as far as saying hello to everyone on the sidewalk as such

the other point people who visit may miss about appalachian culture (it is appalachian culture very much so, not maryland culture) is everyone dresses like a methhead, even people who aren't methheads, so take appearences softly.

dfc• 2 years ago

Cumberland is equidistant (~2 hours) between Pittsburgh airport and Dulles.

abduhl• 2 years ago

I think this would be equitemporal rather than equidistant? Maybe isochronic? Isochronal? One of those…

klingoff2• 2 years ago

They sound about the same, but "2 Hours to Dulles" would be the better name for the M Night Shyamalan movie.

ApolloFortyNine2• 2 years ago

2 hours from a central hub I'd actually consider a plus. If you travel for work it's bad, but for any personal trip, skipping a connection is pretty valuable. Not just in time, but generally international / longer flights are higher priority, and are less likely to be randomly delayed or canceled.

deagle502• 2 years ago

Not quite true for Dulles. You're looking at 3 hours in good traffic, and it's not a relaxing drive. BWI could be done in 2.5 hours and you don't have to deal with the two way road from Frederick to Leesburg.

martinald3• 2 years ago

Seems like its 2hrs drive from Pittsburg and IAD airports?

robotnikman• 2 years ago

Sounds like a place I wouldn't mind working if I can find a remote position again. I'm a big introvert, and I would like to move somewhere more greener (getting tired of living in the middle of a bland hot dessert)

ghaff9• 2 years ago

At some point, many people start thinking about things like access to good healthcare, various types of trades, ability to travel without it being a huge hassle, etc. Doesn't mean you need to live right around a big city but I doubt I would want every task or appointment to be a big undertaking.

deagle502• 2 years ago

Don't fall for it. I had family in Cumberland for 20 years and I know it well. It's a very dark place, most people there barely finished high school and drug abuse is really bad.

riehwvfbk• 2 years ago

And live every day as a mark for a robbery? No thanks.

scythe• 2 years ago

The area around Cumberland, mostly to the south towards Moorefield and Petersburg, WV, has a somewhat similar climate to the Tokaj region of Hungary, known for growing rare botrytized wines that sell for a fortune. I found this one day when I looked at the map of precipitation activity the US and saw an unexpected dry(ish) spot in northeastern West Virginia.

alephnerd3• 2 years ago

There's a decently sized saffron industry in that general region of the Appalachia and southern PA for the same reason.

thelastparadise• 2 years ago

Not to mention "incest" is a real word there. It is most definitely Appalachia, part of the dark underbelly.

Drive down any number of the "hollars," and you'll see an active smokehouse, yard litter, and an (often abused) wife sitting on the porch.

There are neighborhood kids endlessly circling the streets. An otherwise innocuous occurrence, however in this case the child is pushing 30 years old.

ckcheng• 2 years ago

From the linked page:

The package, offering up to $20,000 is comprised of $10,000 in relocation cash, PLUS up to $10,000, dollar for dollar match, for approved renovations on an existing home, OR for a down payment on a newly constructed home within City limits.

Not “A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD” as the submission title says currently , which sounded like a basic income.

ta988• 2 years ago

Exactly. And they are going to reassess your property because you did renovations and get more than the $20k they gave you over time. Not even talking about the local taxes if you get a job there.

nroets• 2 years ago

If that's case, I'm sure proper economic modeling will show that the $20k+administrative burden is better spent on reducing taxes for everyone in Cumberland.

AndrewHampton• 2 years ago

A similar program exists for 4 towns in West Virginia: https://ascendwv.com

khaki54• 2 years ago

It's a nice place, especially if you are outdoorsy, due to proximity to so much woodland and trail. I was very surprised with the architecture there. I've only stayed a couple nights (Trailhead for the Ragnar relay series)

TylerE4• 2 years ago

No offence, but you can’t really say that after a single visit of a few days.

For instance, healthcare in Appalachia is generally terrible, as are the crime rates.

imglorp• 2 years ago

Green Ridge state park, nearby, is wonderful camping and four wheeling.

throwaway984393• 2 years ago

It is a gorgeous area. Not a bad deal if you live in the region and are looking to buy a $120k home

samstave5• 2 years ago

WTH marketing much?

Read the fn offer:

They will give you $10,000 cash, plus another $10,000 toward a renovation to a house you buy, or to a down-payment on a house you are required to buy, with a value of >$150K that you are required to live in for 5 years.

And you have to apply, and be approved, and undergo a casual interview by the city council.

And you have to be ready to move in within 6 months of approval.

And you have to be fully remote, have a local job, or be moving to cumberland in acceptance of a job...

----

They GIVE YOU NO FN REASON WHY you would want to move there.

The municipal website is a "Parks & Rec Fisher Price" as it comes, where the first link on "Populat links" is "Pay utilities"

There are no posted bid offereings (meaning no active project cumberland is seeking RFPs on)

And community events is barren...

So, why is this on HN?

It doesnt even give a nice GPT synpsis of what the heck cumberland is even about - Here, I GPTd it for them:

https://i.imgur.com/mueJp1W.png

https://i.imgur.com/scpNTid.png

Is my math wrong or something? Did anyone actually look at the image?

---

Back when Detroit was doing super bad, and lots for huge Victorian and other nice architecture homes were going for ~$5,000 - there was a lot of chatter of a bunch of millenial-ish techies buy up a bunch of plots and start a tech-commune sort of adventure out there. (turned out the person organizing that effort was pulling a huge grift)

Maybe try to do a YC startup fund where "Hey heres free housing internet and utilities for your startup if you can prove "XYZ" -- like what about a visa program if some Hackers can come in and do a startup there and raise the economy where the city is invested in the startups? But have the program vetted by some panel of experts the city recruits

zoklet-enjoyer• 2 years ago

This could be attractive to people like my brother and his girlfriend. His job is remote and she's going to school for an art degree, mostly into ceramics and wood turning. They love the outdoors and this would be a good spot for them.

samstave5• 2 years ago

Yeah, I got down boted -- but I was making the point that CUmberland didnt even do a fn GPT splat at an attempt to market this.

Heck - any retire-age level techie person with a passsive income/ability to do things remote etc could take this up

But the 20K to live there for five years, and youre required to put 10K of that toward a house that must be >150K

Here are all the listing on Zillow for houses 150K to 200K in/around cumberland md

https://i.imgur.com/L6dx2ji.jpeg

memcg• 2 years ago

Frostburg State University, Deep Creek Lake and Wisp Resort are close. Summer temperature was 10 degrees F cooler than my house near DC the last time I spent a week at Deep Creek.

angellonunez• 2 years ago

It looks like a nice place. I know about a few similar programs in some towns in Europe. It is interesting to see something like this in some towns and cities in the US.

jeffbee• 2 years ago

Similar long-standing program in Tulsa. https://www.tulsaremote.com/

radpanda• 2 years ago

As a native Marylander I always find myself forgetting about Cumberland, which is a shame. As someone who has mostly lived in and around Baltimore, you head west to Frederick (aka Fredneck) for the small city in the middle of rural farmland. If you keep heading west you get to Hagerstown which feels way out there in farm country. And if you keep heading west you eventually move from farms to mountains and you hit Cumberland, which looks like a city that time forgot.

As other folks have commented, there’s some beautiful architecture and the old part of the city seems like it could be a bustling place. There’s a train station and easy access to the great outdoors. But the jobs have long gone and drug addiction has taken root for so many there. I don’t know the best way to revive a place like that but I hope something eventually works.

lotsofpulp• 2 years ago

I don’t know the best way to revive a place like that but I hope something eventually works.

You don’t. Times change, and what used to provide utility may no longer provide utility, and the only option is to move on.

devchix• 2 years ago

And if you travel farther west on 70, you'll eventually reach Wheeling, WVA. At one time its position on the Ohio river and near railroads made it a transportation hub, it made money in iron, textile, and logging - they used to float logs down the river. The vestige of wealth is still visible in its architecture, beautiful brick homes, ornate porches, windows and roofs. It's this glimmer into this past, not so far in the distance, that is so sad to witness. A lot of the town has fallen into disrepair, not slum exactly, but heading there. There is a central market building with some kitschy arts and crafts, and food stalls that supply tour buses. The buses come for Wheeling Island Casino, which has one of the last two remaining greyhound racetracks in the US. There's some attempt at preserving the historic buildings and downtown. People keep leaving, and the tourist attractions are more of a detour stop than a destination point. There used to be a pie stall - best pies in the US, handmade, fresh ingredients, $15, baked to order by a retired teacher. He sold the shop, his kids didn't want it, it was too much work and they made more money doing other things.

nunez• 2 years ago

I drove by Wheeling on my way to Texas from Maine. Literally looked like a city that was one great but is now dying. Very sad stuff. Apparently they are revitalizing downtown though.

stackskipton3• 2 years ago

Sure, but problem Cumberland has same problem as rest of Appalachia, it's geography isn't very good. Mountain areas make everything 10x times harder to build.

Let's say some big software company wanted to build second HQ. Even if Cumberland was attractive in workforce, education options and so forth, the architects would say "Building your HQ2 is going to be rough. There isn't enough flat land, flooding could be problematic, fiber companies are screaming about the trenching" Not to mention, where are you going to put all your workers since housing will run into same problem. So if you wanted to stay in MD, somewhere like Hagerstown or Salisbury would be a better choice since usable land is plentiful.

AlotOfReading3• 2 years ago

If there was an economy worth building for, the geography wouldn't be a blocker. Look at Seattle, Oakland, or the Hollywood hills. They're all built on rugged, mountainous terrain just as difficult as the Appalachians, but they don't suffer the same issues attracting wealth because their economic situation is so different. In fact, each of them has the opposite problem of demand to build vastly outstripping permission to build.

dullcrisp• 2 years ago

But people live there already. Couldn’t they be prosperous without a big software company building its headquarters there?

Nifty3929• 2 years ago

Sounds like a gift to current residents who want to leave: "...receive $10,000.00 (“Program Incentive”) payable at closing of a home or upon proof closing has occurred... " Meaning that it will help prop up prices for those selling.

AND/OR a gift for their local construction workers: "... receive up to $10,000, dollar for dollar match, for approved renovations ... on an existing home ... or for a down payment on a newly constructed home ..."

Almondsetat• 2 years ago

Mining towns are one of the examples of human hubris and stupidity I can't get my head around. If you build something in a shitty place just because there is a single resource you can sell, and everything else you have to import, then what do you expect will happen when said resource dries up? These places were meant for people to go temporarily, make serious money, and then go back to the city or countryside to build a life there, just like people who go to oil rigs do. Instead people brought their families and created an entire town or city in the middle of nowhere.

Now, the past is past and what's done is done. Can't we just acknowledge this basic reality and let these places die and move to better ones? Maybe thanks to the internet one day they will be repopulated by small tech companies operating from a single building with 100 computers and a fiber network, but until then why bullshit ourselves?

keiferski• 2 years ago

Cumberland was founded as a fort and a transportation hub first and only later became a mining town.

PaulDavisThe1st2• 2 years ago

Precisely correct. It is/was located next to one of the most convenient points to embark on a crossing of the Appalachians.

tetromino_• 2 years ago

Deep-sea oil rigs don't grow into towns because there is no spare land to grow on - the "land" is an insanely expensive man-made structure whose size pushes against the limits of human engineering ability. But when oil is found on dry land or even in the sea close to shore, oil industry almost always results in significant urban growth - e.g. see Baku, Los Angeles, or Dubai.

overstay8930• 2 years ago

Because people wanted to have families? Like what kind of question is this? Do you think people should put their whole life on pause for a job?

matteoraso• 2 years ago

In the olden days, these towns wouldn't pay you money, they would pay you scrip issued by the mining company[0]. This could only be used at company-operated stores, so miners were imprisoned in the towns. Moving back literally wasn't an option for the people that worked there, but if there was no other jobs around, where else could you go?

[0]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Company_scrip

jt2190• 2 years ago

I've created a Google Sheet to list these programs. Got three so far. Please feel free to add any that you know of. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ahY6cI0CJVbK9PRNIkjh...

kkfx• 2 years ago

I honestly do not get such programs, I'm from EU where equivalent programs exists in slightly different form (1€ old and abandoned homes for sale) and that's a total stupid initiative because people face MUCH bigger costs and still have no potential development in place.

Instead of proposing such gifts state a complete development programs: how do you count to augment the population enough to create room for a local bustling economy? A possible timeline and the current state of things? Tell me about local climate, hydro-geological stability, pollution and so on. You want people, convince them to be part of you project do not "buy them with candies". Convincing people to be part of a project means finding (if you succeed, of course) active people who can bring value to your community, otherwise you might collect some fool who will go soon or will remain as a burden to the community.

everforward• 2 years ago

Those things are all pretty easily Googleable for anyone interested. Honestly, I would expect most people in the US to be able to answer most of those questions with reasonable accuracy without Googling.

The candies are to offset the downsides currently preventing people from moving there. Given its Appalachia, those downsides are probably a) bad, poorly maintained infrastructure, b) lack of jobs, c) lack of proximity to anything, and d) the surrounding poverty.

A lot of Appalachia struggles because the towns were built around a profitable industry, which then died. The town still has all that infra, but now has none of the tax base to pay for it.

They’re probably fine with someone who wants to build a McMansion they never leave, as long as they pay their tax bill and buy groceries in town to support local jobs. They honestly mostly need money. Appalachia is well known for their sense of community already, but also for their poverty.

spacemadness• 2 years ago

It seems like Zillow is full of people selling houses at 2x to 3x the estimate in Cumberland hoping to sell and run to whoever takes advantage of the relocation program. I see houses assessed at $90,000 in 2023 selling for $300,000. Give me a break.

FireBeyond• 2 years ago

The next question there would be how many of them had recently bought those properties - i.e. did they have a heads up from their friends on the City Council that this was coming down the line?

streptomycin• 2 years ago

"Assessed" doesn't mean much, there are many towns (such as my current town, and many others here in NJ) where houses all sell for a similar premium over the official assessed value.

whalesalad• 2 years ago

Maryland is so bad they need to pay you 10k to move there. I used to live in Nova and crossing into Maryland was always a drag.

dgfitz2• 2 years ago

Did you know that Columbia, MD is consistently voted one of the best cities in the country in which to live and work?

TylerE4• 2 years ago

Columbia and Cumberland are about as opposite as you can get.

You might as well say “San Francisco is one of the greatest cities on earth, so you should move to Bakersfield.”

brigade• 2 years ago

Cumberland has more in common with everything west of the Shenandoah than any part of Maryland you likely drove to.

tonymet2• 2 years ago

Extrinsic monetary incentives are among the worst ways to stimulate growth. Anyone who would uproot their life for $10k is likely not the right personality to restore prosperity.

Other strategies have worked to gentrify depressed neighborhoods, like attracting bohemians or entrepreneurs with lower rents and tax relief, based on a strict qualification process.

soared• 2 years ago

Yeah many of the other similar incentives provide free land, housing/internet/etc benefits too

silisili2• 2 years ago

This is what I thought of. 10k is nothing. I'd break even or actually come out behind just on their income taxes alone.

But say, 10 acres of land, with utility access/hookups? I may really consider it. By offering free land, with requirement that you build a stick house and live in it, you can ensure whoever is moving there has funds to build a house.

QuantumGood3• 2 years ago

It's not just the 10K, it's an advertisement for low-cost homes, e.g. https://www.zillow.com/cumberland-md/?searchQueryState=%7B%2...

plaidfuji• 2 years ago

Maryland is full of places like this. Beautiful exterior, super solid construction.

But on the inside, brittle plaster walls (hard to hang anything), lead paint covered by about 1/4 inch of repeated repainting, finicky radiant heating, sparse electrical outlets usually ungrounded, 100 year old plumbing, literally zero central air or proper ventilation anywhere (= upper levels are a sauna… look for a single HVAC grate anywhere), legacy window and door hardware that can’t be replaced… the list goes on. Every improvement project risks disrupting decades of toxic building materials and carefully grandfathered code violations.

fasa992• 2 years ago

cumberland is already quite bohemian. 20k for free, and some houses can be had for that amount, is quite appealing to the home-owning bohemian. the only trick of it - said bohemian probably would need a remote job. not much locally. so the obvious play is to make it a remote paradise and focus the remainder of the economy on supporting both the essentials and the entertainment / night life of said remote worker

Aspos• 2 years ago

There is a dedicated bicycle road connecting Cumberland with the National Mall in D.C. and which promises no cars, no pedestrians. Ten hours of pedaling mostly downhill.

philipwhiuk• 2 years ago

One-way sure.

jcranmer• 2 years ago

That's the C&O canal towpath which, uh, there's definitely pedestrians there in places (I've done several hikes on portions of it). True about no cars, though.

francisofascii• 2 years ago

Work from home. Commute into a DC metro based office once a month. You could even drive to Martinsburg and take the Marc. Sounds doable.

xyst2• 2 years ago

Commute into a DC metro based office once a month

Not even once. Have you ever driven in DC metro? No thanks.

pessimizer• 2 years ago

The Marc drops you off in the DC Metro (the subway).

Which on first reading I thought you were referring to with "DC metro," and I got very confused.

solid_fuel2• 2 years ago

From Cumberland, you can take the Amtrak. It's a 3 1/2 hour ride, you can eat on the train, and there's no traffic.

$38 for a round-trip ticket.

xyst2• 2 years ago

Have to live in Cumberland, MD for 5 years though.

Borders West Virginia and a key city in the Appalachian area. Some would say this region was day 0 of the opioid epidemic. As of 2020 census, population is largely (~89%) identified as Caucasian. Diversity is lacking. Median income reported at $45K.

Don’t know much besides what’s on paper, but I highly doubt most people on HN would integrate well here.

nunobrito• 2 years ago

I've personally enjoyed that kind of offer. My work is remote, my family isn't.

Not living in the US myself, but done similar in EU.

Living outside large cities is a plus factor these days. You can afford a house, commodities tend to be cheaper or you just grow them yourself. Kids go to a local school where you know everyone else, they make strong friendships and grow healthy in nature.

varjag• 2 years ago

As anything else in life it's an individual balance. Knowing everyone can be as much a disadvantage; commodities can be cheaper but your earning potential can also be lower. The nearest airport could be several hours drive, and the only school around where all kids go sounds great until your kid gets bullied.

solid_fuel2• 2 years ago

I suspect these programs are mostly an attempt to claw back some people lost to the brain-drain that the region has been experiencing for decades. $10k over 5 years is not enough to seriously convince most people with no ties to the area to relocate there.

I have family roots in Cumberland and the nearby areas of West Virginia and MD and I still wouldn't consider moving back. But, if you still have a good relationship with family in the city and were already considering the move, this offer might look more compelling.

I believe Vermont also had a similar program for several years - offering a similar amount of money for people to move and work there in VT.

ChrisMarshallNY• 2 years ago

Average summer temperature 72.6 degrees Fahrenheit

Must be different, out there. I lived in MD for over ten years, and the average was ... slightly higher ...

It is real purdy, out there, though.

silisili2• 2 years ago

They're taking the entire mean over the summertime, which isn't a useful metric IMO. If your days are 90, and your nights 60, you mean out around 75, despite it never really being 75 during the day where you can enjoy it. The average high in July is in the high 80s, which I think matches the entire region pretty closely.

PLenz• 2 years ago

Most significant for being the home of Dr. McNinja

ApolloFortyNine2• 2 years ago

Great camping in this area, and it's a stop on the 300 some mile trail between DC and Pittsburgh (being extended to Erie, eventually).

lizknope2• 2 years ago

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumberland,_Maryland#Demograph...

Historical population

peak was

1940 39,483

2020 19,076

It is still dropping

The racial makeup of the city was 89.4% White, 6.4% African American, 0.2% Native American, 0.9% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.3% from other races, and 2.8% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino people of any race were 1.2% of the population.

I wish them luck but I don't want to live there.

kragen• 2 years ago

one-time payment, not a yearly stipend forever

KennyBlanken4• 2 years ago

You could not pay me to live in a city whose staff write the phrase "before the time of Christ" in the "about us" for the city's website.

brucelidl• 2 years ago

Wow, this is fascinating, my family is originally from Cumberland (actually Frostburg, but...). My mom was born and raised there, but left as soon as she could. Everybody did, and I don't think anyone from my family has been back there since my grandmother died decades ago.

It's really the eastern edge of Appalachia, but also very much a rust belt relic that depended on industries that are long, long gone (at least from that region). I think Kelly tires had a plant there when my mom was younger.

I've always wanted to go back and see it, just to compare it with my memories. It was in pretty steep decline already in the 70s and 80s, as even a kid could tell. I remember reading that they built a number of prisons nearby, also some across the border in Pennsylvania, but clearly that has not done enough to revitalize things.

bcx• 2 years ago

Cumberland also happens to be where the Chesapeake and Ohio canal tow path terminates, and is a really nice 168 mile mostly off road dirt bike ride all the way to Washington DC. It has been extended all the way to Pittsburgh. So if you were into biking, Cumberland could be kind of a cool place to hang out.

calmbonsai• 2 years ago

In the post WW2 era, have any of these direct stipend programs been successful?

A $10k stipend is available for anyone moving to Cumberland, MD

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