Whats Up With Gastonia (Charlotte, Kannapolis: real estate, foreclosure, lease)

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by anifani821

Oh - as for Gastonia . . . turns out there are some wannabe gangsta types over there . . . young thugs w/ guns and too much time on their hands. Now whether or not they are actually into gangs . . . not so sure . . . but some real trashy types have decided to make Gastonia their home. It is quite troubling. Their Sheriff recently addressed the situation . . . but I can't find a link on that story.

The crime factor is why I skipped over Gastonia & went to Kings Mountain. I seriously looked at several other towns, but here I'm still on 85 so much better connection to Charlotte & an easy run to Shelby. Yup, I'll have to plan my shopping, but I did that for years, anyway, so no big deal.

[anifani821]

Originally Posted by johne482

Because TOS allow English only on City-Data? Only asking.

I have heard that Gastonia is getting a lot of illegal immigrants, but since I have not seen it firsthand, I just don't know.

[LAMF]

I live in McAdenville, so my choices for shopping or going to restaurants consist of either going east on 74 to Belmont or west to Gastonia. Since we are talking about the latter, I will focus on that.

Going west into Gastonia, as soon as I get past the car dealerships, the first thing that stands out to me are the meth heads walking on the sides (or often in the middle) of the street. There are far more of them than I have seen anywhere else, and it is obvious they are meth heads by the unique facial structure that develops in these shining examples of humanity. It is very similar to what you will see in a zombie movie, and that is about all I have to say about that. There is also a good deal of panhandling going on, usually at the entrances to the shopping centers.

The shopping areas around Franklin Square are actually kind of nice, and there are a couple of new restaurants going in, including a Thai place and a new beach themed place. All of the major chain stores are there, and for the most part it is a lot like the other major shopping areas in the Charlotte area. Once you get to the Walmart and beyond though, especially past the old Gaston Mall, the area starts looking more and more run down and neglected, but not necessarily unsafe. Just ... unattractive.

Downtown Gastonia has some nice old main street style architecture. Unfortunately, there are more bail bonds places than there are any other types of businesses. Up until a few months ago, there seems to have been a major homeless problem in the area, but recently I have not seen anyone on the streets after dark ... literally. A couple of restaurants have moved into downtown, including an excellent Latin place and the worst Italian restaurant I have ever been to in my life. That is it though. Outside of that ... nothing. I have never been downtown during the day, so I can't really comment on it.

Going away from downtown, there are some really nice houses in Gastonia, some historic looking neighborhoods, and two really excellent non-chain restaurants (Lotus and Rodi). There are also a lot of old mill houses that are generally old but well-maintained. The unkempt neighborhoods are usually a good distance from the nicer neighborhoods, and there doesn't appear to be many "transitioning" neighborhoods in this city.

Reading the Gaston Gazette you will get the impression that there are thugs running around crazy in the city. I have not seen that. Like I mentioned, I have seen way more drug addicts out in the open than I have seen in other cities, and I am sure that with that comes high crime rates, but at no point have I ever felt threatened like I did when I lived in Charlotte.

Hope this helps.

[SunnyKayak]

This all helps and thanks Lamf for that in depth explanation. I dont think I venture anywhere besides those shopping centers and from your description that was a good thing I havent. lol

Barkingowl & Ani we might have to meet at Boston Market one day for lunch.
They have the best Chickent Pot Pies.

Do you guys think that maybe in 10 years people will rediscover Gastonia once they get priced out of Mecklenburg?

[NCgirl]

Originally Posted by SunnyKayak

I always thought or felt Gastonia was like a suburb of Charlotte but I rarely see threads on that town is it because it blue collar? Is it desirable or is it another textile town wasteland?

LAMF made a some great points. Although one nit pick - going west from McAdenville a lot of the dealerships are in Lowell's city limits. The eastern side of the city is more "urban". Western Gastonia definitely seems to be poorer.

I worked in Gaston county for a few years and I know a lot of people that live in or outside of Gastonia. I think that the city gets a bad rap. While many parts of Gaston County are more rural and blue collar (towns like Ranlo and Dallas) Gastonia Proper is not. Overall I think it's pretty comparable to the Steele Creek area (where I live).

Sure there is crime and undesirable parts but there are a lot of very nice, family friendly areas.

I think there is a stereotype that Gastonians(?) are uneducated and poor. Like any city there are different income levels. There are many professionals that call Gastonia home. I have a friend that works at Gaston Memorial. All of the doctors she works with live in Gastonia. Many people would probably be surprised at that there are many $500,000 - $1,000,000+ homes in Gastonia. Gastonia is home to two well regarded private schools, Gaston Day and Gaston Christian. Their tuition isn't cheap.

I don't think there are a lot of threads about Gastonia because people write about what they know. As Metallisteve's map shows there are very few people on this board that live in that area.

I also think that people don't realize how close eastern Gastonia is to Charlotte. When considering a new home newcomers may dismiss Gastonia (and eastern Gaston county) because it seems farther away.

[CouponJack]

Couple things....1st, my former co-workers would make fun of people who lived in Gaston County (specifically Gastonia...) AND THESE WERE LOCALS, NOT TRANSPLANTS.. I don't know what the joke was....

2. Outside of SC, why is gasoline so much cheaper in the Gastonia area? They still pay NC state taxes on gas right? LOL.....

I see on the gas tracker through WCNC that they regularly are 10-15 cents cheaper than Charlotte and surrounding areas....can someone explain this to me?

[NCgirl]

Oh yeah. It's always the locals I know that make fun of "G-town". I think Gastonia will always be picked on.

I don't know why gas is cheaper there. Gas is also cheaper in Steele Creek, especially close to the state line (ETA: paid $1.51 last week). Maybe it has something to do with being close to SC? 321 runs from York county into Gastonia. I don't know. ???

[southbound_295]

Originally Posted by NCgirl

Oh yeah. It's always the locals I know that make fun of "G-town". I think Gastonia will always be picked on.

I don't know why gas is cheaper there. Gas is also cheaper in Steele Creek, especially close to the state line. Maybe it has something to do with being close to SC? 321 runs from York county into Gastonia. I don't know. ???

It's hard to say. Gas is $1.65-1.69 in Kings Mountain, which is closer to SC than Gastonia, but, it's $1.53 at the gas pumps at Ingles, with a 3 cent a gallon discount if you pay with a prepaid card.

[abcornwell]

I live outside of Gastonia in the county, south-eastish, near the Gastonia Municipal airport, and closer to SC line. I shop in Gastonia, or drive down to SC and buy gas/run errands. Same distance. I don't have children, and don't much care if I'm near Starbucks, upscale shopping malls, bookstores, etc. I use the library system, enjoy owning a home where it's quiet and dark at night (see the stars!), and get a kick out of driving past mini-donkeys, or horses, or rows of corn, when I run errands. I couldn't afford the home and land I have here in Gaston County, if I had to be in Meck or otherwise. I love the local accents and enjoy hearing rural people's stories. Some parts of Gastonia are lovely, some are cheaply built cookie-cutter vinyl sided subdivisions, some are historic, some are mill houses. There are some really nasty looking neighborhoods too. Hmmm, sounds like everyplace else I've ever lived - non-homogenous. The big difference is that Gastonia's downtown needs revitalization and it just ain't happenin'. This was a mill county and a mill town and it's been a long time without a solid plan moving forward. Sad. But I'm enjoying my quiet country home.

[abcornwell]

Originally Posted by southbound_295

It's hard to say. Gas is $1.65-1.69 in Kings Mountain, which is closer to SC than Gastonia, but, it's $1.53 at the gas pumps at Ingles, with a 3 cent a gallon discount if you pay with a prepaid card.

$1.49 at the Lake Wylie BP, just across the state line.