Farewell, Fair Commonwealth

I never thought I'd leave Virginia. Here's why we did. And what I'll miss.

“Don’t you want to move back to Cleveland someday?” It’s a question that has been posed to me countless times, either by Clevelanders or people who know how much I love Cleveland.

My answer was always the same: No, I’m fine here. The jobs for me are here. Virginia is the best managed state I’ve ever lived in. The latter part remains true, but the former isn’t. I am no longer compelled (for work) or feel the burning desire to remain here. So when my wife asked me if I’d consider moving, I said yes.

My theory is that you should suck the life out of where you live, and not allow it to suck the life out of you. If you can.

What brought me to Washington (not Mt. Warshington).

Work wise, I come from the world of politics. I came out here for a job in Congress, where I worked for five years, in the Senate and later, the House. Before that, I worked on the Bush campaign, and really had no desire to be again be a campaign guy: It’s like being a roadie for a one person act. Fun if you’re young, but I liked the world of legislating and policy better.

Everyone has an expiration date on the hill, it’s rare to be a “lifer.” The costly living expenses (suits? boo!) and low pay eventually outweigh the grandeur of the majestic Capitol complex. My departure was earlier than I had perhaps hoped, but it ultimately led to me getting a dream job at The Weekly Standard, a magazine I subscribed to in the late 1990s in high school.

That magazine met an untimely demise in 2018, but enabled my colleagues and I to create our own publication, which gives me the flexibility to live wherever I want.

The dumpster fire that is the Republican party and its takeover by Trump makes leaving a bit easier, too. Given my work experience, most of “the jobs” are here, but I’ve known for quite some time that my desire to continue to work in Professional Washington has plummeted to zero.

This presupposes a single strike on Washington. In actuality, a single strike unless done by a rogue state, is unlikely.

It’s always been comforting to know that, in the event of a nuclear holocaust, death would be immediate. As our family grew, however, we made the choice a lot of people do when given a tradeoff of space vs. a commute.

We chose the commute and went south. About as far outside of Washington before people stop considering it the greater Washington area: Prince William County, home to Manassas and Woodbridge.

The rural aspect of the county is slowly disappearing, as the region is the world capital of data centers. There’s not much in the way of old charm, which Alexandria has, since it’s so new. But houses are affordable¹

Traffic.

As any parent knows, the dreaded call from school about a sick child requires some flexibility. And while the Virginia Railway Express, slug lines, and Omniride Commuter Buses offer great, affordable ways to head into Washington, D.C., they’re not as great if you need to hightail it to school to pick up your kid(s).

Which means another tradeoff: traffic (time) or tolls (money). When we were looking at places in Ohio and Northern Kentucky, a friend and former colleague warned about the traffic near the Florence Mall.

I laughed. Yes, traffic did factor in to where we’d live relative to the family in Ohio we’re moving, in part, to be close to, but Florence, y’all², doesn’t have traffic like this:

The Beltway, as seen from a WMATA Yellow Line Train.

According to TomTom, Washington’s worldwide traffic ranking is 55. It’s number 5 in North America. Cincinnati isn’t even on the first page of the list. You have to filter to look for it. In North America, Cincinnati is 67th, and in the world, 361. Alas, traffic won’t be a big concern for us, though it could be worse and it wouldn’t matter as much: no commute.

Virginia also leads the nation in tolls, and they’re only going up. The amount of money we spend on tolls is not insignificant. Let’s just say while it’s not a second mortgage, it’s not far from it.

We could eschew tolls, but you can put a price on being there for each other, and it’s been one we’ve been able, though not happy, to pay.

Let’s talk taxes.

I haven’t done more than back of the napkin math, but the tax burden on a monetary basis is roughly the same. Though, Virginia’s tax system is less onerous and easier to comply with. Ohioans, at least many of them, are familiar with the dreaded RITA. The city of Cincinnati is not part of RITA, but allow me to lay the scene for you.

Ohio has city income taxes, and if you live in one and work in another, at a certain level you pay both. This is not a concern for us, though some day it might. There are also county income taxes. Virginia has one single return that includes your county rates. There is no dreaded RITA, nor duplicative taxes for living vs. working.

Meaning: Ohio’s taxes are more cumbersome, and thus worse, from a compliance point of view. RITA sent me a letter when I was in college telling me they were concerned I was not paying my taxes anymore, a year after I had become a Missouri resident.

Cost of Living.

The cost of living is where the move reaps some pretty sweet benefits.

Overall, the cost of living is 13 percent lower. The housing cost difference is 34% lower, though Cincinnati was the second-hottest housing market earlier this year according to Zillow. And it all depends on what you’re looking for and where, so a blanket housing differential doesn’t necessarily mean all that much.

Food costs are 9% lower, though having White Castle, Skyline/Gold Star, Frisch’s might wipe that out. Just kidding. Not really. I might have to buy some new clothes.

I do not like the constant rebranding of Ohio when new Governors take over. Virginia is For Lovers, and they’ve kept it.

What I’ll miss.

This could be its own post, really. There is a lot to miss. Nearly half my life has been spent here. I fell in love here, got married, got a dog, children, another dog. Had some good jobs, some bad jobs, and a great job, which I’m lucky to currently have.

One of my two sisters is here, as well as one of my two my brothers in law. So many friends and present and former colleagues. A lot of great neighbors, and a few memorable not-so-great ones.

The places I’ve worked, the restaurants, golf courses.

It’s one thing to move when you’re 18. Another when you graduate from college. Maybe it’s a mid life crisis! Or maybe I just want the fam to be closer to the camps. Again, kidding, but maybe not.

I loved being in an office. We had just started The Bulwark, and we moved south a year before the pandemic hit. Four years later, the publication is doing well, but we don’t really have an office culture. No internship program or really junior people to manage. I don’t know if I’ll ever have a desk job again.

It’s going to be a big adjustment. But it’ll be an adventure, and while it is definitely bittersweet in many respects, some addressed briefly here, I think it will be a fun one.

1. According to RedFin: “The median sale price of a home in Prince William County was $570K last month, up 3.6% since last year.”

2. I am not a y’all person. Never will be. But I know about Florence Y’All because I worked for Thomas Massie’s predecessor.