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I would like advice and information about the following three cities: Knoxville, TN; Chattanooga, TN; and Greenville, SC. I am looking to move in 1.5-2.5 years to one of these areas and would love information about and comparison of them. I currently live in Orlando, FL and have also lived in Gainesville and Tallahassee FL. I grew up in a small town in eastern Kansas in the rolling hills area. I have also lived in New Jersey for a couple years. So I have lived in a variety of areas and sizes of cities.
I am looking to get out of FL and I really want a change of scenery as well as type of community/culture/attitude of the area. I’d like to get back to the more Midwestern culture/attitude, but without the harsh weather. I am not a fan of winter, but really can’t stand the long hot humid summers anymore. So I am looking for milder winter to get the best of all 4 seasons that I miss seeing. I’ve compared weather in areas and know what to expect. Basically the areas would be similar to Tallahassee or Gainesville if you took the 3 hottest summer months of the year there and made them colder than the coldest winter months. I think I would rather bundle up to go outside and just spend the time inside in heat than having to stay inside in a/c and sweating by just walking out the front door.
I am a 30 year old single white professional female. I know most people my age anywhere are married even with children. It would be nice if there were some people in the area my age that are still single. I am not really into bars/night life scene. I am much more of a homebody than that. I am not really religious, but am not bothered by those who are. I have gone off and on to church in the past and when I go it is most Sundays. I never am one to go every single Sunday or multiple times a week. I know and expect these areas to be much more religious than where I am currently, I just would hope that people in the area wouldn’t look down on me for not being as religious. I also do not listen to country music, but I am not bothered by it either. I actually listen to rock music, but you would never know that by meeting me. I am just wondering if I would be out of place in any of these areas due to those things?
I want to live in a midsize city (around 350,000-700,000 for the metro area not just city). It looks like all 3 cities are toward the upper end of this range. All the other cities around the eastern TN and northwestern SC area seem to be much smaller than this range. Ideally I would like to be within 2 hour drive to a larger city. I’d like to get away from all traffic, crime, fast paced living, and rudeness that is around me while still having a good amount of things to do. I would like to live near the mountains and be within a 1-1.5 hour drive to them for hiking, etc. It’s kind of hard to find out how far a drive it is to the mountains online due to traffic, etc. Can you tell me how far it is from the three cities I’m interested in? I’m planning to take a trip to visit all 3 cities and decide which area I like best. Then I will search for a job prior to moving. I have heard finding jobs in these areas can be tough, but I would not move without having a job lined up. That is why I am looking to move in 1.5-2.5 years, so I have time to do this.
We moved here 5 years ago. Have never regretted it. We have lived all over the Eastern US (I am a corporate mercenary). Greenville is 'just right'. Weather, economy, geography, you name it ..... Greenville wins in most discussions that address the totality of the question.
In general, Knoxville and Greenville, SC are quite comparable as their populations (metro) are nearly identical. Within the past year, Knoxville's retail scene has exploded: Whole Foods, Costco, Trader Joe's, and Publix have all announced new stores (Greenville/Upstate SC have all of these stores). Knoxville does not have a REI (Greenville, SC has the only SC store). Knoxville is about an hour west of Gatlinburg and Greenville, SC is a little over an hour south of Asheville. (I'd rather live close to Asheville than Gatlinburg). TN has no state income tax and no annual auto/"ad-valorem" taxes. TN also has a statewide tobacco ban.
Chattanooga is by far the most scenic of the three cities but is somewhat smaller with fewer amenities. However, Chattanooga has an amazing revitalized downtown (much like Greenville's downtown).
Last edited by drfranklin; 12-09-2011 at 04:55 PM..
If you really want to be 2 hours to a larger city, that rules Knoxville out. Proximity to mountains - Knoxville, then Greenville, then Chattanooga. Greenville is a little closer to the foothills but Knoxville is closest to the higher elevations.
Probably any of the 3 would meet your needs you are wise to visit all 3 and see if one really feels more like home.
You're going to find a lot of this information already on the forum. In fact we get this specific comparison question quite a bit.
I've lived in Orlando and can tell you that all three cities are still hot and humid but not as much as there. Knoxville would be the coolest of the three.
You can get to the Smokies in about 45 or so, the Cumberlands in a bit less but it would depend on where you live, of course.
Latest unemployment figures are 8.4 for Greenville, 7.9 for Chattanooga and 7.0 for Knoxville. Knox County's is 6.7. Compare that with 9.8 for Orlando.
I'm not religious or conservative and I do just fine. The rural areas of Tennessee may be a a different story but Knoxville is very diverse, open and accepting.
We have a very nice arts scene and have far more music than country. In fact that's not the norm.
Our city is very small, especially the downtown core, but it is lovingly restored and vibrant, more so than Orlando's.
Of course no matter which forum this post is in, each city members will be voting for their own city as I'm sure you realize. Ultimately it will depend on what feels right for you. And of course if you can get a good job in your profession it will make a difference in where you land as well. What do you do for a living?
Thanks for all the information. I know the comparision thing is seen a lot and I really appreciate you taking the time to answer and be so friendly even though you probably do it alot! Sometimes it is great to get a fresh perspective and it good to get a comparison bases on the individual things you are looking at to make the decision.
Definately learned new things to think about that I hadn't read about the places before. I've been in different parts of FL for the past 13 years and honestly haven't really traveled outside of it, but rarely during that time. I really had no idea that there were some states that still allowed smoking in restaurants! That gives me another thing to think about. Here even some of the university campuses are going to no smoking anywhere on university land!! I know this since I was at UF when they started this on the medical campuses first. I am a veterinarian for a living. Usually as long as you go to a place that has some population growth you can find a job. Of course in this economy its hard to find jobs anywhere in most professions! I moved around about every 4 years growing up with a father in the miliatary, and I am looking to find a place to settle down. I hope to find a place that I'm happy to stay for 30 or more years. I don't want to be in a small town right now, but also want the place to be small enough that over 30+ years there is room for population growth without it become too large for me either. Orlando is too large for me now to live happily, but it is great to visit.
I heard a lot about UT football being one of the most important things in Knoxville. It sounds a lot like the way Gainesville is with UF. I'm wondering if you can live in Knoxville without feeling out of place or left out if you aren't into that. Is it difficult to get around town on football weekends? Would you have to avoid doing things on football weekends unless you were planning on participating in the gameday activities? After 4 years of college and 4 years of veterinary schoool, I'm kinda over being in the college atmosphere. I do love some of what colleges bring to town though. I lived in Manhattan, KS when I was younger (with Kansas State there) and I didn't feel the effects of the college being there in a bad way at all. What are of town do the college kids stick to for living?
I heard a lot about UT football being one of the most important things in Knoxville. It sounds a lot like the way Gainesville is with UF. I'm wondering if you can live in Knoxville without feeling out of place or left out if you aren't into that. Is it difficult to get around town on football weekends? Would you have to avoid doing things on football weekends unless you were planning on participating in the gameday activities? After 4 years of college and 4 years of veterinary schoool, I'm kinda over being in the college atmosphere. I do love some of what colleges bring to town though. I lived in Manhattan, KS when I was younger (with Kansas State there) and I didn't feel the effects of the college being there in a bad way at all. What are of town do the college kids stick to for living?
Even a lot of U.T. students aren't into football. You won't be out of place at all if you're not a college football fan here. Knoxville is considerably larger than Gainesville, so on football Saturdays you'll be inconvenienced only if you want to do something in the neighborhoods around campus. Otherwise, you won't notice any difference anywhere else in town.
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its - possession
it's - contraction of it is
your - possession
you're - contraction of you are
their - possession
they're - contraction of they are
there - referring to a place
loose - opposite of tight
lose - opposite of win
who's - contraction of who is
whose - possession
alot - NOT A WORD
I live close to Greenville SC and I'm from FL. I think G'ville can be a nice place to to live. Cost of living is really cheap, but again, the pay is going to be less than Orlando. Actually it's probably just as cheap to live in Orlando now, with the housing bust, etc. I've tried to like Greenville and I do, but outside of the downtown area, I just dont think it's as neat and clean as Orlando.
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). TN has no state income tax and no annual auto/"ad-valorem" taxes. TN also has a statewide tobacco ban. 
