Beacon: bedroom community?

One difference between Beacon and towns in Westchester is a decent number of newcomers actually work in the area. One friend has a job at the Paramount Theater in Peekskill. Another teaches high school across the river in Newburgh. A bunch more have city-based jobs but pay for studios here. There's the gallery owner on West Main whose storefront doubles as a graphic design studio, the maintenance guy at DIA, the Wee Play park volunteer corps. That's not counting all the new moms with semi-suspended careers -- refugees from the freelance economy who still occasionally cross back over the border to take a photo assignment or copywriting gig.

All these folks moved up from the city like J and I did, most from Brooklyn or Queens. And they're not buying lunch and seeing chiropractors on Park Avenue like the five-day commuters are. That's a good thing.

Not to put too rosy a tint on it. The population of five-day commuters keeps growing, and I'd guess the number of locally employed has shrunk in the last five years as lifelong residents retire or move to Fishkill where the taxes are lower.
I'm one of the criminals since I travel down to Soho three times a week. But hey, I buy wine and get my hair cut on Main Street. I can vouch for Arje and Hair Haven's not bad either. Town could use a barbershop though. Or is there one I'm not aware of? Tell me in the comments.