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I'm kind of surprised you are looking at Greenville, and Kansas City, and somewhere in Arizona, and Missoula MT, and other cities that don't seem to have anything in common. when you say you can live anywhere, you really mean it!
Assuming you interest is genuine, I explained it elsewhere, like this:
WHERE? I want to keep about 5-10 locations on my list, and then visit most of them on my trip, which could last for a few weeks.
The criteria are a bit idiosyncratic - to say the least - but a basic requirement is the possibility of living Carfree. None of them are on the coasts, and most are in the area near Charlotte NC. But I wanted to have some alternative areas of the country, so I added some other locations, like KC, plus a few other areas where I have friends or family.
(Locations rejected):
+ Serenbe, near Atlanta GA (carfree problems)
+ Rock Hill SC (carfree problems)
+ Ann Arbor MI (too cold, for me to accept the small size of the walkable area)
+ Prospect City, near Longwood CO (transport issues; Boulder: too expensive)
+ Sedona, near Flagstaff AR (transport, again)
(Top Locations still being considered)
+ Denver CO
+ Charlotte NC (and one place to the North of CLT)
+ Asheville NC (and a nearby town)
("Added" locations, or lower likelihood)
+ Kansas City, MO : I like what I heard so far, may upgrade to a "Top" location
+ Greenville, SC : Downgraded, because of small size of carfree area
+ Columbus, OH : early stage search
+ Missoula, MT : early stage search
There are some other cities too, which I am still pondering.
I am sure that many folk who read this will find the list strange. There are many different criteria and a long time has good into thinking about some of these loactions, while others have been added recently, with much less work. I have also kept 2-3 non-US locations on the backburner until now.
BTW, I wanted to add some new locations, as I reject some old ones. But the Mods here have threatened to ban me from CD, if I create another Carfree thread. Apparently, they are concerned that I am abusing people's goodwill by asking the sorts of questions I ask here. I requested a better explanation, and they have pointed me to the rules. You cannot "fight City-Data hall", I suppose. So I will accept that restriction.
If anyone here feels that I have abused your generousity by starting this thread, send my a message, and I will apologize in return.
If others found it interesting and useful, that makes me happy.
I think you are doing the right thing, Geologic, by taking Greenville out of the running (or at least downgrading it). It has a few things going for it, but you can find less car-centric locales elsewhere. Politically, that is a very "conservative" area, too, so that's probably not going to change anytime soon.
One of the few things I liked about living in Greenville was the ability to to drive to certain mountain parks and waterfall areas, even though those drives were a little long for my preference. I'm not crazy about driving, but being stuck in Greenville and not able to take my favorite hikes would have been awful!
I wish you the best of luck finding the best future home for you and your SO.
Location: South Carolina - staying with brother in Columbia
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fishoutofwaterinSC
I think you are doing the right thing, Geologic, by taking Greenville out of the running (or at least downgrading it). It has a few things going for it, but you can find less car-centric locales elsewhere. Politically, that is a very "conservative" area, too, so that's probably not going to change anytime soon.
One of the few things I liked about living in Greenville was the ability to to drive to certain mountain parks and waterfall areas, even though those drives were a little long for my preference. I'm not crazy about driving, but being stuck in Greenville and not able to take my favorite hikes would have been awful!
I wish you the best of luck finding the best future home for you and your SO.
You can hike at Paris Mountain State Park right in Greenville, although a somewhat boring trail system. no real good views up there.
I think you are doing the right thing, Geologic, by taking Greenville out of the running (or at least downgrading it). It has a few things going for it, but you can find less car-centric locales elsewhere. Politically, that is a very "conservative" area, too, so that's probably not going to change anytime soon.
One of the few things I liked about living in Greenville was the ability to to drive to certain mountain parks and waterfall areas, even though those drives were a little long for my preference. I'm not crazy about driving, but being stuck in Greenville and not able to take my favorite hikes would have been awful!
I wish you the best of luck finding the best future home for you and your SO.
Thanks, and I get your point.
As I said before, I don't rule out owning car. I simply do not want to need an automobile to maintain a lively and interesting quality of life.
AS I stated in the Original Post: "There must be people in the area, who enjoy the wonderful freedom of living a car-free life, and are willing to share some of their secrets."
I got some very useful information here, but not many folks stepped forward to explain how they were living a rich life, without needing their cars.
To me, it is a shame that so few communities in the US offer people an appealing carfree living alternative. They day may come when many may regret that fact.
Since many seem to rely so much on their cars, I wonder how they will react, if/when gasoline prices rise to $10 and beyond?
There would be much grousing about how the [president @ the time] can't control gas prices, but other than that, not much change. Perhaps a bit of carpooling, combining trips and fewer driving getaway weekend vacations. The biggest effect would be on those already struggling to pay bills.
Public transportation uses energy, and the cost of that energy would go up also, requiring a tax increase.
You can hike at Paris Mountain State Park right in Greenville, although a somewhat boring trail system. no real good views up there.
Somehow I seemed to pick up ticks several times on Paris Mountain and not on other trails around. I also didn't find it gave enough of a steady elevation change for me. And while I was there, they even leveled off one of the few steep sections I liked, for erosion control. Against my better judgment, I helped out with that trail work.
I admit I found Paris Mtn. a somewhat suitable place to go on days I could not make it to Jones Gap or Table Rock, though. I haven't been back for a while, so I'm not sure if things have changed, but I enjoyed the trail that paralleled the stream, and the log crossing of another stream was challenging enough to be interesting for me. It was mainly the lack of sustained elevation change in the trail system that kept me driving out of town.
(For the OP, that is definitely a place you could enjoy with less driving, if you were in Greenville.)
Or Boston or NY? I grew up in NY and found it very easy to take a bus to the nearby parks to go hiking. You can take the LIRR to get to places on LI, and other trains (don't remember what they're called!) to get to Westchester. I guess this is off-topic but I honestly don't know why the OP would consider Greenville if he wants to be car-free.
if you can live anywhere why not just stay in Hong Kong?
I'm assuming you can walk or use mass transit there.
Sure. Mass transit in Hong Kong is probably the best in the world.
But after living so many years overseas, I am ready to- at least- try living in the US again.
Also, Hong Kong property has become very expensive, and if I sell my HK property and invest just half of it in the US, I can buy something larger and nicer. This has been my plan for some years.
My hope is that the US would begin to transition towards a less car-dependent living arrangement, as oil prices rose. And I see some evidence that this change is occurring*; though you may not know it from this thread.
(He refers to developments in Atlanta. But the same would apply to any city.)
A good mass transport system can drive future property investment, while providing a nice "insurance policy" against rising oil prices. I have watched how transport development in cities like London and Hong Kong has benefitted property investors in those two cities. After the property bust of the last few years, many US cities are now ready for this type of pro-growth development IMHO.
=== ===
*Another sign of change: Young people are driving less, and fewer are even getting driver licenses: ...For the first time since World War II, Americans are driving less. The report shows that by 2011, the average American was driving 6 percent fewer miles per year than in 2004.
This trend away from driving is even more pronounced among young people. The average young person (age 16-34) drove 23 percent fewer miles in 2009 than the average young person in 2001. The report also notes that a growing number of young Americans do not have driver’s licenses; from 2000 to 2010, the share of 14 to 34-year-olds without a license increased from 21 percent to 26 percent.
===
/link: http://www.uspirg.org/news/usp/new-r...tation-options
This represents a real sea-change. And as usual, the young are leading it.
Last edited by Geologic; 03-02-2013 at 05:29 PM..
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Against my better judgment, I helped out with that trail work. 
