Beacon’s Bittersweet Boom: The Town’s Tourism and Influx of Newcomers

Rampant tourism has flourished in Beacon, N.Y. with many of them buying property and housing in the town. The influx of this has locals in a mental tug-of-war of their feelings towards this change.

Nicknamed the “Beacon Boom,” by locals, the tourism the town has been experiencing for the past five years and more have boasted the local economy along with the housing market.

The town even got voted the number one coolest small town in America by Budget Travel.

“Beacon just has so much to offer for everybody,” said Brenda Sarcone, 52 who’s a Beacon native.

Sarcone was born and raised in Beacon, getting to watch its evolution since she can remember. She’s been working in real estate since 2002 and has seen Beacon go from the frowned upon town to what it has become today.

When viewing the increase of new locals and tourists as a local herself, she isn’t completely opposed to the heavier foot traffic. In her eyes, the town has been blooming remarkably due to this and wants to live in a town that’s thriving.

This said thriving comes with a cost for town natives and anyone looking to move to the town in the next few months.

With the housing market, Sarcone revealed that since the beginning of this year a house in Beacon can cost somewhere around $617,000. Meanwhile, 20 years ago the cost would’ve been around $150,000-$200,000.

For renting, the median gross rent price in 2021 was $1,384. Sarcone said rent can cost about $2,000 today.

Beacon’s price tag is becoming more out of reach for many newcomers and locals who’ve been established there for generations. As of March 2022, the cost of living index for the town was at 136.4 while the average across the U.S. is at 100.

Reuben Simmons, 40 and creator of the nonprofit “I Am Beacon,” even got affected by the housing market when trying to move back to his hometown after living in New York City for some time.

Simmons noted how the Dia, the Beacon art museum, started this wave of city people arriving to invest their time and money in the town. Though, it has yet to slow down.

“We need to put a cap on it,” said Sarcone about how the growth in Beacon is now overgrowing with out-of-towners.

While both Sarcone and Simmons appreciate the tourism and what it has done for the town, as natives, they have bones to pick with the headaches it brings. The parking for Main Street, parking for Mount Beacon, and driving down Main Street all have become a nuisance for those who live in the town.

But as Sarcone points out, the good can outweigh the bad.

There’s no denying how this tourism and buyers have been helping the local economy for years along with putting Beacon on the map again for visitors in state and out of state.

“Being able to see the town where it went from to where it is now is amazing,” said Simmons.

He’s pleased that he doesn’t live in the same town that had half of Main Street boarded up from the days of his childhood. Sarcone doesn’t want Beacon going back to the days where it was generally unsafe for children and teens like in her high school years.

Them and many other locals are content with how the town turned around after many stagnant years.

“Nothing is supposed to stay the same forever,” said Sarcone.