Good morning. I wanted to share the following article with you from the Times Telegram:

Times Telegram: More people ages 20-34 staying in, or returning to, region

There’s something different about Utica from when MeriEsther Luce lived here 12 years ago.

When love brought her from big-city life in Seattle back to Utica – a place she swore she’d never live again – in 2012, she saw a change.

“I noticed there’s a lot more culture, a lot more diversity,” Luce said. “There were a lot of younger people from late 20s to early 30s that were moving back. … They were bringing cool businesses and trying to make it more alive and versatile.”

Luce, 35, is just one of the rising number of young adults living in Oneida County in recent years.

The number of people ages 20 to 34 is increasing nationwide as baby boomers’ children are reaching adulthood, but there also is a growing number of this group moving into Oneida County, said Dale Miller of the Oneida County Planning Department.

Countywide, the number of people in that age range increased from an estimated 42,132 in 2010 to 44,047 in 2014, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics.

During that time, 19,959 people in that age range moved out of the county.

But 26,230 – more than 6,000 more – moved in, according to statistics from the American Community Survey.

As this number continues to rise, some believe a higher quality of life and increase in opportunity is the reason behind it.

And with more than 1,500 new jobs expected in Marcy from GE and the Austrian chip fabrication company AMS in the near future, the trend is expected to continue.

Left and came back

After a two-year stint in Boston, Allison Peters was ready to return home.

Peters, a physician assistant who grew up in Utica, moved to Boston after earning her bachelor’s degree from Siena College and her master’s from SUNY Upstate. She relocated back to Utica on Wednesday.

Before attending grad school, Peters worked at St. Elizabeth Medical Center, where she’ll now be working again as a physician assistant.

“I wanted to kind of give back to the community that raised me, so I’m looking forward to actually fulfilling what I (wanted when) I put in my PA school applications,” Peters said.

Compared to when she left two years ago, she described the area – especially Utica – as “up and coming,” with more options for restaurants and nightlife.

Dave Mathis, director of Oneida County Workforce Development, agrees.

“I think when you drive in downtown Rome, downtown Utica, you just feel that there’s something going on here,” he said. “That means that once you bring in a few, then others will follow, and I think that’s the case right now.”

At Workforce Development, Mathis said they hire recent college graduates to help them get the experience they need to move up in the work force.

There also are many entry-level positions available at places such as Turning Stone Resort Casino and new restaurants and hotels in the area, he said, such as Ocean Blue restaurant atop the Landmarc Building and Fairfield Inn and Suites, both in Utica.

And with an aging workforce retiring earlier than in the past, he said upper-level positions are becoming more available.

“I think we’re sending real positive signals to many of these young people that this isn’t what I call the place you come to retire, this is the place you come to live,” Mathis said.

With a low cost of living, good school systems and attractions such as the Utica Comets hockey team, he said “it’s a good place to be right now if you’re preparing yourself for employment in this area.”

“I think it’s hope and opportunity coming together,” Mathis said.

Stayed here

Shaun Kaleta always believed in the opportunities that others are beginning to realize in the area.

“When I was growing up I always had a hunch that I was going to stay here,” he said. “Obviously, it depends on the kinds of opportunities that present themselves, but since a young age I was always very attached to this area. … I’ve always called it my home.”

Kaleta, 26, is a lifelong resident of Oriskany. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Utica College where he majored in government and politics, and during his junior year he was elected an Oriskany trustee.

“If it wasn’t for me staying local, if it wasn’t for me getting that local education here, I don’t think I’d be where I am today,” Kaleta said.

He now is town supervisor in Whitestown and works as a public relations assistant at Oneida-Herkimer-Madison BOCES.

With updates such as the remodeling of the Utica Auditorium, the renewal of Bagg’s Square and the expected influx of nano jobs and workers, Kaleta believes the Mohawk Valley is on the verge of revival.

“I think when it comes to this region, people my age are tired of hearing the negativity,” he said. “We’re tired of hearing that Utica is this or Utica isn’t this. We want to make things better; we are making things better.”

In the future …

County Executive Anthony Picente believes there’s a message being sent to young adults considering moving to this region: Opportunity awaits them.

“It’s really about attraction around three basic things: income, housing and quality of life,” he said. “We’re starting to come around will all three of those for young people like other communities have. It’s taken us a little longer, but we’re clearly on the path of that and, hopefully, in the next five to 10 years we’ll really see that number go up.”

Picente, like others, believes the nanotech boom will have a domino effect that will increase housing, restaurants and other businesses in the region that already have been on the upswing since August’s nano announcement.

Local educational institutions such as Utica College, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, Mohawk Valley Community College and Hamilton College also play a role in attracting and retaining the county’s young adults, he said.

They give students education and training needed to enter the growing technology sector after graduation, at places such as the nanocenter and Rome lab.

“It’s almost like starting fresh with different industries and different opportunities,” Picente said.

But not everybody is completely optimistic. Luce still is considering a move back to the city life to which she had grown accustomed.

Some of the downsides about this area include having to drive to most places, and she would like to see more work opportunities in creative industries, she said.

But that doesn’t mean there aren’t good things happening here.

“I see the hope in the eyes of Utica. And I think that’s kind of what makes it great,” Luce said. “It’s a place where there’s a lot of opportunity to bring stuff to because it’s not here right now.”

And while she enjoyed everything that cities such as Seattle, Portland, Oregon, and Santa Barbara, California, had to offer, she said those places were already “cool” when she moved there.

“I’ve never been part of a city where you can actually watch (the city) get to that place,” she said. “It’s kind of cool. This could be a really neat thing to be a part of.”

Follow @OD_Landcastle on Twitter or call her at 792-5015.