How does it compare? Hospitalist moving to Charlotte in a few months from Cleveland :) (Gastonia: for rent, chapel)

[soooma]

Originally Posted by chicagocubs

Jeff, welcome to Charlotte....and, as a former Chicagoan, I will agree with your post.

I think that you are right in assessing the educational system here. There is no Lane Tech here. Although both of my sons are now out of the education process, my youngest, (now 26) quit school in high school because he could not get educated on his level. It is very difficult to get kids that are high achievers challenged here. Now, the same child who the educators said was not able to be educated is working as a computer programmer for a major company...after never having attended college and only obtaining his GED. Luckily, he was determined enough to teach himself. Many others don't have that kind of determination.

Overall, it is nice here. The weather is great. I do miss my ball games and the museums...but, you have to stay where the jobs are... (especially in this market!!)

And my question for you is going to be,,,
if I live in Mathews 28104 because I think this zip code is the one that does not belong to Mck. school system, but rather union, and I was told that this will have better schools ,,, public,,,

by the way,,,
I think I would be interested in Catholic shcools for my daughter,,, how much would it cost to do that,,, just out of curiosity,,, now I started worrying about that,,,especiall after I found out that Charlotte is gonna be way much more expensive than Cleveland, which is reall cheap

My daughter is still 3 years and a few months, but we are gonna need preschooling then school sooon

[soooma]

Originally Posted by mcuzino

If you have traveled and have been to Philly, NY, NJ than down here is paradise. I moved from Philly with my wife and have felt like we have been on vacation for 2 straight years.

I need to know why you are saying that!!
Simply becasue this is the only positive post I got so far about Charlotte, and I am severely depressed about how its own people don't think highly of it,,, or may be they do,,, but I wanted to push them to tell me that it is nicer than all the other cities I was asking about for possible relocation, like San Antonio or LA,,, but apparently we shouldn't be really comparing those big cities to a small city on the rise with a good future but in the future like Charlotte.

soooma

[soooma]

I am quoting another poster called indraman who said the following:
"Here is my two cents worth. We had several options when it came to re-locating a couple of years ago and we chose the Charlotte area for a couple of reasons. First, it's cheap....lets just get that out there. Compared to Seattle (where I'm from) it was about 1/4 the cost of living in comparison and we came here with the same salary. Second, the schools are really great where we are. Our kids HAD to attend private school in our previous state because they just weren't good. Mind you....you need to do some school homework to figure out what's important to you but that's easy. Third, we love southerners. We have lived all over the place and have never been made to feel as welcome as we have since we moved here. We had the opportunity to move back to Seattle last fall and we turned it down flat because the pace and quality of life simply can't be matched. What did we give up? Mountains close by (I mean real mountains) and our family. But it was worth it. We have been in Austin for extended periods of time as well. If I were re-locating there, I would probably choose Round Rock and commute in on the tollway. San Antonio would be my choice over Austin. However, the property taxes there are much higher than here in NC. But the lack of an income tax would more than make up for it. The schools in Austin (curriculum wise) are not as strong as those here in Union or Meck counties. I would also give a positive vote for the Clover schools in SC. The big difference between the hospital out here in UC versus the big ones in CLT is attitude and pace of life. Things are much more laid back out here. The big secret is that there really are a lot of highly educated, motivated residents in UC.....who just wanted to be away from the city. Cleveland? That wouldn't make my list ever Good luck with your decision."

so I see that there is some contradiction here between what he has to say and what some other people say about Charlotte being more expensive than Chicago,,, especially that like I mentioned before I lived in Seattle and I am sure it is not more expensive than Chicago!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[michael75065]

Originally Posted by heatwomg

From a former Clevelander's perspective: I moved from Chagrin Falls in May 2007. I currently live in South Charlotte. Downtown Charlotte is very different from downtown Cleveland. Cleveland is much more spread out compared to Charlotte. But Charlotte is much easier to navigate ( at least in the immediate uptown area). I do not know much about N,W or E Charlotte but South Charlotte reminds me of the Hudson/Shaker Heights cities where it's just beautiful homes and is really taken care of. I do not own a home but from a renter's standpoint the cost of living is cheaper down here. Gas is still a little bit more expensive but with it having gone down so much $.05 isn't too big of a deal. People seem happier in Charlotte. Everyone is friendly and so many people have moved from somewhere else so everyone is just happy to be here. And there is no comparison to the weather either. We are forecasted to see 70 degrees here tomorrow... probably sleeting ice up there. So enough of me rambling. I hope that helped even a little. Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions. Good luck!!

There is no comparison charlotte to cleveland. charlotte is kept up beautiful and downtown clevelend is dieing out and is joke and weather you can't even compare.

I love Charlotte and downtown cleveland and flats and crime and blight you see ever were is sad in cleveland. We need to get our act together. We could be like chicago if our leaders would do something besides talk and nothing never get done.

See why cleveland and detroit are compared so much together.

See why jobs and business leave and the flats our dieing and downtown is not much to brag about and the medical mart and the flats will never happen if does itwill be so long before it does who will care.


O well mistake on the lake
cleveland has never changed.

Football city like Pittsburg and we can even compare and Pitttsburg has changed for better
and onther thing cleveland is dirty, blight and 60% black and crime and tons of homeless people
so should I say more.




Michael75065 from Mentor Ohio

[clevegirl]

Originally Posted by michael75065

Football city like Pittsburg and we can even compare and Pitttsburg has changed for better
and onther thing cleveland is dirty, blight and 60% black and crime and tons of homeless people
so should I say more.




Michael75065 from Mentor Ohio

Okay, really what is your point other than to appear racist? Why even post? I'm black and from the cleveland area. From your post I'd think that Cleveland downtown demise is all due to the fact that cleveland is 60% black. You and I know really that's not the case. Politics and the economy has a lot to do with. Your response is the main reason why when people would ask me (being black) why would I want to move to what they preceived as the predjudice south, I'd respond with and Cleveland is different how!!! You really need to think before you post. You don't know who you're speaking to on these post so, you don't know who you're offending. Whites are not the only people who post and i'm sure some of them are offended by your ignorant post as well. Wow and you're probably really cheering that black Lebron James really brings that 1st major Championship to Cleveland in almost50 years!! Hippocrit.

[michael75065]

Clevegirl

Thanks for responding to my post. Most of problems in cleveland is to much BS and poltics and crime and poverty and white flight. Nothing never gets done and I forgot corruption all cleveland is but not as bad is another Detroit.

Look at all the jobs leaving or closing up and the crime in the city and a lot places in the city falling apart or blight. I am not racist at all just seams like te mojority of crime or go to prison is poor black
people and don't get me wrong the other racist are not perfect. I am irish/italain living in Painesville township in Painesville ohio.

Job Transfe to Mentor ohio from Irving TX. One thing I hate is the snow and fridgit cold weather we get up here and we get 40-50 inches of snow anf 5 months of this weathedr it can get brutal up here by the lake.

One more thing why can't cleveland be more like Chicago instead of Detroit it is sad.


Michael75065

[jam40jeff]

Cleveland's downtown is hardly dying. It has tripled the number of residents living downtown in the last 10 years. Actually, between having all 3 pro sports teams downtown, the Rock Hall and Science Center, Playhouse Square, and two great entertainment districts, I think it's doing very well.

[ZnGuy]

Originally Posted by jam40jeff

Cleveland's downtown is hardly dying. It has tripled the number of residents living downtown in the last 10 years. Actually, between having all 3 pro sports teams downtown, the Rock Hall and Science Center, Playhouse Square, and two great entertainment districts, I think it's doing very well.

I moved from Cleveland and it does have nice sport venues but not sure how you can say it is doing well downtown....how's Tower City doing, Galleria, Flats (I know they had planned $200million+ development but now that's on hold)? The new Convention Center plans seems like a corrupt process (politicians are jokes) that no one can really agree on. Schools are poor.Besides Law offices there are very few employers downtown. Wikipedia says:
Now in the first decade of the 21st century, the economic and civic recovery of the 1980s and 1990s appears to have stalled. The so-called "white-flight" of last century continues as wealth and the middle class moves to the suburbs, leaving behind impoverished citizens and a decaying infrastructure in most neighborhoods. It should be noted that several city neighborhoods have met with some success in attracting reinvestment and revitalization, namely Downtown, Tremont, Ohio City, Detroit-Shoreway, and parts of Hough, however the majority of the city remains mired in poverty. While the suburbs are booming, the City continues to experience budgetary pressure, resulting in layoffs and service cutbacks. Today the suburbs are experiencing growth in jobs, increased tax revenue and new construction while the City attempts to cope with the decaying industrial infrastructure left behind by continual loss of manufacturing jobs.
While there is no single cause for the city's continued economic distress, the national decline of the steel mills and auto industry have greatly impacted the region, which continues to be heavily invested in those industries. Recent research by the Cleveland Branch of the Federal Reserve, however, clearly shows that it is not the manufacturing base of Cleveland or the "wrong type of industries" being based in the region that are the sole cause of the city's economic stagnation.[3] The large publicly financed projects of the 1990s such as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland Browns Stadium, and the Gateway Sports and Entertainment Complex have failed to deliver their promised economic growth in most cases, though one could argue that they succeeded in keeping the city's sports teams in the region and downtown area.

[soooma]

Originally Posted by michael75065

There is no comparison charlotte to cleveland. charlotte is kept up beautiful and downtown clevelend is dieing out and is joke and weather you can't even compare.

I love Charlotte and downtown cleveland and flats and crime and blight you see ever were is sad in cleveland. We need to get our act together. We could be like chicago if our leaders would do something besides talk and nothing never get done.

See why cleveland and detroit are compared so much together.

See why jobs and business leave and the flats our dieing and downtown is not much to brag about and the medical mart and the flats will never happen if does itwill be so long before it does who will care.


O well mistake on the lake
cleveland has never changed.

Football city like Pittsburg and we can even compare and Pitttsburg has changed for better
and onther thing cleveland is dirty, blight and 60% black and crime and tons of homeless people
so should I say more.




Michael75065 from Mentor Ohio

Hi Michael,
Well I have to thank you first for your detailed nice reply,
I have to say that I love Cleveland but, and I have to say, but only during the "non wintery days", which would leave you with 7 months only if you are lucky,,, and when I visited Charlotte I didn't feel that it is much more urbanised or fancier than Cleveland, (I visited for 3 days only),,, but I have to say also, that if that was the main reason why I would relocate to a certain new city,,, then I would've relocated to "Chicago, NYC, LA, Seattle", and I know all these place very well by virtue of living in the latter 2 for a year or so,, and visiting the former 2, but actually I was rather running away from the brutal winters, and still wanted to keep the cost of living reasonable like in Charlotte, with Nice people around -Charlotte seems to enjoy a lot of nice people and the proof is the very existence of this very nice forum that welcomes most people coming for relocatoin- , and also I like the still conservative nature of Charlotte being in the Bible belt region like people call it, because I would like to consider myself conservative yet open minded , and up above all, I liked the job that I will be starting this July, I will be making the actual move in 5 weeks - I am really very excited and can't wait to make the move -...
Last but definitely not the least,,, I have to be honest, that Charlotte is one of the cleanest, neastest cities I have ever been to,,, especially when you compare its downtown to other cities downtown, and I hope that it will stay that way,,, I am sure it will,,, because I think not many cities will have such a huge number of fans and lovers like Charlotte the queen city does ,,,, IMHO

And of course having the Blueridge mountains (though till this moment I don't know that what means ,,, and having the beaches within 3 hours reach and I have no problem driving 5 hours... is definitely a huge plus for Charlotte...

And back to Cleveland, I think I am gonna miss somethings here, like Put-in-Bay island which I used to ski there,,, I really loved this place,,, I probably went there 20 times in less than 3 years!! )))),,,, I will also miss the Big lake Erie,,, because I heard that Lake Norman is really not as big or as beautiful if compared to lake Erie,,, but I haven't seen the Lake Norman Yet,,, I will have to see for myself to be able to decide on this,,, but it makes sense because lake Erie is a natural lake, and I also consider Cleveland people nice,,, though I met some rednecks and some racists (I am Egyptian with nice heavy accent ,,, but I think you will find that everywhere you go,,, and having said that,,,, I still consider USA the most welcoming country in the whole world to foreigners,,, more than any place on earth,, and you name it,,, Australia, England, France,,, all these places don't welcome or respect foreigners as USA people do,,,

But for sure I am never gonna miss a single day of the winter -20 or -20 f days, with heaps and heaps of snow, and not being able to recognize my car, which I really cherish no matter which type of car it is,, but I am a car fanatic,,, and Cleveland treats cars really bad,,, salt and snow all winter.

What I really don't know till now,, compared to Cleveland,, are houses more expensive,,, if we compare Westlake ohio to Matthews or southpark Charlotte?

thank you so much,
and I thank everybody else who replied to my questions before.

soooma
Have a very nice day in beautiful Charlotte

[ZnGuy]

Soooma,
Just a little comparison, I left Charlotte yesterday and beautiful day, not a cloud in sky, now in Cleveland on business and it rained and grey all day Monday (which is common) and they are forecasting rain/snow mix tonight. Local newscasters are upbeat because the sun is to come out on Friday