A recent national survey has ranked Elkin as one of the 50 Best Small Town Downtowns in America. According to Best Choice Reviews, Elkin ranks 4oth based on United States Census, previous rankings and median incomes and home price.
The website, bestchoicereviews.org, describes Elkin as “a place where you can find just about any outdoor sport you enjoy, including hiking, kayaking, canoeing, fishing, bird watching, and cycling. Aside from the outdoor appeal, the town also boasts art galleries, many historic buildings and sites, boutiques and shops, theaters, wine trails and fine dining. The town has so much to offer despite its small size.”
While this isn’t the first award of its kind Elkin has won, the town was the only one in North Carolina to be named on the list. “The Economic Development team here at Town Hall are very pleased to see the recognition Elkin has been awarded through the Best Choice awards listing,” said Economic Development Director Leslie Schlender. “The vibrancy of Elkin is growing daily, in many aspects, and that can be attributed to the work of many. It is always a team effort.”
Schlender considers the community to be the driving force that makes Elkin a noteworthy town. “Thriving towns have to be made up of a community that is willing to get involved, be it in our schools, our parks, through an investment and maintenance in their properties, and through investment in their businesses,” Schlender said. “Every bit counts towards the betterment of Elkin overall.”
The ranking system is based in part on a Huffington Post Travel ranking of 15 of America’s Coolest Small Towns, in which Elkin was also named. Other guidelines for the best small town downtowns award include Best Choice Review’s definition of a small town as “a city or town with full time residency of 15,000 or fewer citizens.”
The website states that the data used as a tool for measurement was comprised from the 2013 United States Census. According to the census, Elkin has a population of 4,024, a median income of $37,429, median age of residents of 40.7 years and a median house price of $171,608.
Best Choice Reviews states that “the goal of this ranking list is to find the best small town downtown areas for both residents as well as visitors to the area.” To make the list, Elkin passed the standard of the review which compared “the general appeal to the downtown area, including such things as general appearance, festivals or special events, dining, shopping, entertainment, arts and culture, parks, proximity to airports and hotels amenities available.”
Information that was gathered but not used to determine the town ranking include age and income. “While no preference was awarded to towns with higher or lower median age of residents, it is good information for potential visitors or residents,” as stated on the website.
“We are honored to be recognized in the top 40, and with all of those involved with downtown and beyond, I am excited for even more positive changes in the future,” said Main Street and Community Manager Laura Gaylord.
As Elkin continues to emerge as a town that draws tourism, the economic development team strives to find new ways to put the small town on the map. “A project I undertook early last year was commissioning the creation of an Elkin video through J Martin Productions, highlighting the quality of life we offer here,” said Schlender. “The feedback we have had on it seems to be that we hit that mark. Living in Elkin offers a lot of quality of life options, and when you look at a list like Best Choices, and you notice other town’s median house prices, Elkin still offers quite an affordable quality of life as well.”
The Elkin, North Carolina “Home” video by J. Martin Productions, Inc. can be found by completing a search on Youtube.com.
Karen Holbrook may be reached at 336-258-4059 or on Twitter @KarenHolbrook00.
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