My thoughts on Cincinnati: considering relocating (school district, taxes, live)

[hillside]

jakche, downtown is actually very cool to the point i'd rank it over most in the midwest. i think the boring rap for cincinnati is far overblown considering the density of commercialism uptown and the sheer size of downtown. go hang out downtown on a weekend, you might be surprised at the crowds and diversity.

[Hartwell Girl]

Originally Posted by hillside

jakche, downtown is actually very cool to the point i'd rank it over most in the midwest. i think the boring rap for cincinnati is far overblown considering the density of commercialism uptown and the sheer size of downtown. go hang out downtown on a weekend, you might be surprised at the crowds and diversity.

HA! Look whos back....back again...Hillside's back, tell a friend! Welcome back Hillside! Cant wait for you to meet a few newbies that have shown up here!!

[Mbennie]

I guess it all depends on why you want to live in a place!! My reason for coming back to Ohio after being gone since 1982...........Is Strictly FAMILY!!! wanting my children to see everyone when they come to visit not just me in VA then we drive over here to Ohio when my Son visits from Hawaii with my Grand kids or my Daughter come to visit from her travel in the Military we always end up driving here to see everyone. I am not coming back for the "CITY" because I know how to travel I have traveled with the Military and my Job as and health care auditor for years..........For folks that have not been anywhere or done anything but live in "ONE PLACE" and call a drive to Kentucky or Columbus a trip out of town I can see why they would be in a funk! But people you have to get out live life do things go places!! My plan did change I did not move back to Cincinnati like I though i would do.......I decided on Columbus and my reason was based on what the city had to offer for "ME" and my life style now at age 48. I am still close to Parents only 86 miles from my moms door! (I have been there twice this week already so easy for me to do ) Now I am close to childhood friends and LOTS of family and I even have family here in Columbus. The Job Opportunity was better for me in my field here and the pay! I have retried once.........So now working on my second retirement which will be in the next 10 yrs. So at my age I will be retired twice with that income and have my full benefit for social security at age 67 ( if the leave me some after all my years of working and paying into it) So living here in Columbus based on that I should afford to live well here love the area of Canal Winchester. Now keep in mind I have live in and out of this country many places but I moved here from Northern VA where the cost of living is through the roof and the traffic was hell!!! took me 3hrs to go 17 miles each day!! Do I miss it heck NO!! so in my opinion get out do something if you are unhappy where you live make moves in your life don't just settle I didn't.........Now I am back in OHIO but it was My choice and yes I had choices......

[Mbennie]

I guess it all depends on why you want to live in a place!! My reason for coming back to Ohio after being gone since 1982...........Is Strictly FAMILY!!! wanting my children to see everyone when they come to visit not just me in VA then we drive over here to Ohio when my Son visits from Hawaii with my Grand kids or my Daughter come to visit from her travel in the Military we always end up driving here to see everyone. I am not coming back for the "CITY" because I know how to travel I have traveled with the Military and my Job as and health care auditor for years..........For folks that have not been anywhere or done anything but live in "ONE PLACE" and call a drive to Kentucky or Columbus a trip out of town I can see why they would be in a funk! But people you have to get out live life do things go places!! My plan did change I did not move back to Cincinnati like I though i would do.......I decided on Columbus and my reason was based on what the city had to offer for "ME" and my life style now at age 48. I am still close to Parents only 86 miles from my moms door! (I have been there twice this week already so easy for me to do ) Now I am close to childhood friends and LOTS of family and I even have family here in Columbus. The Job Opportunity was better for me in my field here and the pay! I have retried once.........So now working on my second retirement which will be in the next 10 yrs. So at my age I will be retired twice with that income and have my full benefit for social security at age 67 ( if the leave me some after all my years of working and paying into it) So living here in Columbus based on that I should afford to live well here love the area of Canal Winchester. Now keep in mind I have live in and out of this country many places but I moved here from Northern VA where the cost of living is through the roof and the traffic was hell!!! took me 3hrs to go 17 miles each day!! Do I miss it heck NO!! so in my opinion get out do something if you are unhappy where you live make moves in your life don't just settle I didn't.........Now I am back in OHIO but it was My choice and yes I had choices......

[Cincy-Rise]

Originally Posted by JakChe

I've been here all of my life 22 yrs. I'm 23. Lived 1 yr in Alabama.

Cincinnati is boring. The clubs are blah. There are some fun things to do but not much. Not a lot of cultural diversity.
the city's misplaced priorities. I mean really? Streetcars? A new jail? Come on u guys. I kno u can find somethin better to do with my tax dollars.
Our city prosecuter, Joe Deters.
And the whole vibe of Cincinnati is like 1800's oppressive type.... My brothers went off to college. One in Dayton and one in Texas. And they both hate the feel of Cincinnati when they come back. They say its so boring and just not a happy place to be (for lack of better words). I've grown quite tired of this place too. And hope to pack my children up and run like mad as soon as I possibly can.

Blah ... blah ... blah



In reality, this speaks more about you than the city.

[cincinnatithompson]

Ditto, wife and I came back to the city of my birth (ok not the city but the Village of Indian Hill) due to family and friends. Our desire to start and family and be close to one of our folks and siblings drove us to Cincinnati over northern New Jersey. That said I own a successful business and it, along with my primary residence, is in the state of Nevada where the tax rate is right = 0%. Greater Cincinnati is a fantastic place to raise a family, but a terrible place to start a business of engage in capital investment - the latter if not soon addressed will destroy the former.

Jason

[Authenticity]

MBennie, I think that Columbus is an excellent choice! I also agree with your moving for family. I know quite a few people who retired from the Military in DC and started second careers. That's so cool! I separated in 1990 myself. I have always been the corporate type. Anyway...we moved to the mid-west region to be in a position to care for an elderly family member who had a major surgery. In the end she recovered completely and needs no assistance.

I would love to stay put but being here at 44 will not allow me to reach my financial targets for retirement with things being the way they are here. Columbus would have probably have been a better choice at the time but we had no idea about all that Columbus had to offer us.

My background is in finance and IT and we will be much better off economically back in DC even with the added expense my salary will more than make up for the difference. I am NOT looking forward to all that traffic and riding my brakes all the way to work (not to mention the loooog hours and rushed weekends). uugghhh!!!!

In eleven to fourteen years we will retire and go to a lower cost area or maybe go down to Ocean City and catch crabs!

Anyway, Congratulations and God Bless you.

[Liberty_420]

I would like to add my thoughts and findings to this thread.

My family relocated from the West about 3 years ago for work. We were very excited and loved the area. We settled in Liberty Twp and started the kids in the Lakota School district. After 3 years my oldest son who is now a Senior in HS is absolutley miserable. He has struggled to find any lasting friendships and ultimately has just one close friend. He has a good GPA and works and does have a girlfriend so its not as bad as he makes it sound, but he def. is not as happy.

My two daughters (now, 13 and 15) on the other hand couldnt be happier. One of my girls has become the social butterfly and the other has found friends through horses. Both girls are doing well in school acedemically and socially, much better then they were.

As for my wife and I, we couldnt be more unhappy. Here are our findings

- We are fairly outgoing but we have found it difficult to make aquaintences let alone friends.
- We have found that people are generally not interested in your well-being, just that you do well for them.
- In regard to taxes: if you do the math on the price of the home vs. what you pay... it stings.... - - Drivers will frustrate you
- There is not really any good food
- Greater Cincy infrastructure is NOT maintained well
- There are not many local/city activities (unless your a big drinker or sports fanatic)
- Locals are very critical of "outsiders"

I guess ultimately... Dont move here if you have kids older than 14 or you are a married couple looking for any social life other than sports and drinking.

[Joeytraveler]

If your looking for good food or things to do that aren't related to drinking or sports the first step would be to get out of liberty twp. Sadly lots of people seem to like tgi fridays and cookie cutter houses.

[flash3780]

Originally Posted by Liberty_420

- We are fairly outgoing but we have found it difficult to make aquaintences let alone friends.

I moved to Cincy 2 years ago and have found the opposite to be true. I can't speak for Liberty Township, but everyone I've met has been extremely welcoming. However, it can be intimidating being in a new place, and the suburbs aren't necessarily the best place to meet people. Your best bet might be to get out and try some clubs. I'm not sure of your interests, but here are a few random clubs:
http://www.tristatehikingclub.com/
Cincinnati Running: Runners' Club of Greater Cincinnati
Sailing with Cincinnati Model Yacht Club - West Chester, Ohio
Home Page of the Cincinnati Model Railway Club
Mt. Adams Yacht Club in Cincinnati, Ohio , MAYC , M.A.Y.C.
St. Peter in Chains Cathedral

There are tons more, but meeting people can be as hard or as easy as you make it. I'd recommend that you identify some of your interests and put yourself out there.

Originally Posted by Liberty_420

- We have found that people are generally not interested in your well-being, just that you do well for them.

I just have to disagree. I've found Cincinnatians to be very kind and generous.

Originally Posted by Liberty_420

- In regard to taxes: if you do the math on the price of the home vs. what you pay... it stings....

I completely agree, although it could be much worse. The best way out is to pay close attention to the taxes in an area before you buy a house. The City of Cincinnati offers an impressive tax abatement on renovated homes, which is well worth taking advantage of if you find an area that interests you.

Originally Posted by Liberty_420

- Drivers will frustrate you

Ha! I think I've seen someone describe Ohio drivers as "courteous to a fault," and that can't be more true. I lived in DC, and I'll take Cincinnati drivers any day of the week over that mess.

Originally Posted by Liberty_420

- There is not really any good food

Ok, well... I disagree. Strongly. Cincinnati has quite a few great restaurants ranging from Skyline to Izzys to Larosas to Izzys to Hathaways to Findley Market (!!!) to Mollie Malones to Palomino to Teak to Akash India to McCormick & Schmicks to Bootsy's to the Lav-O-Matic Cafe to Jeanro's to Nichola's to Primavista to the Celestial to Sung's Korean Bistro to Nada... well I could go on, but you get the idea. I'd recommend that you take your wife on an overnight date downtown at one of the fancy hotels; sounds like you're a bit isolated way out there in the suburbs. It'd be a great way to get a feel for the city.

Originally Posted by Liberty_420

- Greater Cincy infrastructure is NOT maintained well

Well, admittedly, the past 190 years have left parts of Cincinnati worse for wear. Nonetheless, I think that you'll find a lot of older large cities to have similar problems. The thing about infrastructure is, a lot of people prefer new "stuff" (especially houses and the like). So.... they move to suburbs. Older places become empty, and urban blight sets in. To me, I think you miss out on a lot of the charm of a city by living so far from it's center. I wish more people felt the way I do about old houses; the city would be simply amazing if all of the amazing Italianate architecture near downtown were restored, renovated, and updated.

Aside from the buildings lot of Cincinnati's older infrastructure is really REALLY great. I love to recommend the parks. Sawyer Point, Eden Park, the Krohn Conservatory, the Cincinnati Art Museum, Museum Center, the sports stadiums, the skyscrapers... There's a lot to like about Cincinnati's architecture and infrastructure, even though there's admittedly a lot to improve upon.

Originally Posted by Liberty_420

- There are not many local/city activities (unless your a big drinker or sports fanatic)

All you have to do is look Cincinnati has about every social activity that you can think of for (excluding anything that's geographically limiting, like skiing or something). If there's nothing going on in Cincinnati to tickle your fancy, you're 5-hours or less from Chicago, Indy, Toledo, Dayton, Columbus, Louisville, Lexington, Detroit, Cleveland... and probably a few others that I'm forgetting.

Originally Posted by Liberty_420

- Locals are very critical of "outsiders"

Eh? Not my experience at all.

Well, I hope that you take a second look at the city. I lived downtown before moving to Pleasant Ridge, and while I recognize quite a few of the problems, they pale in comparison to the great things going on. The city's as good as it's people. Cincinnatians are hard-working, friendly, down-home midwesterners. With the people I've met, I can't help but think that it's a city that's, without a doubt, going places.