Please help (Columbia, Greenville, Central: extended stay, apartments, hotels)

[Leaving Louisiana!!!]

My wife and I are currently living in Baton Rouge LA. After katrina moved in so did everyone else! We were already planning on leaving just not this soon. We are both 27 years old. I am what you would call a "handyman". I can do a little of it all when it has to do with construction. My wife has a bachelor in Psychology and has been working at a Woman's Wellness Center for the past 4 years. We wouldnt know anyone in Greenville so we would be all alone trying to make it. Is Greenville a place my wife and I could easily find employment? Or is it very hard to find work there? Katrina has made the jobs in baton rouge slim to none. We can not seem to get ahead here. Not to mention all of the negative attitudes. Please respond to this so we will have a better idea of what greenville is like. THANK-YOU

[jmarquise]

I am in the process in hopefully moving from NC to the greenville area myself. I have only been there once but absolutely love it. the town was great and the people I ran into were really nice. jobs should be pretty abundant considering the size of the area. somebody from the area will chime in!

[Skyliner]

There is no better place in this state to find employment and nice housing at an affordable price. I encourage you to visit the city and the Upstate area to see if it would be right for you. Greenville's job market is very dynamic, considering it is the center of a steadily growing region on a very major southeastern artery, I-85.

[Benika Young]

I have been born, raised, and still developing success in Greenville for 27 yrs, and never had a thought of moving. The weather is beautiful and truly amazing, we have some funny days where it is 70 in December and days in April where you may get one last wear of your winter coat. The job market has grown tremendously as well as education in our market. Construction is booming all around us. I would encourage you to visit Greenville, SC. I will not be moving myself, this is the place I dreamed of raising my children. There are wonderful neighborhoods, being a realtor for a 4 years I know first hand, if you decide to visit base yourself on the Eastside of Greenville possibly at one of Marriott Extended Stay Hotels they are very comfortable and to me provide good service, or Downtown Greenville, which is another thing I love, it doen't matter where you are in Greenville, you can make it across town in less than 20 minutes. I really do love Greenville, SC.

[Tommy1981]

I agree with Benika.

I was born and rasied in a small town about an hour south of Greenville. We had to go to Greenville at times for shopping trips. My brother and I both lived in Greenville for several years in our 20's and really loved it there. There are tons of nicer apartments where you could live if you're not ready to get a house right away.

Ironically, both myself and my brother ended up leaving Greenville for one reason or another. In my case it was a woman. I'm in Columbia now and married to her. I'm very happy here, but I'd move back to Greenville in a hurry if my wife had a better job there. Her field is quite specialized, and the job she has in Columbia is pretty hard to find.

Greenville has several things that make it great. The downtown area is probably at the top of the list. The city planners have done quite a nice job to keep the downtown area open for restaurants, bars, and other small retail shops that has kept a nice volume of foot traffic in downtown Greenville. Several years ago they brought minor league baseball back to Greenville with a 1A team from Boston, complete with a "mini-Fenway" within walking distance of downtown. The renovation of Reedy Falls Park in the last 10 years has also enhanced the west side of downtown. Greenville also has tons of cultral events in the park, or downtown area. Concerts, art exhibits, food, children rides, etc. They have a very nice arena, the Bilo Center, that brings national acts, bands, and hosts hockey and basketball games. The Peace Center hosts Broadway on Tour shows and other cultral "black tie" events. On top of all that, they have one of the best malls in the state in Haywood Mall.

Man, I'm really missing Greenville now.

[Skyliner]

That is a good post, Tommy1981. The only thing I would add is that the "mini Fenway" ballpark (the field really is laid out exactly to the original specs) is in the eclectic and historic West End district of downtown, also part of the Central Business District. Falls Park on the Reedy is also in the West End, not in the less desirable Westside.

Side note: If you are interested in going to a baseball game at 'Fluor Field at the West End' (the ballpark's new name), I highly recommend it. Fridays when they display fireworks are especially great.