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My boyfriend and I are ready for a change of scenery. I'm 27, he's 36. We currently live in Orlando and are ready to get out of Florida and to a more liberal area (more than likely, out west). He has lived in Portland, OR and liked it for the most part - but not sure he wants to move back.
Here is what we are looking for:
- University nearby (I will be returning to school after gaining residency status)
- not too conservative (we are not pro-lifers but we own guns)
- Tax Friendly (both personal and corporate)
- Bike / pedestrian friendly
- artistic community
- community feel
- farmer's markets
- music scene
- a lot of community activities
- bars like cheers - everybody knows your name
- not into the cold weather / snow so much
We own our own business and run it from home, so commute isn't an issue, however, we would like it to be tax friendly for obvious reasons (I have heard that "tax friendly" means Cali is out of the question). While affordability is always a question, we aren't on a super tight budget.
I would appreciate some insight. We would love to move sooner than later, although I'm sure we need to allow time to visit the city first.
I should clarify that by "out west" I just mean west of the Mississippi. I'm from Kentucky, he was born in West Virginia & grew up in Carolinas. We've done the Southeast thing and prefer to stay away from the Northeast. The west is the only place left since we're not ready to make the move abroad. We've looked at Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Washington, Oregon - just haven't found anything that is quite fitting the bill for us.
I should clarify that by "out west" I just mean west of the Mississippi. I'm from Kentucky, he was born in West Virginia & grew up in Carolinas. We've done the Southeast thing and prefer to stay away from the Northeast. The west is the only place left since we're not ready to make the move abroad. We've looked at Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, Washington, Oregon - just haven't found anything that is quite fitting the bill for us.
You could look into St. Louis. It is fairly liberal. There are Soulard Farmer's Market, Tower Grover Farmer's Market, Downtown Farmer's Market, Old North Farmer's Market. There may be a few more smaller ones. St. Louis built more bike paths around the city a few years ago. There are Saint Louis University and Washington University St. Louis. SLU is in the city. Washington Univ. is on the western border of the city I believe. There's also University of Missouri St. Louis north of the city. And I think there are a few community colleges dotted around the Metro. The MetroLink trains and MetroBus are okay, I think. However, you probably will need a car. You will get quite a bit of snow, though.
Not living in St. Louis, I don't know as much about community feel, activities, bars, music, or the arts. But if you asked on the St. Louis board I'm sure they could tell you all about it. And each neighborhood is unique as well.
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