relocated people-what do you think of city of Atlanta? (Buckhead: homes, live in)

[NorthmeetsSouth]

Originally Posted by loridean

This is for anyone that has moved to Atlanta from another city.
How do you like the city overall compared to where you are from?
I am in NY, and I know there are a lot of comparisons to NY.
Do you go to the city of Atlanta? Is it clean? Fun?
Living here we are used to going into Manhattan to do a lot of things.

I was there once, and I didn't see a lot of the good areas. Where we were driving was a ghetto area and it was really run down and full of vagrants.
I did drive through Buckhead around dinner time, and it seemed pretty nice, but I didn't feel safe driving through there.

I moved here from NY 14 years ago. At the time I wanted a cheaper, easier environment to raise my son. It worked out well, and at the time I really liked it. I used to go into Atlanta all the time and go to plays and restaurants, and even though the theater, museums, etc don't come close to what you are used to there, I didn't mind because with all of the money I was saving by not living in Westchester I could afford to fly up there whenever I wanted for a culture-fix.
I think Atlanta has changed, and my wants have changed over the years. If I were moving from NY now I would not come here. It has become too heavily trafficked, too violent, too unfriendly, and I think I would look at some of the cities in the Carolinas before I would look here.
that is just MHO, and I am sure that others will tell you about all of the good parts that I don't seem to see anymore. Best thing you can do is visit and make up your own mind.

[Georgia]

Moved here 4 years ago by company relocation, was here previous in 1999-01. Before in 1999 and even by transfer again in 2004 we liked the Atlanta area, however, it seems in my opinion, that this entire area is going through, within the last 18 months, a transformation which I have never seen of any city I lived before.

A growth rate of 100,000 people per year, a rapid crime rate which is ever increasing, and a sub-culture that is everywhere, thus the crime issues.
Banks being robbed on a daily basis, carjackings, police and security guards being ambushed, and even an on duty Police Officer car jacked in broad daylight, with his own "police car" being stolen!

Not being spring chickens anymore and less than 10 years from retirement, we thought this would be our final move into our retirment years. A calm development, then off to Sun City at 55.

Instead, we have made a decision and I am working with my company to leave. Then again, as with thousands of others the question is selling the house. The next delimma.

[Georgia]

Originally Posted by lookinround

I want to know what beginning and ending point and what manufacture of jet engine you were using to pull that off

I'm sure he was talking from 85 to 75, which today you could walk faster than drive

[atlantagreg30127]

Originally Posted by lookinround

I want to know what beginning and ending point and what manufacture of jet engine you were using to pull that off

No jets needed. In '84, you really could drive from the top end 85 to 75 as Bob stated above, in just a few minutes going 55mph. Wanna hear something even more shocking? Pileups, and tractor-trailer accidents happened only about once every two weeks back then. I really was a different place.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by atlantagreg30127

No jets needed. In '84, you really could drive from the top end 85 to 75 as Bob stated above, in just a few minutes going 55mph.

Distance from the I285/I75 junction to the I285/I85 fjunction is 15.8 miles according to Google Maps.

[yami29]

I have lived in Atlanta for 9 years now, and I must say I liked it a whole lot better when I moved here in 1998. There were plenty of jobs with good starting pay, and the traffic was not that bad, and gas was only $1.00! Buckhead was rocking and alive with a great night life, but now it is dead, because all of the clubs and restaurants have been closed or relocated (God knows where) to make way for high rise condos!
Being a Hispanic American in Atlanta has not been fun lately either. Sadly, if you speak Spanish here, everyone thinks and wants to treat you like an illegal. I have suffered biasness from both Whites and Blacks here. Even though I was born a U.S. citizen, and am a teacher with a graduate degree. Sad to say I think that Atlanta has stopped progressing and begun to regress as a "growing" city.

[darkone]

To the OP - There really aren't too many similarities between Atlanta and NYC that I can see. To me, Atlanta seems like a vast suburban area with skyscrapers in the middle (nowhere near as many as Manhattan though) and freeways whisking people about. Atlanta to me just seems BORING and definitely SOUTHERN compared to NYC. These are major differences. It really is still a regional city, albeit a large and important one, rather than a cosmopolitan world-class city imho. Sure, it is diverse here, and there is very good and varied dining and shopping, but it sort of ends there .....

Boston and Philadelphia have and will always have much more in common with NYC than Atlanta ever will.

[jessiesma]

This happens everywhere not just Atlanta. It is a societal deterioration that I've noticed in the past couple of years too. Sun City FL is no picnic and at 55 unless you are also in poor health, you are too young to just give up. What do you plan to do with all that leisure for the next 30 years? That's half again the time you've lived. I'm 61 and my husband is 55 we don't have the option to retire but even if we did, we wouldn't. We are bored to death in St. Pete FL which isn't that far from Sun City. We are planning to move back to Atlanta, having met and lived there 20 years ago. We love it and we love NY and would go back there but I have some mobility issues so the quantity of snow is a problem. I lived in Baltimore during the blizzard of '03. I was house bound for weeks. I like cold and I like snow, I just can't negotiate the banks of it along the street to cross or get to a cab or car. One or two storms that melt quickly in Atlanta are manageable. Atlanta has pretty much everything we need to get thru the next 30. We'll see if there is a job for hubby. He's very underemployed here. This seems to be an area for the young as far as work goes. I guess some well qualified experienced people also do well but that's not our situation. Stuff happens but we continue on.

Originally Posted by Georgia

Moved here 4 years ago by company relocation, was here previous in 1999-01. Before in 1999 and even by transfer again in 2004 we liked the Atlanta area, however, it seems in my opinion, that this entire area is going through, within the last 18 months, a transformation which I have never seen of any city I lived before.

A growth rate of 100,000 people per year, a rapid crime rate which is ever increasing, and a sub-culture that is everywhere, thus the crime issues.
Banks being robbed on a daily basis, carjackings, police and security guards being ambushed, and even an on duty Police Officer car jacked in broad daylight, with his own "police car" being stolen!

Not being spring chickens anymore and less than 10 years from retirement, we thought this would be our final move into our retirment years. A calm development, then off to Sun City at 55.

Instead, we have made a decision and I am working with my company to leave. Then again, as with thousands of others the question is selling the house. The next delimma.

[mg83]

I've been here for almost 16 months, and have hated it for the last 15 months. It all depends on where you're coming from though. For me, coming from Florida, I found Atlanta to be boring, cold (both literally and figuratively), rude, racist fast-paced, and stressful. The ocean is hundreds of miles away. The leisure travel is very expensive (especially if you like to travel internationally). Everyone seems materialistic, but I guess there's nothing else to do but shop on the weekends... especially during this disgusting weather.

I can't wait to leave here. The end is finally in sight.

[sahara18]

I just recently moved here from the midwest (Iowa!) for a job, and love it so far. The people are unexpectedly nice, and there are plenty of things for 20-somethings who are career-minded to do to stay active and have fun. I picked a place in south Buckhead - against advice - and have to say so far its been great. Any big city has big-city problems, especially one with such high growth in a short time. I love it here, and recommend it to anyone!

Also, Denver has a five-points area as well. Just FYI! :-)