Page 41 - Garrett County 2022/2023 Visitors Guide

Quality of Life
WELCOME HOME!
Living through a pandemic has redefined a lot of things about our lives, but more than anything, it’s transformed our concept of “home.”
The ideal home is a place of refuge, where you’re happy to spend time when the outside world is in turmoil. The ideal home can function,
too, as an office, a school, a college classroom. It can be a place to be together as a family, but has enough room — indoors or out — for an occasional bit of distance.
More and more people are finding that ideal home in Garrett County, judging by the unprecedented boom in housing sales over the past year. (More about which on page 50.) And it’s no wonder: Garrett County offers stunning natural beauty and tranquility, but just enough connection that it’s easy to work and learn here as well. With attractive business incentives, highly regarded schools and top-quality health care, it’s truly the perfect balance of leaving the stress of the world behind, while keeping the most important parts.
We’ve compiled this “Quality of Life” section to give you an overview of what to expect. It’ll tell you everything you need to know about Garrett County as a place to live and work. To get you started, consider this short summary of some of our major assets:
• An average commuting time of just 23 minutes.
• A cost-of-living index below the national average.
• A local personal income-tax rate that’s among the lowest in the state.
• Public schools with high test scores, small class sizes, and robust STEM and technical education programs.
• Two well-regarded medical centers.
• Free two-year post-secondary education through the county’s
scholarship to Garrett College.
Garrett County is also a major tourism destination, with 20 percent of the county’s more than 420,000 acres set aside as state park, forest and wildlife-management land, so when you need that bit of distance from others, you’ll never lack for trails to follow.
At the same time, Garrett County’s convenient location ensures you’re only a few hours’ drive from Baltimore, Washington, DC and Pittsburgh.
Our wild, abundant natural beauty and friendly communities make Garrett County the perfect place to get away without feeling isolated. Grow your business and raise your family here — you won’t be disappointed.
For more information, go to visitdeepcreek.com.
Statistics sourced from commerce.maryland.gov/about/rankings-and- statistics/data-explorer.
PHOTO BY TIMOTHY JACOBSEN
www.visitdeepcreek.com 39