Aloha.....

I have an final interview @ Wallops Island which is on the Eastern Shore of VA in 2weeks.

Just trying to gather some info about the area as I haven't been there in years......

Housing.....stuff to do.....crime rate....etc.....

Thanks

-Wow. What kind of job? With NASA? I've driven through the area but don't recall the town and obviously wasn't in the NASA facility.
-Sites like www.citystats.com would not seem to be of much use for such a small town.
-Have you asked your prospective employer for help on finding this info? If they won't or can't help, I'd be gun-shy about the job. But I'm sure they give such references all the time.
-Not sure if WI is an incorporated city, but if not, the county (Accomack) should have info on crime stats and things to do, plus housing costs (I've used such sources when house-hunting). Realtors and property management firms also have such info. If you tell the county, and any realtor, you are considering a job in the area and would like to find more info, I'm sure they'll help. Andl there are sites such as www.trulia.com. Of course, you can also do searches on things to do for the entire Eastern Shore. Looks ike WI is very, very near Assateague and Chincoteague, and there is a ton of info available online on what to do there.

Cheers - Good Luck for the Interview!

It has to be for the NASA or a contractor working for NASA - I believe that's all that's on Wallops and sadly enough, the only reason someone would be posting this on FT while looking for a job there!

My uncle has a house on the Chesapeake Bay side of Virginia so I go out there quite often, but haven't stayed much in and around Wallops - just the occasional jaunts to Chincoteague.

Housing should span the gap, as you'd expect in the area, from Beachfront on Oceanside to Waterfront on the Bayside and anything inland. Obviously the waterfront properties are not the cheapest, but anything inland is actually very reasonable. As far as I know and have seen, the crime is nothing to really worry about, although depending on how inland (like right off 13 itself), you might want to ask people about it.

There is decent amount of things to do, although it's where I go to get away from the city (Washington), so it's my relaxing weekend when I'm down there and doing a 'full day of activities' there is still relaxing! You've got Chincoteague, some wineries at Bloxom, Church Creek, Shopping in Salisbury, Sailing/Boating/Crabbing on the Bay or Ocean, taking day trips to Tangier or Smith Island and the obvious trip down to Norfolk/Virginia Beach across the Bay Bridge/Tunnel.

Enjoy it - good luck, I'll try to fill in with any other knowledge I might have. And just for completeness sake - my uncle's place is in/near Onancock, Virginia, about an hour south of Wallops.

-jeremy

Good luck on your interview!

I think what kmfdm91 said pretty well sums it up as far as the area.

The Eastern Shore can be quite gorgeous. If you move down there, you'll want to experience the annual pony swim, at least once.

http://www.chincoteague.com/ponies.html
http://www.chincoteague.com/pony_swim_guide.html

My sense is that stranger violent crime is almost non-existent. There is an occasional burglary.

that is the southern eastern shore. that is farm land, and boats, fishermen, and a few vacation homes. there are no people down there. some 50 miles north are the MD beaches and activity. 50 miles south is VA beach.

the county has 30K people, and has a very low per capata income. there is a lot of farm land, as the growing season for vegetables is good.

i do not know your habits, but this place is about as far as you can fall off of earth from DC in a 3 hr drive.

Most of the people there are super nice, and a VERY welcoming feeling to get away there for the weekend from the centre of Washington.

The soil is sandy, but the vegetables, fruits and produce are very nice there...just check out some of the roadside stands on the way back to Washington!

-jeremy

article in today's washington post. wallops island is going to take the place of cape canaveral. become a big tourist site. sandy soil and all.

i woek up there on occasion and a LOT of the NASA folks I work with make the drive in daily from Salisbury Maryland, about 45 min each way. I would prefer to live out on Chincoteague, but I like the quiet. It gets busy in the summer with tourists (mostly from the north) especially in when the ponies are swimming over from assateague.