Montevallo, Calera, Alabaster? (Birmingham, Montgomery, Hoover: sales, house, homebuyer)

[bigposse]

I'm looking for opinions on Montevallo, Calera, and Alabaster. My wife and I are contemplating moving to the B'ham area and love all that it has to offer, but my job may potentially be in Montgomery. We are looking for a more simple way of life, with room to breathe, than the Atlanta area where we're moving from. Anyone have any opinions or info they care to share?

[jakabedy]

I live near the Shelby County Airport in an unincorporated area that is centered among those three cities. I considered a job in Montgomery a few years ago near the southeast corner of East Drive, and clocked it at about a 70-minute commute, depending on Montgomery traffic and construction (if any). Coming from Atlanta, that probably doesn't sound like a long commute to you, and you won't even notice Montgomery's rush hour. If you're fine with that, then your family will probably like living closer to B'ham than to Montgomery, and your target area will work for you.

My husband works on Birmingham's Southside. If he hits the Airport exit onto I-65 by 6:15 am, he is parked and at his desk by 7 am. The recent widening of part of I-65 (Valleydale road to Pelham/Tank Farm exit) to six lanes has helped. But next year the widening of the next southern segment will begin (between Pelham/Tank Farm exit and Alabaster exit) so there will be additional construction to deal with.

As for the area, we like it out here. We always lived in historic 1920s homes in the city -- Roebuck Springs, Crestwood, even Bessemer. Four years ago we made the leap and moved out here. We have three acres and two of the happiest dogs you will ever meet. Montevallo is a laid-back small town built around the small University of Montevallo. It is charming and quaint and isn't growing much. Calera is about twice the size of Montevallo, due to aggressive growth over the last 15 years in both businesses and residences. The recession has slowed it down, and it lacks the charm of Montevallo, but has more industrial, retail, restaurants and services. It also straddles I-65, so has better access to Birmingham. Both of these cities have a lot of new/newer first-time-homebuyer-type developments, but not a lot of step-up properties (Timberline in Calera being an exception). IMHO they need to address that issue for the folks outgrowing the 3/2 garden homes have no option but to leave town. But in the cities and the surrounding uninc. area there are a lot of gentlemen's farms: 3-15 acres with a nice house and maybe a barn. It could be just what you're looking for.

While Calera and Montevallo are small, "South Shelby County" towns that have become bedroom communities by default, Alabaster is more of a longstanding suburb of Birmingham ("North Shelby County"). If you get on US 31 in Homewood and drive south, you never really leave "town" as you pass through Vestavia, Hoover, Pelham and Alabaster. It has a lot of 1970s-80s housing stock, but also some newer construction. You're not going to find as many options for acreage or seclusion here as you will further out.

All are served by the Shelby County school system, one of the top-ranked systems in the state. Calera and Montevallo are more small-town while Alabaster (Thompson High School) is more "citified" and just plain larger. Calera does have a practically brand-new high school that is beautiful. There is talk in Alabaster of breaking off from the county to form a city school system. Their feeling is that Alabaster sends more in taxes to the county than it gets back, so why not keep it all. But, IMHO, by the time they factor in the additional costs of administration, it will end up being a wash. So I would count on an increase in sales tax or property tax soon in Alabaster to support this endeavor.

Aside from the commute for my husband, the distance to Birmingham has caused us to cut down on our activities somewhat. We no longer want to get out and "go to town" for a performance, or concert, or cultural event. It seems like a hassle and a long way to drive. So beware that such a malaise could hit you if you move out here. Otherwise, I highly recommend the area.