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In response to the OP's question, I would say that I live in VB and find it to be one of the worst places I have ever lived. This is, of course, just my opinion. I have lived in NorCal, SoCal, Kansas City, Denver, St. Louis, and Farmington, NM. Now I have been living in VB for over a year and I am looking for a way out of here.
My opinion of this city is that it puts no effort into much of anything except keeping the military here. Somebody mentioned the beer scene being entertaining here. That's funny to me because coming here from Kansas City, we wondered if anybody even knew what craft beer was. It's nearly impossible to find a fun place to drink craft beers. That's not to say there are no bars like that, but they are few and far between in comparison to KC.
VB seems to have little incentive to bring innovative and fun entertainment to the area. You don't have to do any of that when you have a constant supply of people and money forced to be here by the military. Are there parks? Sure, there's some parks (Mt. Trashmore, First Landing, etc.), but I'm not overly impressed by any of them.
I am a cyclist and try to get out on my bike frequently when I am home (a few days a week since I travel for work). This is by far the worst city I have ever been to as a cyclist. The traffic is heavy pretty much all the time everywhere. The drivers are easily the worst in any city I've lived. Most roads have no shoulder and no bike lane. Instead, this city has bike/ped paths next to some of the major roads that are basically like a double-wide sidewalk. I have nothing against these being there, but I think the city views them as a viable option to allow cycling in this city. If any cyclists read this, they need to explanation as to why these paths are practically worthless.
What's worse, is on many roads that have no shoulder (and I mean absolutely zero shoulder), there are in-pavement reflectors every few meters that are a few inches from the edge of the road. These force a cyclist out from the edge of the road and farther into traffic. Anyway, the long and short of it is that cycling is hardly an option here other than up on Shore Drive or down toward the Pungo area. If you are a cyclist, avoid VB like the plague. This includes mountain bikers. The closest trails that don't suck are up in Williamsburg...an hour or so away. Again, compare this to a place like Kansas City that has probably over 100 miles of single track around the area and you can see that VB is just not trying.
I can honestly say I hate living here. I try to make the best of it by heading to the beach for an afternoon of soaking up the sun and having some beers on the oceanfront, but this beach is trashy. It is full of trashy people, trashy looking buildings, and expensive parking (I usually ride one of my cheap bikes instead of driving). As I type this, I can barely hear myself think over the sound of F-18's turning jet fuel into noise.
Lastly, I will say that it seems like there are plenty of people here who enjoy this place. A lot of them are military (active or retired) and have made a life for themselves here. I guess I can see why they don't leave once they're settled with a family and all that, but that will not be happening to me. I work with people who have pretty much all transplanted here for the job and nearly every single one of them I've spoken to hates it (and we're talking about 150ish people).
So, to the OP, yes it really is that bad. It is an overpriced military town plain and simple. That is the most insulting part about the whole place. Housing is priced outrageously because military housing allowances are outrageously high. Not only is this a terrible place to live, but you pay a lot to do so. Anyway, this is all just my opinion and many people do not feel the same. Back to the bickering!
Hopefully you WILL find a way out of here, if I could help I would........
The sports thing is about what you've never had. If you're coming from an area with professional sports teams you find it odd that they're not here. I know that I do. But I never watched professional sports teams play; I just took it for granted that they'd always be around. Its like a New Yorker thinking that skyscrapers or high rises are essential, when they aren't.
If you never lived or grew up in an area with professional sports teams, it is intriguing. Consider that the entire state is without a professional sports team and its a really big deal. Sure you can say the Redskins, but what if you don't like football? I'm more of a basketball guy myself.
I would like to see a professional sports team in Virginia before I grow old and die. Even if I leave the state, which I'm too lazy and unmotivated to do. I think its only right.
The report below addresses quality of life in this region. The report noted that quality of life varies across the region. An excerpt from the summary.
At the top, 87.3 percent of respondents from Chesapeake rated the quality of life in their city as good or excellent, as did 83.8 percent of respondents from Virginia Beach. Suffolk was slightly lower, with 74 percent rating city quality of life good or excellent. Hampton and Newport News ranked substantially lower, at 59.8 percent and 51.9 percent, respectively. Finally, Norfolk and Portsmouth ranked lowest at 49.7 percent and 44.6 percent.
There are professional minor league teams here - the Admirals which are now an ECHL team rather than an AHL team. And the Norfolk Tides a triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore O's. Are there any other minor league teams?
The report below addresses quality of life in this region. The report noted that quality of life varies across the region. An excerpt from the summary.
At the top, 87.3 percent of respondents from Chesapeake rated the quality of life in their city as good or excellent, as did 83.8 percent of respondents from Virginia Beach. Suffolk was slightly lower, with 74 percent rating city quality of life good or excellent. Hampton and Newport News ranked substantially lower, at 59.8 percent and 51.9 percent, respectively. Finally, Norfolk and Portsmouth ranked lowest at 49.7 percent and 44.6 percent.
There are professional minor league teams here - the Admirals which are now an ECHL team rather than an AHL team. And the Norfolk Tides a triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore O's. Are there any other minor league teams?
A lot of cities have minor league teams. In fact, from my experience the average mid-sized city that does not have a major league team, has at least one minor league team, if not more. But it is better than nothing.
Portsmouth and Norfolk have their bright spots, but those are unattainable for their working poor. I'm living in part of a home in Lafayette, paying $900 a month, renting, on the first floor. No insulation. Heating is like $300 or more each month, last month I paid $500 trying to stay warm. Some ancient house from like the 1800s, IDK. I checked into the true price of homes in the area, and everything is well over $200,000. A few "mansions" are going for like $300,000 or more. In order to get the payment to be the same as what I am renting for, I'd have to put a considerable amount down and get a good interest rate. I could go for $1,200 including insurance, but I really don't want to. And I don't even want that much space, but the single story ranch homes in this area are in some horrific neighborhoods.
Unless you purchased in the seventies or eighties, in Hampton Roads, your work is cut out for you. Some people might think that Norfolk and Portsmouth are cheaper, from what we talk about here on C-D. But the truth of the matter is that a decent neighborhood in either city is actually more expensive than a comparable neighborhood in Virginia Beach and Chesapeake. Even South Norfolk is expensive these days. And all of the builders in Norfolk are erecting 3 story houses in bad neighborhoods and then charging anywhere from $150,000 to like $280,000 for them.
The end game must be to price out all of the working poor in Hampton Roads and send them out to Suffolk, or maybe Gloucester, Franklin etc. I don't want to have to move to the other side of the water, because then you have traffic issues, worse crime issues than Norfolk/Portsmouth, car maintenance issues, etc. but I can see why a lot of people do it.
Unless you purchased in the seventies or eighties, in Hampton Roads, your work is cut out for you.
It is really pre-2001ish, you don't need to go back to the 80's. My parents got a house in Great Bridge in the 90's for under $90k. House prices double around here from about 2002 - 2007. The difference with a lot of other bubble towns is that ours never popped, it just sort of leveled off for the last 10 years or so. Probably due in large part to military BAH which adjusts to COL and the large number of people that owned pre-bubble who refinanced under low rates or are borrowing against the equity and staying put.
If you work in the private sector and you want to move down here and start fresh it is tough given the ratio of wages to COL. But If you are military/DOD or have grown up around here and your family has owned property for a while it is fine. I realize that this is a relocation forum so you get most of the "private sector starting fresh" folks around but plenty of people fall into the latter categories and are doing great.
The graph below shows what I am talking about. The high housing costs around here really are a recent occurrance, before Y2k this was a cheap place to raise a family with good schools and a beach... that is why we ended up down here.
At the end of the day these types of conversations are always subjective. The Copperhead guy clearly loves to bike and feels that the bicycle infrastructure is poor. Some people want pro-sports and dislike it here because we only have minor league teams. Some people love urban cores with good public transportation and trendy restaurants and don't like it here because it is spread out. It is what it is. Unless there is some defined and agreed upon set of metrics to measure how great a place is it will always degenerate to personal opinions and biases.
I've got a good job, my wife has a good job, we have a nice house in a nice neighborhood where we feel safe and can send our kid to public schools. We like the beaches for surfing, paddling, kayaking, and just hanging out. We enjoy the rec centers, and we frequently use the parks. I play golf about once a week and enjoy the variety of affordable courses around here. When I want to see a show the NorVA or Amphitheater are great venues and there is enough lowkey stuff in Norfolk if I want to see an indie band or some local groups. I like minor league sports because they are cheaper and interact with the fans a lot more than major league sports so I appreciate the Tides and Admirals. I also follow ODU football, baseball, and basketball since I am an alum. I like that we typically have milder winters than most of the midwest or northeast. I don't mind the 2-3 months of hot humidity in the summer because it makes for great beach weather. I could go on... From my perspective this is a great place to live right now.
It is really pre-2001ish, you don't need to go back to the 80's. My parents got a house in Great Bridge in the 90's for under $90k. House prices double around here from about 2002 - 2007. The difference with a lot of other bubble towns is that ours never popped, it just sort of leveled off for the last 10 years or so. Probably due in large part to military BAH which adjusts to COL and the large number of people that owned pre-bubble who refinanced under low rates or are borrowing against the equity and staying put.
If you work in the private sector and you want to move down here and start fresh it is tough given the ratio of wages to COL. But If you are military/DOD or have grown up around here and your family has owned property for a while it is fine. I realize that this is a relocation forum so you get most of the "private sector starting fresh" folks around but plenty of people fall into the latter categories and are doing great.
The graph below shows what I am talking about. The high housing costs around here really are a recent occurrance, before Y2k this was a cheap place to raise a family with good schools and a beach... that is why we ended up down here.
At the end of the day these types of conversations are always subjective. The Copperhead guy clearly loves to bike and feels that the bicycle infrastructure is poor. Some people want pro-sports and dislike it here because we only have minor league teams. Some people love urban cores with good public transportation and trendy restaurants and don't like it here because it is spread out. It is what it is. Unless there is some defined and agreed upon set of metrics to measure how great a place is it will always degenerate to personal opinions and biases.
I've got a good job, my wife has a good job, we have a nice house in a nice neighborhood where we feel safe and can send our kid to public schools. We like the beaches for surfing, paddling, kayaking, and just hanging out. We enjoy the rec centers, and we frequently use the parks. I play golf about once a week and enjoy the variety of affordable courses around here. When I want to see a show the NorVA or Amphitheater are great venues and there is enough lowkey stuff in Norfolk if I want to see an indie band or some local groups. I like minor league sports because they are cheaper and interact with the fans a lot more than major league sports so I appreciate the Tides and Admirals. I also follow ODU football, baseball, and basketball since I am an alum. I like that we typically have milder winters than most of the midwest or northeast. I don't mind the 2-3 months of hot humidity in the summer because it makes for great beach weather. I could go on... From my perspective this is a great place to live right now.
For all that and more I am thankful to call this home.
It is really pre-2001ish, you don't need to go back to the 80's. My parents got a house in Great Bridge in the 90's for under $90k. House prices double around here from about 2002 - 2007. The difference with a lot of other bubble towns is that ours never popped, it just sort of leveled off for the last 10 years or so. Probably due in large part to military BAH which adjusts to COL and the large number of people that owned pre-bubble who refinanced under low rates or are borrowing against the equity and staying put.
If you work in the private sector and you want to move down here and start fresh it is tough given the ratio of wages to COL. But If you are military/DOD or have grown up around here and your family has owned property for a while it is fine. I realize that this is a relocation forum so you get most of the "private sector starting fresh" folks around but plenty of people fall into the latter categories and are doing great.
The graph below shows what I am talking about. The high housing costs around here really are a recent occurrance, before Y2k this was a cheap place to raise a family with good schools and a beach... that is why we ended up down here.
At the end of the day these types of conversations are always subjective. The Copperhead guy clearly loves to bike and feels that the bicycle infrastructure is poor. Some people want pro-sports and dislike it here because we only have minor league teams. Some people love urban cores with good public transportation and trendy restaurants and don't like it here because it is spread out. It is what it is. Unless there is some defined and agreed upon set of metrics to measure how great a place is it will always degenerate to personal opinions and biases.
I've got a good job, my wife has a good job, we have a nice house in a nice neighborhood where we feel safe and can send our kid to public schools. We like the beaches for surfing, paddling, kayaking, and just hanging out. We enjoy the rec centers, and we frequently use the parks. I play golf about once a week and enjoy the variety of affordable courses around here. When I want to see a show the NorVA or Amphitheater are great venues and there is enough lowkey stuff in Norfolk if I want to see an indie band or some local groups. I like minor league sports because they are cheaper and interact with the fans a lot more than major league sports so I appreciate the Tides and Admirals. I also follow ODU football, baseball, and basketball since I am an alum. I like that we typically have milder winters than most of the midwest or northeast. I don't mind the 2-3 months of hot humidity in the summer because it makes for great beach weather. I could go on... From my perspective this is a great place to live right now.
A lot of outsiders have cultural issues with this place. Their really isn't much you can do to appease them. They can move back home, or find something similar, and that may find it in Virginia or they may not. That was never really my issue.
People need to make up their mind. If they do find an urban core can they afford it. Why are they here if they're not military. Why are they here if they're not retired. Why are they here if they didn't relocate from some other area in Virgina. If ends are tight, why haven't they started a business, went back to school to get a degree (or an additional degree), etc.
Those are the tough questions I have to ask myself. I don't own anything here. I'm still renting. The jobs I acquire, with my "some college" has me living hand to mouth.
Unless people have those things figured out, there's no point in b&txh&ng and going back and forth with the locals, who do own assets, do own property and do have connections, on a forum. A transient is either going to assimilate and plant roots or they're not. You can't change anything. You can find like minded people, but you aren't going to change the culture.
I'll put in my 2 cents FWIW. We moved here last summer form Hawaii. A place that HATES cyclists, plenty of traffic, and EXPENSIVE as any place in the U.S. We get asked the "why would anyone ever leave Hawaii" comment every time it's mentioned, followed by "and move HERE???". Trust me, things aren't all palm trees and mai tais back in the islands.
Sorry, getting sidetracked here, but we like Hampton Roads, especially the peninsula area. I do see myself moving to southside possibly, but I do prefer it here. Taxes are high here, but considering everything else I've paid in the past, this area is an absolute BARGAIN for us, ask anyone you meet here form Hawaii, they should tell you the same thing. I will say that salaries are low in some areas, I can't speak for all but private sector nursing appears underpaid quite a bit from what my wife earned back in HI., and she has worked at several places including government hospitals there. Overall life is what you make it, we made the move to better overall quality of life for my family
If you work in the private sector and you want to move down here and start fresh it is tough given the ratio of wages to COL.
This is true and is what I believe to be the largest barrier in the area's growth. You can't attract new non-military people if they can't afford to live here. You can't attract new businesses if they can't find good, stable employees.
And I think this will always create a bit of a barrier between civilian and military families because they don't necessarily understand each other. Ditto between newcomers and long-time locals because this salary vs cost of living (especially cost of housing) disparity hasn't always been so drastic.
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