Reverse Commute? Hip parts of town? (Virginia Beach, Norfolk: crime, job market, schools)

[the age]

I am considering a job in NN and have read quite a few threads here trying to get a feel for the area and figure out where to live. I'm a bit of a city-slicker and schools aren't an issue for me. From what I can gather, I'd definitely be most interested in living in Ghent. Is the commute out of Norfolk in the morning be as much of a nightmare as the commute in? How long of a commute would this be? Are there any places in NN or Hampton that a young, eclectic, single, non-military fellow should consider living in?

Also, I have a job offer in Atlanta.......all other things being equal, should I even consider Norfolk? (I've read horror stories about both places)

[damian]

Ghent is about 25 to 30 minutes from the Peninsula (Hampton, NN, York, etc) with no traffic. Outbound in the morning from Norfolk is ok, but inbound in the PM can still be pretty bad, especially in the summer. Unfortunately most of the peninsula is pretty suburban, but you can check out city center in Newport News as well as Port warwick.

[ellar]

I was raised in the northeast and have lived in the Atlanta area for more than a decade and am now in the process of moving to Hampton Roads. Some things you may want to consider--Atlanta is much larger than Norfolk. Partially because of its size though, it seems to have a little less southern hospitality (i.e. is less friendly) than Virginia eventhough it is much farther south. The Atlanta area is more diverse because it has many immigrants from all different cultures. In addition, Atlanta has a better job market and more affordable housing, particularly in the suburbs. We are paying much more for much less in Virginia. If you like intown living, I would recommend looking at Virginia Highland, Decatur or Buckhead in Atlanta (though those areas can be much pricier than the suburbs). Ghent and Largmont (spelling) were the nicest areas I saw in Norfolk itself. I had many people though warn me about avoiding bridges and tunnels during commutes in Hampton Roads. That brings up the fact that Hampton Roads is of course much more of a water town. Atlanta is about five hours from the beach. The only water in the area is Lake Lanier. To make up for the lack of geographic entertainment, Atlanta though has a done a good job of creating "town centers" inside and outside the city. I live in Suwanee now which was recently voted by Money magazine as being one of the top ten towns to live in the U.S. (Virginia Beach won this distinction for cities in 2006). Suwanee, like other area towns, has created a center that gives you a bit of a city feel without the crime or the other problems related to the city. The traffic though is absolutely horrible here, so you do need to watch where you live. It is one of the worse places in the country for traffic, so Hampton Roads would be better in that regard. Hampton Roads of course will also keep you closer to the larger cities in the northeast. Both areas definitely have pluses and minuses. It depends what your priorities are. Good luck with your decision.