By Melissa Hicks
In Happy Valley, the sound of progress isn’t just the hum of construction cranes or the cheers from Beaver Stadium. It’s the quiet conversations on porches, the laughter echoing from local festivals, and the footsteps of newcomers exploring a place they hope to call home.
Yes, as Greg keeps pointing out, this region is booming. We’re one of the hottest emerging housing markets in the country. A top destination for entrepreneurs. A magnet for retirees, remote workers, and returning alumni. But behind every headline and economic indicator is something more powerful and more human: community.
It’s tempting to quantify success in numbers. But what makes Happy Valley so special is how it feels to live here. It’s a rare mix of big-city amenities and small-town ambience. Strangers quickly become neighbors, visitors strive to enjoy the area like locals. Magic happens when those visitors find their new homes here and invest not just in property, but in the fabric of the community. They volunteer, support local nonprofits and small businesses, and look for ways to keep improving on a good thing.
At a recent gathering of community enthusiasts, a recurring theme surfaced: people arrive in Happy Valley with great potential to make meaningful contributions to the community but are often unsure where to begin. Our goal is to create a place that does more than welcome them—it invites them in. That invitation is our superpower. It’s what turns a football weekend into a lifelong connection. It’s what transforms a startup idea into a thriving business. It’s what makes a retiree choose to stay, a student choose to return (or never leave), and a family choose to plant roots.
Without community, there is no industry.
Tourism doesn’t thrive without culture. Real estate doesn’t boom without belonging. Innovation doesn’t flourish without collaboration. None of it is sustainable without a shared sense of place.
Happy Valley has all the right ingredients: a top-tier university, a vibrant arts scene, natural beauty, and a growing economy. Recreation thrives here, from hiking and biking to paddling, skiing, and wandering local trails and state parks. There’s something for everyone. But it’s the people who live here year-round—not just during football season—who truly bring it all together, showing up, speaking up, and reaching out.
As we look to the future, the question isn’t just how we grow, but how we grow together.
So, here’s an invitation: What welcomed you to Happy Valley? Who made you feel at home, or how do you do the same for newcomers? Share your story, big or small, because in the end, the real engine of Happy Valley isn’t just what we build. It’s who we build it with.
Melissa Hicks is a lifelong learner, design thinker, and digital connector who blends curiosity, creativity, and community—often with a basset hound by her side and a cape in her closet.
