Money magazine gushed about Eldersburg this week, calling it one of the nation?s top 100 places to live.
“I was surprised because a lot of people don?t know where Eldersburg is,” said Nicole Musgrave-Burdette, president of the Freedom Area Citizens? Council, which represents the unincorporated community of 31,800 in southeastern Carroll County.
The magazine said it focused on towns with populations between 7,500 and 50,000 and picked those that “offered the best combination of economic opportunity, good schools, safe streets, things to do and a real sense of community.”
The magazine ranked Eldersburg 56th of 100 cities. (Click here to view entire list of Money magazine’s best places to live.)
“It?s still a small, quiet town, its lush hills dotted with old churches and houses, and the sprawling Liberty Reservoir east of town offers hiking trails and gorgeous scenery,” the magazine said.
“On the downside, though, high home prices make it a little exclusive, and the long commute to Baltimore means more jobs are far away.”
The magazine touted Eldersburg?s recent growth and the addition of Home Depot, Wal-Mart and Kohl?s ? praise that Musgrave-Burdette questioned.
“They said it was a good thing that we have these big-box stores, but we?re trying to not look like Anywhere, U.S.A.,” she said.
To keep that from happening, developer Dixon Harvey plans to build the mid-Atlantic region?s first shopping center certified as environmentally green. Harvey also wants to transform the 1980s-era mall, Carrolltown Center, into an open-air “lifestyle center” that mimics traditional downtowns.
The commissioners say …
» Julia Gouge: “We?ve always known Eldersburg is a great place to live. Now the rest of America is in on our secret.”
» Dean Minnich: “Our work improving the economics of this county is paying off. In every category that looked at tax rates, Eldersburg was below the average.
