Blue Ridge, GA - Progressive? (Atlanta, White: living, restaurants, floor)

[Tdiddy0027]

basically, all of north georgia, south georgia, and every suburb 20+ miles outside the city is conservative. We are extrememly conservative :-(

[LovinDecatur]

I still say give Dahlonega another look...it's not untouched by the 'flatlanders', but it's not suburban Atlanta by any means.

[itsallu]

Best title ever!

You won't find that town in the GA hills. I'm sure Cartersville has a Starbucks - that might work out

[irishvanguard]

Originally Posted by lastminutemom

First off, why do you think any part of N. GA is progressive? Georgia is probably the REDDEST state in the nation at this point.

Well, that is quite a distortion. Utah is by far the reddest state in the union. Furthermore, I don't know how you can overlook the 2 million Democratic voters who grade out in a 95% monolithic voting bloc. Ha ha! Time for a trip to the optometrist..........or shrink.

[rerooster]

Originally Posted by worldaway

We are considering moving to the Blue Ridge, GA area from N. California (San Jose/Silicon Valley area). I own my own technology-based business and should be able to work from home/online and commute the 90 minutes or so to the Atlanta airport when I have to go visit customers worldwide. We have visited the area several times, like it and have had fun and have family and friends in Atlanta area and in N. Georgia area as well.

My wife and I are both in our early 40s with no children. It seems like there are some retirees in the area there, but I am wondering if there are many younger people as well. I know the area also was traditionally conservative, but is that changing any? We're not tie-dyed tee shirt, birkenstock-wearing liberals by any means, but do appreciate diversity, progressive thinking and some "artsy" things. Blue Ridge seems to have a growing arts scene and the outdoor activities seem really great to be fairly close to Atlanta (and to a lesser degree, Chattanooga). Anyone else have any thoughts or experience with Blue Ridge?

The young people of worth RUN from this area as soon as they are able. If you value your sanity, your posessions and your ethics then Blue Ridge is NOT the place for you. The area includes Blue Ridge, Blairsville, Young Harris and Hiawassee. There is no social life, no amenities, no industry and and unless you sell dope or launder drug money there are no jobs.

If you appreciate diversity you probably won't be happy sitting in an isolated cabin or house and doing absolutely nothing for the rest of your life.

I don't mean to sound harsh, but why would you do that to yourself? You'll find out within days that you "ain't from around here" and are unwanted by the locals.

[buffalobill]

Moving from the San Jose area to anywhere in the South will be a culture shock for you - at least, initially. We left Orange County, CA in the mid '90s and relocated to the Raleigh, NC area in the hopes of escaping the rat race and soaring cost of living in CA. For the 10 yrs we lived in the Raleigh area we constanatly were reminded that we were not locals, and were often asked - "where are you from?" "why did you move here?" "what church do you attend?" It was a great disappointment for us to discover that Southern hospitality is but a myth in many parts of the South, and if it does exist in a particular community, it is often reserved for those who grew up there, and not for the dreaded newcomers. Just because Raleigh makes it onto many 'good places to live, yadda, yadda, yadda' lists does not mean that the stats are real. But, some folks like it there, esp if golf, college basketball, and the Baptist Church are their three main (and only) priorities! We now live in Cherokee County, GA and believe that we made a good move, overall.

Yes, most of the South is conservative, and for some folks, that's exactly what they want. The demographics of the US, and the South in particular are changing fast. Most any town or city with employment opportunities will have a growing Hispanic population. Crime exists to some degree everywhere. But, as my well traveled and street-wise father told me when he informed us many, many years ago that he was being transferred from Manhattan to Utica, NY (in the mid '50s), there are good people everywhere to befriend, new places to explore, and a local culture to investigate. Good advise as it turned out, but he left out the 'weather' issue!

Asheville, NC is a diverse city in more ways than one. Lots of local artists - mostly unemployed in their field, many underemployed MBAs working dumb jobs just so they can live in Asheville, one of the highest per capita number of alternate lifetstyle crowds, and lots of retirees mixed in with a like number of young kids - from 'hey-dude' types to college students. Don't even try and compare Asheville with eastern North Carolina, however. Asheville is not at all conservative compared to the Raleigh area, provided you don't include the outlying areas, as you'll be quickly reminded that you're amongst mountain people. Not that there's anything wrong with that - it's just different. Not unlike some of the small communities in the Santa Cruz Mtns between San Jose and Santa Cruz - if you're familiar with that area.

Blue Ridge is in a beautiful area, but I doubt if it will ever be a progressive community. Consider that it might take you (and your family) more than one move to find the kind of locale where you will want to live, esp when one makes a drastic move such as from San Jose to north GA. My sister-in-law is making a similar move from LA to Cherokee County next year, and already purchased a house here and is slowly getting adjusted to the slower and friendlier pace in north GA by visiting several times a year. We laugh and realize that observing her adjustments is similar to reviewing how we must have appeared when we went thru such a transition!

As far as Cherokee County is concerned - it's worth a look, for it's a fast growing area just out of the nutso rat race in metro Atlanta. Terrific shopping for most anything within 15-20 minutes, very affordable (esp compared to pricey San Jose!) housing, a strong local economy, friendly people, and we've yet to be asked "where are you from?", and "why did you move here?" Traffic is only an issue at rush hour, and even then, it's not bad. The Atlanta airport is 45-60 minutes away during most hours of the day. The weather is less humid than most of the South, and winters are mild. And, there's a good chance that with the money you save when you unload your house in San Jose, and then purchase one twice as large on some acerage around here, you'd still have some money left over for a weekend cabin in Blue Ridge.

[worldaway]

Originally Posted by rerooster

The young people of worth RUN from this area as soon as they are able. If you value your sanity, your posessions and your ethics then Blue Ridge is NOT the place for you. The area includes Blue Ridge, Blairsville, Young Harris and Hiawassee. There is no social life, no amenities, no industry and and unless you sell dope or launder drug money there are no jobs.

If you appreciate diversity you probably won't be happy sitting in an isolated cabin or house and doing absolutely nothing for the rest of your life.

I don't mean to sound harsh, but why would you do that to yourself? You'll find out within days that you "ain't from around here" and are unwanted by the locals.

But aren't there already alot of "outsiders" already coming into this area? When we have visited, I recall many, many Floridians living all around up there. Is the local dynamic changing ANY? It would seem that it would have to with the outer suburbs if Atlanta about an hour away and these mountains being about the closest ones in proximity to the state of Florida. Why do the "locals" resent others so much, or do some people just want to play that up so people won't move in so fast and they can try to keep it all to themselves? I read recently from a respected source where over the next 40 years the triangle between Charlotte, NC, Atlanta and Chattanooga is projected to be the fastest growing area in the ENTIRE USA! So it sould seem many of these folks that may be so set in their ways and fearful of outsiders and change may have a rude awakening coming! As far as the dopeheads and no jobs - that seems to be a small town problem many, many places not just north Georgia. But the difference seems to me at least that North Georgia has an industry (tourism) that will come into play more and more and provide some opportunity for those locals so industrious to participate in a rising economy, providing services to tourist or affluent retirees. Aren't the towns in that area preparing themselves for this opportunity? Many towns all across America would kill to have the "problem" of too many "outsiders" moving in. Besides, last time I checked there was no passport control between California and Georgia, or North Carolina or Tennessee.

[LovinDecatur]

Originally Posted by worldaway

But aren't there already alot of "outsiders" already coming into this area? When we have visited, I recall many, many Floridians living all around up there. Is the local dynamic changing ANY? It would seem that it would have to with the outer suburbs if Atlanta about an hour away and these mountains being about the closest ones in proximity to the state of Florida.

Besides the great scenery, I think that a lot of people that have moved there like the fact that the locals there embrace old-fashioned values. I have two uncles there that upon moving immediately joined the local Methodist church and got in lockstep with the local culture.
Someone that isn't like-minded to the community will likely move somewhere else. And those 'outer suburbs' of Atlanta are just about as conservative as Blue Ridge...I've read that it's considered the most conservative congressional district outside of Orange County, CA.

[go falcons]

There is a site called [b][i]Turn Left.com that you might want to check out with some of the things you are looking for.

[dave k]

Originally Posted by worldaway

We are considering moving to the Blue Ridge, GA area from N. California (San Jose/Silicon Valley area). I own my own technology-based business and should be able to work from home/online and commute the 90 minutes or so to the Atlanta airport when I have to go visit customers worldwide. We have visited the area several times, like it and have had fun and have family and friends in Atlanta area and in N. Georgia area as well.

My wife and I are both in our early 40s with no children. It seems like there are some retirees in the area there, but I am wondering if there are many younger people as well. I know the area also was traditionally conservative, but is that changing any? We're not tie-dyed tee shirt, birkenstock-wearing liberals by any means, but do appreciate diversity, progressive thinking and some "artsy" things. Blue Ridge seems to have a growing arts scene and the outdoor activities seem really great to be fairly close to Atlanta (and to a lesser degree, Chattanooga). Anyone else have any thoughts or experience with Blue Ridge?

Have you looked at Anderson Creek Resort, in Ellijay?
www.andersoncreekresort.com (broken link)
Dave