Speeding Down a Crooked Road

Change is afoot in the little burg of Floyd, VA. Developments are adding up to a critical mass that, I believe, will significantly alter Floyd's essential nature, not to mention its appearance. What follows is not so much a dire prediction, but cautionary tale. Apologies up front to anyone who feels singled out or misrepresented. Comments on these thoughts are most welcome.

I believe the essential character, the soul; of Floyd is its organic character. Things have always seemed to happen naturally in Floyd; without speculation, business plans, focus groups, outside investment, grants or management. The people and the businesses sometimes appear a little rough around the edges, but that is, in large part, why we find them so interesting and endearing.

Folks gather to play music, other folks ask if they can listen, and the Floyd County Jamboree is born. Farmers and hobby gardeners start selling their excess to friends and neighbors and suddenly farm stands appear. Potters, painters and candlestick makers hang out shingles and gather to sell their wares and 16 Hands and the Jacksonville Center are created. Folks interested in antiques, rocks and gems, books, funky arts and crafts, or organic produce, rent inexpensive, slightly weathered storefronts and retail businesses open. Doctors, lawyers, mortgage brokers, insurance agents and dentists offer their services right in town. Musicians move to the county and find that playing for dinner and whatever they can beg from the audience doesn't pay the bills, open a music store and give guitar lessons. Commerce is a motivator, but more often it seems that folks in Floyd do what they love and somehow manage to scrape out a livelihood serving their community in rural America.

The word has spread that Floyd is a community that possesses a special magic. Natives and alternatives, farmers and freaks, folks in ties and folks in tie dye--all getting along and surviving, some even thriving. Some, like me, come to visit and stay. Some (perhaps also like me), we wish would just go away. It's a beautiful thing and it seems to "just happen." There is a magic here. Maybe it's in the clear water or the fresh air, but more likely it's a vibe that comes from the synergy created by the diverse population Floyd has historically attracted.

Recently there's been a movement to capitalize on Floyd's magic. Many businesses are focused on tourism rather than serving the needs of their friends and neighbors. I am as glad as anyone about the availability of fancy coffee drinks, focaccia sandwiches and gourmet tofu burritos. I'd love to watch a parking lot pickin' session without getting run over. I even benefit from the dramatic increase in real estate values. But somehow I feel the magic dissipating.

Facade development and town green planning is underway. Floyd is getting a face lift--cleaned up and sanitized for the bus loads of tourists that will come. The funky little burg of Floyd appears to be on the brink of taking on the look of Disneyland's "Main Street USA." Maybe this is part of a small town's natural development, the price of progress, "rural renewal." But it strikes me as contrived. Managed growth, not natural development. When those who possess and bring the magic can't afford to live here, will Floyd still be magical? Can the needs of the local population be served while the tourists get their "Appalachian experience" and a side of "everywhere USA" comforts? Can the magic really be packaged, managed, preserved and marketed without changing the very qualities that make it so special?Change is inevitable. Those with influence and capital (or at least access to influence and capital), will largely determine Floyd's direction. I just hope we all recognize it when they're done.

Special Thanks to Johnathan Kingston, kingstonimages.com, for the first two photos!