Oklahoma City Flourishes Despite Recession
Grape Ranch - Okemah, Oklahoma/Photo courtesy Oklahoma Department of Tourism
And when you're ready to leave it behind you You'll look back, and all that you'll see Is the wreckage and rust that you left in the dust On your way to the jubilee
--From Mary Chapin Carpenter’s Jubilee
The road to harvest is long, and often the journey comes with its fair share of dry bones. But, today, Oklahoma City seems especially ripe for the picking. During the last six months of The Great Recession the Sooner State’s capital city has been named to a dizzying number of lists of top cities for affordable housing, economic potential and business, just to name a few.
No longer are Steinbeck’s Okies disenfranchised like wrath on a wicked vine. The 1939 novel contributed to an impermeable cloud of dust that surrounded the state’s image for decades, but a lot can change in 70 years, if not practically everything.
And I can tell by the way you're searching For something you can't even name That you haven't been able to come to the table Simply glad that you came...
In fact, according to an article published in a June issue of The Sacramento Bee, Californians are now flocking to Oklahoma City. The irony is undeniable, underscored by an outcome contrary to expectations: one of the state’s newest industries is winemaking. If it weren’t true, it would be a biting mockery. But, it is true, and as such, the poetry is a perfect table. When Oklahoma City takes its long-awaited seat, the vintage it reaches for is its own.
Greenfield Vineyard and Winery/Photo courtesy Oklahoma Department of Tourism
The Commerce Department reported earlier this year that per capita income in Oklahoma grew by 6.9 percent in 2008, beating out all 49 other states. Moreover, according to a report earlier this month from OKC Biz, Oklahoma City’s unemployment rate for September was 6.1 percent. The national average last month was 9.8 percent.
In addition, Oklahoma ranks fourth among all 50 states for cost of living according to a CNBC report America’s Top States for Business 2008, and according to a report on the annual citizens' survey from The Journal Record, nearly 80 percent of Oklahoma City residents are pleased with quality of life.
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