Baton Rouge vs..... (New Orleans, Jackson, Many: crime, job market, movie theaters)

[traveler3]

Can anyone whose been to these cities compare them to Jackson.

Columbia, SC
Tallahassee, FL
Orlando, FL
Jackson, MS
Mobile, AL

[BRMan]

Originally Posted by traveler3

Can anyone whose been to these cities compare them to Jackson.

Columbia, SC
Tallahassee, FL
Orlando, FL
Jackson, MS
Mobile, AL

Are you trying to compare BR to the cities aboce or Jackson ? Assuming you meant BR, I lived in Tallahassee. Tallahassee is a more pleasant place to live, but is pricier. And has a much narrower job market, as the government and universities are about it, other than the hospitals.

[osunshine]

I am from Mobile and like it much better. Closer to beaches & casinos. Nice housing, beautiful old port city and the people are very nice in Mobile.

[darylwi]

I think I would like to live in or around Mobile for the most part, especially on the east shore of the bay.
I'm nearly positive I wouldn't like the others on the list, especially Jackson. I did live up that way and hated the whole lot of it. I'd much rather live on the gulf coast.
The only one I haven't been to at all is Orlando, but I'm sure I wouldn't want to live there either.

[MSvirgo]

I've been living in Jackson, MS for most of my life and I am ready to move. There is absolutely nothing to do. Jackson is the capitol and everything is moving to the surrounding areas. There are no movie theaters, good restaurants, or decent shopping here. You have to go to Clinton, Ridgeland, Madsion, or Flowood to do any of the above. Oh yeah, the mayor is on trial for corruption and for acting like he is above the law. I'm moving either to New Orleans or Baton Rouge for grad school next year. I know every city has its problems, but at least these two cities are a heck of a lot interesting than where I'm at now.

[Caa]

Originally Posted by MSvirgo

I've been living in Jackson, MS for most of my life and I am ready to move. There is absolutely nothing to do. Jackson is the capitol and everything is moving to the surrounding areas. There are no movie theaters, good restaurants, or decent shopping here. You have to go to Clinton, Ridgeland, Madsion, or Flowood to do any of the above. Oh yeah, the mayor is on trial for corruption and for acting like he is above the law. I'm moving either to New Orleans or Baton Rouge for grad school next year. I know every city has its problems, but at least these two cities are a heck of a lot interesting than where I'm at now.

I hope you like it in Baton Rouge if that is where you end up! To me, there are tons of things to do, you just have to find them. Many people say there's nothing to do here, but they are so wrong! Maybe people who like to hike in mountainous areas complain about that as we are flat here in BR, but each week, there are plays, comedy showa, a ton of ourdoor activities and a lot of family friendly things too! I think Br is great. As for some other cities, I heard Orlando(other than Disney etc) is full of crime and drugs-this from National Geographic Magazine last year. I have never been to the other places mentioned. Good Luck to you if you move our way! BR is also friendly!!

[jcn1130]

Originally Posted by Caa

I hope you like it in Baton Rouge if that is where you end up! To me, there are tons of things to do, you just have to find them. Many people say there's nothing to do here, but they are so wrong! Maybe people who like to hike in mountainous areas complain about that as we are flat here in BR, but each week, there are plays, comedy showa, a ton of ourdoor activities and a lot of family friendly things too! I think Br is great. As for some other cities, I heard Orlando(other than Disney etc) is full of crime and drugs-this from National Geographic Magazine last year. I have never been to the other places mentioned. Good Luck to you if you move our way! BR is also friendly!!

Depends on what the OP likes to do. My family had a rough time adjusting to Baton Rouge because there were limited entertainment and cultural choices. Also, it was hard finding a social circle where we could fit, even though people are generally nice. We did end up finding a nice church, which helped, but still...

We move a lot because of our jobs. I assess cities and towns for a large group of companies looking to open facilities. We haven't been able to rate Baton Rouge very high in the entertainment, education (except for colleges..A++), cultural activities, and safety factors. However, the restaurants are fabulous and highly underrated...especially the locally owned ones. Shopping has improved, too. I think the Perkins Rowe project brings Baton Rouge up a notch as this is a popular concept in a lot of cities these days.

[champa]

Orlando is pretty nice though, it is very suburban (although downtown is being revived; lots of new buildings), it is much bigger than BR so there is plenty to do there. Beaches are 1hr way in either direction and given it's size you may go years without ever having to go to the tourist areas. It is true crime has been on the rise (rising unemployment, lots of distressed properties, budget cuts on police and schools, etc.) It is going through a rough patch right now, but on the long run it will do OK. On the flip side there are many positives. You can get some really nice properties for cheap; if you need to take a mini-vacation you need only drive 20min to the attractions; all sorts of types of entertainment and activities are available in-town; lakes everywhere (do mind the gators ;-) ); lots of potential job / business opportunities (major defense companies, technology as well as entertainment are there; plus all the population around there makes for a nice mix of opportunities; you don't have that in BR).

One key difference you'll see between BR and Orlando is that in Orlando there are hardly any natives, i.e., people come from all over the place. It is hard to find someone who's been there for generations as you see in BR. Unlike BR where you pretty much have to work yourself into people's "clicks" that have been in place for ever, in Orlando pretty much everyone creates their social circles ad-hoc as they come and new folks move in.

[MetroBTR]

I would go Baton Rouge or Mobile. I love both cities. To me, Orlando just seems like one of those boom and bust places like Phoenix. I don't know much about Columbia, and everyone in Jackson seems to be Moving to Madison or one of the other suburbs.