Should we move to Virginia Beach?

[757Cities Southsider]

Originally Posted by MountainDweller

As much as I might dislike the area or recommend against living here for certain individuals who have diverse interests, you sir are a sad excuse for a human being. Your god gave you a brain to at least make good on utilizing the English language in a half way comprehensible format, and even that seems to be a chore for you. Ah well, I should let it go and not feed in to your so-called anti-troll routine. Post count means nothing by the way. I've seen the worst and the best out of the spectrum of senior vs. newbie forum accounts. I have no affiliation with the OP despite what sort of conspiracy theory you choose to peruse.

Cheers?

Yeah, yeah, yeah...still here, huh?

[Poquoson7]

Originally Posted by Coconut1

To posters reading this in the future: this is the type of people residing in Hampton Roads. Miserable, "if you don't like it here, LEAVE!" type people. The blinders are on and they ain't comin' off any time soon. If you're happy with what the area offers, by all means move down. If you want more out of life, look some place else, because this area isn't changing any time soon.

Delussions- No, not CA. A little thing called Global Warming...

yea, everyone here is miserable and has blinders on, this describes you pretty much to a TTTTT, someday you'll take your clinically miserable ass outta here to the relief off all of us.

[Poquoson7]

Originally Posted by MountainDweller

I swear, you dig yourself and the areas reputation a bigger hole... This comment is the epitome of why the area is such a nasty an unfriendly place for one that does not fit in to the mold that the locals rally behind.

However! - I agree that leaving and staying gone is to ours, and others, best interest. When people come to the forums and ask for honest opinions of the area, in which we're living, or have lived, it is our obligation as city-data registrar's to shine our wisdom or opinion upon thee. I would imagine you could agree with that, as you so elegantly have given your opinion of our comment which disagree with your personal opinion of the area. This is what forum's are for! Keep the discussion civil boys and gals.

Cheers

The nasty unfriendliness comes from those of you who insult those who live here through your "shining wisdom" opinions. Your unpolished comments and those of others who trash this area invite backlash. Your wisdom is nonexistant and your keen perception of the lay of the land here is pathetic.

[goofy328]

Originally Posted by Poquoson7

The nasty unfriendliness comes from those of you who insult those who live here through your "shining wisdom" opinions. Your unpolished comments and those of others who trash this area invite backlash. Your wisdom is nonexistant and your keen perception of the lay of the land here is pathetic.

One of the more articulate response to HR haters I've seen on here in a while

[ersatz]

Chapel Hill -

I don't know if you are still checking this thread. I guess you got a pretty good taste of Virginia Beach! But, if you're serious about remaining in the mid-Atlantic, try driving out to the Eastern Shore Cape Charles area across the tunnel bridge. You may find it a more pleasant area if you like beaches - it caters to a quieter and richer crowd than VB. In my opinion, a commute from there to Norfolk would not be worth it but it would be a nice weekend getaway if you lived in the HR area. If you do make it out to the Eastern Shore, you may enjoy the Chincoteague/Assateague area for a weekend stopover. Assateague has nicer beaches than VB because they are National Protection areas.

The beach vibe that you are looking for can be found in the Delaware Beach area during the summer. No palm trees will survive the winter though! There are very limited chain hotel and restaurants in Rehoboth Beach. It caters to a significant gay crowd so you will definitely find a strong liberal vibe there mixed in with conservative retirees. There are lots of B&Bs and great (of course) restaurants.

And, if you are still seeking alternatives to Miami and your job lets you explore other options, you may want to check out Savannah or Charleston.

I love summer beach threads!

[elaine273]

DON'T MOVE HERE. I am a lot like you and your wife - very liberal, etc and that kind of thing doesn't belong here in this area. It's the most conservative place I have lived(and I lived in 3 diff towns in Texas over 5 years even) which surprised me since beach locals in beach towns are usually laid back. I have fared very well in all other places I have lived in and out of the country. Until now. This area is not up and coming. Don't even believe that hype. I moved here for a job a while back, so I was a little blind sided with what I found when I got here.

Conservatives: Liberals will NOT fit in here. There is a very tiny area of Norfolk called Ghent where you might find some people who you can fit in with, but TINY population of them and the market there for homes is tight, so hard to get into unless you have some serious cash. Parts of this area remind me of Portland, Oregon's Pearl District, which I love, but again, it's a very small slice of Hampton Roads. There is a lot of open carry of handguns around here, big pick up trucks(some kind of custom truck movement going on), and once you go through the HRBT, you literally time travel a good 10-15 years with fashion, worldy sense, etc. I am a super outgoing person and people in the area do not respond to that. I have been recruited for church several times. Church, guns and pick up trucks, oh my!

Shopping: The shopping here? Meh. Below average to average...Here it's run of the mill barely better than an average military town(I am former active duty Army and have lived in many). Again, gotta trek out of here to get the good stuff.

Costs: And it's not cheap here. Cheaper than Miami, maybe, but for the type of area, it's expensive. Have you visited recently? Researched costs? Take into account hidden costs too. Personal property taxes, sewer, cable, water are all more expensive here than other expensive places I have lived(and quite outrageous for this type of area). It's either live in an unsafe dump or pay through the nose for something fairly decent - including the nice houses near the beach which IMO are stupidly overpriced. I say that also because a lot of these nice homes, during peak season have rowdy tourists parked on the road right outside the residence. Make sure you don't buy one of these homes unless you are immune to that kind of thing.

Beach: I have seen fights every time I go to the boardwalk area, drunks, people cursing or totally out of their minds on drugs. To have a great beach experience, you will need to find places around 60th -80th street and down in the Sandbridge, Back Bay, False Cape area to escape the deluge of tourists that swarm the area. Otherwise, it's the Redneck Riviera. PLEASE be aware that from May to September, you will be "trapped" on the other side of the HRBT because traffic is relentlessly bad.

Demographics: For the record, there is NOTHING wrong with the Navy AT ALL and I appreciate their service, however, the Navy makes for a large demographic of 20-35 year olds. Then, the Navy guys retire here which makes for a very large retirement population with not much in between. The Navy basically dominates the area which flattens a lot of growth. What is this explosion you speak of? I don't see it happening. Did a VB native tell you that?

Restaurants/Food co-ops: There are a few places here that offer CSA's, etc(shameless plug for New Earth Farm). The Farmer's market here is sad. I'm a produce snob, so I end up driving an hour and a half to get good stuff. Someone mentioned that PETA is in Norfolk. Yes, but that doesn't mean that changes what you get offered at restaurants so much. I have had to eat my fair share of veggie burgers here. There are some vegetarian and vegan places that are decent, but it's def not going to be what you are used to.

Traffic: Some of the worst traffic! I get around better in DC. YES..yes you read correctly! A 5 mile drive from Norfolk(aka Gnaw****) to VB can take you 25 - 30 minutes during rush hour or more.

Really research the area and try to have friends already here, otherwise it's going to be tough finding "your people". I will be moving as soon as I can. Can't wait to get back to the "real world".

[UHgrad]

Originally Posted by elaine273

DON'T MOVE HERE. I am a lot like you and your wife - very liberal, etc and that kind of thing doesn't belong here in this area. It's the most conservative place I have lived(and I lived in 3 diff towns in Texas over 5 years even) which surprised me since beach locals in beach towns are usually laid back. I have fared very well in all other places I have lived in and out of the country. Until now. This area is not up and coming. Don't even believe that hype. I moved here for a job a while back, so I was a little blind sided with what I found when I got here.
...

Really research the area and try to have friends already here, otherwise it's going to be tough finding "your people". I will be moving as soon as I can. Can't wait to get back to the "real world".

They decided not to move here... page 6 post #52... don't feel bad though, a lot of people just read the beginning of long threads then respond.

Originally Posted by SF2ChapelHill

So I have decided that I do not think VA Beach will be a good fit for me and my family. I was honestly expecting more of a Wilmington, NC vibe but I felt far from it.

Just wanted to say thank you again to all those who contributed to my posting with good advice, tips, etc.

Scott

I basically told them that they would end up being exactly like you... page 3 post #28... unhappy and generally disparaging towards the people that call this place home. Looks like I was not that far off base... LOL

Originally Posted by UHgrad

VB/Norfolk is not a good fit given your list of wants or what I can gather of your personality from what you have posted. VB is suburbs, strip malls, nice parks, military bases, pretty solid schools, and typical mid-atlantic beaches. Mini San Diego maybe, mini-miami is not even close. It is a perfectly fine area to live with perfectly friendly people, but nothing about what you have said leads me to believe that it is a good fit for you. You would probably end up calling the area "pedestrian" and most of the locals would end up tired of your inevitable complaining about how it was so much better in (insert city here) and your continuous use of the term "conservative" in the pejorative. Anyone who has lived here long enough has seen this story before. LOL

Thanks for sharing though... we need more "tolerant and open minded" folks like you around.