While I get your point, I'm not sure Athens is the best example. Athens is a college town that's both too close and too far from the Atlanta metro area to really see many companies invest in it.

Alpharetta, for example, is an hour away from Athens, closer to the City of Atlanta, has a heavy tech presence, and a median household income approaching $100k in a state with a median income half that.

It's more expensive than Athens, yeah, but it's also not Silicon Valley expensive.