As the calendar turns to 2033, and Jefferson County celebrates the coveted “Most Livable Community in America” award, it’s hard to imagine 2007, when residents wondered if the county was destined to become Washington, D.C.’s poor suburb.

Back in 2007, the schools were a huge concern, with many parents opting for private school. That was before we enacted locality pay raising teachers’ pay to compete with Virginia and Maryland. Not only did this allow our native-born teachers stay home to teach instead of going to Loudoun and Montgomery counties, it boosted morale for existing teachers and changed the entire education dynamic.

And back then, we had trouble attracting employers to the county. We had little in the way of infrastructure for business and an arcane system of rules on permits. Can you believe that back then, to replace a single light switch in your house an electrician had to pull an expensive permit and pay an electrical inspector to approve the work? That’s just one example. Then there was a complicated and expensive workers compensation insurance system—one of the most expensive in the nation. It was a major breakthrough when the county flexed its muscle and got changes from Charleston.

And we had this defeatist mindset that the only way to bring jobs to the county was to bring more federal installations. After Senator Byrd’s effort to move the nation’s capital to Charles Town failed, we knew we had to try a new strategy.

So we started with baby steps. We moved the Welcome Center in Bolivar out of a trailer and into a real building.

And county historians now point to crucial decisions that turned things around. The county commission adopted four important goals:

• to have the finest school system in the Mid Atlantic region. Nothing attracts businesses like great schools. Business execs dislike paying for private school just as much as the next gal. Once the county committed to great schools, it began to do the things it takes to create and support them.
  
  
• to have more parkland per capita than any county in America. The most prosperous counties in America are those that make getting outside as easy as going outside. Back in 2007, we were afraid that growth would take away places to hunt and hike.
  
  
• to have a taxation scheme that enables farming. The county enacted an innovative idea that allowed farmers to earn income from a variety of businesses on their farms—and still be taxed as agriculture. It saved more farmland than large lot zoning.
  
  
• and to become the Washington–Baltimore region’s leading producer of fresh food. Back then farming was in trouble; now we’re feeding the region. Recognizing that there are several million consumers living an hour away, and an explosion of interest in local food, the county invested in agriculture infrastructure. Attracting food processing companies to our taxpayer-financed industrial parks helped, too.

It all came together when Apple Computer signed a partnership with Shepherd University, American Public University, and Blue Ridge Tech to create a supply-chain management system linking Jefferson’s market farmers with customers and businesses.

Now Jefferson County has the enviable distinction of being a leader in technology and agriculture. It’s no wonder West Virginia’s last two governors have come from Jefferson County—including the current one, and she wasn’t even old enough to serve until the day before she took office.

It took a lot of leadership over 25 years for Jefferson County to earn the title “best place to live in America 2033.” Now when people ask, “What’s in the water there?” they are not wondering about Potomac River sediment in the water supply. They are marveling at the magic, about how many kids from Jefferson County are prominent American businesspeople, politicians, artists, and thinkers of 2033.