okay let's hear it.... (Montgomery, Cullman: relocate, jobs, housing)

[rcnkat]

okay..I have been reading post after post for Alabama..
it sounds like such a nice place....we are looking to relocate
and just wondered which towns have the nicest people.
we are looking for a small town...doesn't matter if we have to
commute....we need acreage and would like to have our children
in a christian school......I miss the southern charm my town used
to have....but no longer....it has grown so big that It now takes
me 45 minutes to go 7 miles to where my kids school is located...
that's right (7 miles).....please help...
we are honest,friendly hard working people that just want to find
a nice area to live in.....I read up on some areas like Hartselle,
Danville, Joppa and came across Grant..... I am thinking of a town
of 15,000 or less....any ideas....acreage is a must!!
thanks for any help you can give me....
Kat

[Eeyore]

I dunno alot about small towns.....Im a city girl. But I do like Springville, Clay, Ashville is ok. Montevallo is nice. Beyond that Im lost.

eeyore

[Southlander]

We need a little more guidance...where will you need to commute to?

[Keeper]

There are a lot of people who have moved to N. AL from Florida and I am one of them. Where do live now?
Southlander is right (as usual) we need more info.. Jobs, price range for housing and amenities. Joppa is right down the road from where I live in Arab. There isn't a lot in Joppa but you are close to Cullman and Arab.

[rcnkat]

Thanks Eeyore and Southlander for your replies.....
I am sorry If I was vague.....my husband is self employed in mktg
for car dealerships and when he is not doing that he is a wonderful
Handyman/ carpenter.....He can fix and build just about anything....
he is honest and fair....so we are looking to live where he can commute
to an airport but not live to close to one either.....and of course
anyone that may need someone to help them fix something......
he wants acreage so he can have his own workshop as well as
a small farm....and room to live and grow.....
we also would like christian schools.....I read about Hartselle...it sounds
very nice....any thoughts on that town??
thanks for everything...I do appreciate your time...
Kat

[Eeyore]

Again my knowledge of small towns is very limited. but just a little more info about the ones I told you about.

Springville--I think you would love it. Nice small downtown area with several restaraunts of all kinds. Cool shopping, mostly antiques and thrift. A really cool soda fountain/ice cream shop/toy store. Great old old hardware store. Feed and seed store. There are several farms in the area. There is a wonderful home owned restaraunt of sorts called Local Color. The food is wonderful home-made and at night the waitresses sing old time favorites. I ate at a old BBQ place there for lunch once and a couple of guys got up to play the fiddle and banjo. Kind of cool for a girl used to downtown rock clubs. The cool thing about it is that it is CLOSE to the interstate/ but not right on it. So you can get to the B'ham airport in 1/2 hour or so. But its far enough away that it doesn't get much interstate traffic. It does have some chain stuff that has come in recently including (gasp) walmart. But they've been able to keep that kind of stuff near the interstate and out of the town center. There are alot of craftsmen type people in the area. They have cool festivals every year. A nice small library in the middle of town.

Ashville is the next exit up on the interstate moving North away from B'ham. It is much smaller and therefore has much less to offer. but is just minutes from Springville. So its probably a little more than 1/2 hour from the airport.

Ok Ive given you alot of info about Springville. That is because it is the only small town I have alot of experience with. And I really like it.

Now Montevallo--Dont spend much time there at all. The few times Ive been there it seemed really nice. It is a college town so.... whatever that means. It is very close to alot of outdoorsy stuff, like canooing, camping, and hiking.

Also check out nearby Clanton and Calera. I think the whole area is really nice as far as scenery and outdoor activities...but i have little experience with the towns. They are about halfway between B'ham and Montgomery. They might be closer to the Montgomery airport than the B'ham.

Clay--very old small town. Great schools. Mountains. A few places to eat...some chains. Local people are very active in city govt. No real city center. Somewhat close to interstate, but doesn't get any "drive through" traffic in the actual town. Only 10 mins or less from Springville. Lots of old barns, private lakes, old rock houses. But also recently lots of new subdivisions consisting of very expensive homes. Less than 30 mins to Bham airport.

Keep in mind that most every thing around bham and north is going to be green, hilly, even mountainous. South Alabama can get quite flat. More cotton fields and paper mills and such.

My cousin likes Cullman. But I think it's dry county and has a rep for being racist.

hope this helps.
I hope more ppl come here that know about more towns than I do.
eeyore

[rcnkat]

Eeyore
you have been most helpful....thank you very much.....
North sounds better as we really like the rolling hills
scenery.....I know I need to visit.....so we will plan
something soon...
have a great day!!
Kat

[rcnkat]

does anyone have any info on Hartselle? I looked
on other posts and wasn't able to find a whole lot.
thanks for any info anyone can give.....and
have been to all the Hartselle links when u put it
into google...and saw what the Chamber of Commerce
had to say.....I really wanted locals view points though.
Thank you so much
Kat

[Keeper]

To check out the cost of houses go to valleymls.com.
You can also check out city-data info..
http://www.city-data.com/city/Alabama.html

[Historic Bessemer]

Check out the McCalla area!