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Please don't take offense. It's just what I noticed as a visitor and a planner. I'm not going to lie.
None taken. We are working on making the whole city as nice as downtown, its an ongoing process. I think they just passed or are working on a special tax for fixing local roads. Not state related.
None taken. We are working on making the whole city as nice as downtown, its an ongoing process. I think they just passed or are working on a special tax for fixing local roads. Not state related.
Downtown doesn't need improving. The immediate outskirts needs improving, and the law enforcement needs to lighten up! I'm not saying people don't need to be enforced (myself included) but they need to back off, When people see a cop they feel threatened whether they are doing something wrong or not. It's a real detriment to the local image. I have bitched about the lack of law enforcement where I come from so it may seem contradictory, but I think I would rather have the 'every man for it' way of driving like where I come from than having every single cop looking over my shoulder in the most conservative state in the Union. Like I said, I think Greenville, downtown, is ****ing awesome! Everything else needs some major major work. I wish they would hire me. I love these kind of projects.....
Sounds like somebody got a ticket for something.....
I do agree that the roads need improvement in the area - many are in dire need of resurfacing. That is a direct result of one of the lowest gas taxes in the US (only Alaska and NJ are lower). The roads in NC aren't a whole lot better to be honest. They are a bit better but when you consider that NC has a gas tax that is over 20 cents a gallon higher, the roads in NC are definitely not that much better. The NC gas tax is also indexed to the average wholesale price of gas every 6 months. So if the price of gas goes up, the tax automatically increases without anyone voting on the increase! NC is notorious for stealing money out of the state gas tax to fund other non-road related projects, which is why their much higher tax results in only marginally better roads.
Jjfiveoh, I couldn't have put it better myself. I moved from WNC to greenville a few years ago and agree with everything you said. We are looking for a house in Asheville now and as soon as we find one will be moving back. Best of luck in your search!
The roads were one of the cons I mentioned. I've learned which ones are worse, and which lanes are worse. That's one of the issues with the lack of an Interstate to Asheville- Hwy 25 takes a beating from the truck traffic. In a recent trip to the northeast, though, I found the roads in PA to be the worst anywhere. I nearly lost control of my van on I-81 due to the rough roads.
I haven't noticed a heavy police presence- no worse than the part of FL we came from.
I appreciate your honesty about your experience. We are mostly cheerleaders on this forum, and sometimes people turn a blind eye to issues.
Thanks for your review! An observation about the cops: prior to about a year ago, it would be common to spend some time downtown and never see a cop. Because of several crime incidents last year, the city and business owners decided to increase police presence. The result is that it's difficult to drive or walk through downtown without seeing many cops. Although crime is relatively low, the police presence acts as a deterrence to crime as well as being able to respond quickly to any incident.
I think the ratio of law enforcement in Greenville County is about the same as anywhere.
The part about reimbursement from the state for each inmate is interesting - what part of the city / county budget does this come under, or where is this documented in more detail?
JJ was here over the holiday week and weekend. I suspect he encountered the roving "saturation group" that is put in place before most holidays, to combat DUI drivers. I ran up on them several times over the course of the week. Heavy concentrations of LEOS, with multiple stopped drivers. City, county and state LEO's have all been known to participate in the past.
I'll agree on the roads needing attention, but driving 5 miles outside any metropolitan area, one tends see a loss quaint charms and and increase in a more obvious, gritty, function over form, reality. I spent too many years working around the underbellies of numerous cities to take JJ's assertions at face value. I strongly suspect that his personal agenda has yet to be revealed... just sayin'.
Let me just start off by saying that I have been looking for an area to relocate to between Greenville and Knoxville. That's the way it started off, I've recently widened my area, and then narrowed it down to the western NC area.
I've been to western NC many times in my life, I've also been to Jackson/Aiken probably 12 time in my life to race. I've heard many things about Greenville that caught my attention. When I looked at the home prices, the taxes, the cost of living and the job market..... I thought there must be a catch. My initial thought was that it resides in South Carolina which in and of itself gives it a bad name.
As many times as I've been to the WNC area and southern SC area, I really only spent an overnight in Greenville and didn't get a chance to check it all out. With that said, I got a chance to check it all out. I am extremely impressed with downtown. Main street and the surrounding blocks are rocking. Any residential areas within a 5 mile radius is really great to see because most homes haven't been touched and neither have the trees. And we're going back 70-100 years of homes. Downtown has great offering in terms of great local food, just enough late night entertainment and some great billiard halls. Downtown Live brings together some local live bands and props up local businesses. Between Knoxville, Asheville and Greenville...... I think Greenville is the best pedestrian city. With the tree coverage, it's comfortable to everybody even in the heat of the summer and everything is close. Asheville and Knoxville might offer more overall, you don't need to be offered more in terms of the city.
Now the bad news. I am an urban planner by trade so I look at thing like taxes, policies, home prices, etc.... when analyzing a city. I thought for a while that I found the one place that didn't have a 'catch' and I wanted to see for myself. Well, it turns out it does have a 'catch'. South Carolina loves to pride itself as the most conservative state in the Union in terms of fiscal policies. That very well may be, but it also doesn't mention how conservative it can get. Greenville has a deal with the state since it is the fastest growing city business-wise, that they can get $300 per inmate/per day. Since they thrive to rely on not getting federal funding. That means there are cops EVERYWHERE! Which is quite ironic in itself that trying to be the most conservative state that they have Big Brother breathing down their backs.
Here is where things get dicey. Infrastructure is terrible! They can get away with it downtown because traffic is slow. But once you get outside of downtown it gets worse. Once you get outside the 5 mile radius, you're on your own. Citizens that love the 'fiscal conservative' thing must love what they are dealt with because the infrastructure is 1950's variety. I haven't seen roads and highways this bad since I left Buffalo..... at least they have an excuse because they salt the roads 4 months out of the year.
I've been through most areas of SC and I was far from impressed. I hoped that Greenville would change my mind. Downtown did...... but that was it. Unless you live within a 5 mile radius and have no plans to go outside that radius, you are fine. But, there is a fine line between being taxed too much and being taxed too little. SC is being taxed too little. The entire state is a hole. The 'good ole boy' network is in full swing in SC. I will not come through SC again unless I have to race in Jackson. When I left, I hit 276 to Waynesville and you could tell where the state line was immediately without even looking at signs. Nothing is kept up in SC, no landscaping, no infrastructure, only cops looking to make the state a buck. At first I thought maybe SC got a bad rep for being in the deep south......... I tried to give them credit until I experienced it. The locals are hardcore, miserable to the point where they try to bring everybody down with their misery. They know they live in a state that saves them a buck in taxes, and they won't let it fly no matter how bad they have it. Greenville is an AWESOME downtown, but don't go there looking for an area to spread your entertainment. When people say SC is a hole, they are correct.
Awesome post! Your honest opinion is appreciated. Everyone has a right to their own opinion. I know some people will take offense but it's only fair to you.
Anyhow, I can agree with many things you've said. Let me say, I like a lot of things in Greenville and no place is perfect. As for the cops, yes we noticed them downtown when they have events. Outside of that, we really don't see too many. In FL, we used to see 1-2 at each light you came to. Landscaping was a big change here and as you stated, outside of downtown, it definitely needs improvement.
It's taking a while to meet friends here. Many of the locals here, not ALL, tend to be stand offish. They still have the north/south thing going on. That's fine if that is what they believe. Once they realize that you are not from here, they can be cold to you. They can be cliquish as well. That being said, we have met a few locals that have been friendly to us. In FL, we were able to meet friends right away when we moved there. I don't want to make this a FL vs SC thread, though.
Outside of those couple things, we are enjoying Greenville. Like I said, downtown is great. There are a few local hangouts outside of downtown we like as well. The weather is great. It does need improvement in certain areas but from what I've learned, it's come a long way. You gave it a fair chance and as Redcliffe put it, it's not for everyone. I don't want to offend anyone withl my opinions either, it's just what I've experienced so far.
You should apply for a job here.
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