Business View Civil and Municipal l December 2022

homes platted and ready for construction. With housing costs being 30% less than Bloomington or Indianapolis, Martinsville is an attractive option for those who work in those cities. “There are some real advantages to living here besides the tax advantages we have as a small town. We are a bedroom community, we don’t like to call it that, but that’s in reality what it kind of becomes,” acknowledges Oakes. Although much of the city is equipped with fiber, Martinsville is working to bring it to 100% of the community, adding to the attractiveness for those who wish to live in the city and work from home. “We have the people that want to live here, and that’s what’s a little different than what it used to be,” he conveys. “You used to find a job and live there, now you find a place that you want to live, and then you commute to a job. We are less than 20 minutes from both of those potential employers, and we think we’re in a very enviable position at that point.”