Chattanooga or Huntsville (Madison, Redstone Arsenal: for sale, homes, contractor)

[skyhook6]

I've traveled to both towns many times. Each has a neat little downtown, Chattanooga's is larger and a bit more fun if you like to eat, drink, shop, etc... downtown. Both have good nightlife and a few nice restaurants.

Chattanooga puts you halfway between two good airports (Nashville and Atlanta), but so does Huntsville (Birmingham and Nashville). Huntsville probably has a higher average education, I've heard that it has the highest number of PhDs per capita. Good IT companies are based there too. It is probably a bit more diverse and I even found a decent Indian restaurant there!

[jonw]

The crime rate in Chattanooga is double that of Huntsville. The schools in Huntsville are better. There's a lot of ghetto trash in Chattanooga (hence the crime rate). There's ghetto trash in Huntsville too, but not as many. And the areas are much more segregated in Huntsville. You can tell which areas are okay (white) just by looking. If you need some help selecting an area or schools I'll be glad to help. Stay away from Chattanooga. Oh, and there's not alot of military in Huntsville. I lived there for quite some time and I can't remember ever seeing anyone in uniform. Most people are Engineers.

[jonw]

Originally Posted by snowghost

Does anyone ever think it odd that the best high school in the area is Grissom? I grew up watching the Right Stuff (and reading it of course) and just think of him as the one who 'screwed the pooch'. Anyway, just popped in my head.

Neighborhoods around Grissom- do they have local pools, or just private pools in backyards? What is the greenbelt like?

Why don't people post more photos of Huntsville online? I'm amazed at how few I see- and how repetitive they are.

How's the Tennessee for swimming in the area?

You might also consider Madison. Bob Jones High School is just as good as Grissom. Madison is a very nice area.

[serene_soul]

Both Chattanooga And Huntsville Are Beautiful Cities I Couldn't Choose Either Why Not Atlanta.lol

[brandoni57]

Huntsville. Hands Down. I put some of the Rankings below for you to mull over. Being the most affordable Metro in the United States, among the best in standard of living, employment, job growth, education, green friendly, with the highest concentration of Engineers and PhD's, 2nd largest research park in the USA, commercial and residential development etc. etc. it makes more sense to look at Huntsville. Its an oasis in the state, its an oasis in the SOUTH for that matter. It's incomparable at times. Real estate down elsewhere, not Huntsville (in fact probably the best place to invest in the southeast right now), unemployment up, not Huntsville, factories closing, more biotech and aerospace moving into Huntsville. IF You are looking at schools look at Grissom before you look anywhere else. Half the national merit scholars from the Metro area came from one school: Grissom. More Advance Placement College credit classes than any other school in the city. My coursework at Grissom was tougher than a lot of my courses at a nationally accredited four year University.

I picked out a few publications and rankings, all of them are on the link:
http://www.huntsvillealabamausa.com/news/nat_recog.html

Huntsville named the country's Best Value for Salaries and Cost of Living.
June 2006
Salary.com

Huntsville Named the South's #1 Hotspot.
November 2006
BizJournals

Huntsville named one of the country's Top Entrepreneur Hot Spots.
September 2006
Entrepreneur Magazine

Huntsville named the #1 Mid-Market in the South.
June 2006
Southern Business & Development Magazine

Huntsville named the Top Mid-sized “Military Community of Excellence” in the country.
Special Issue, August 2006
Expansion Management Magazine

Huntsville named one of the Top 10 Green Cities in the U.S.
April 2006
The Green Guide

Huntsville has the highest concentration of Inc. 500 Fastest Growing Companies in the U.S.
November 2005
Inc. Magazine

Huntsville Ranks #6 on Forbes List of Top Cities for Business.
May 2005
Forbes Magazine

Huntsville Listed as the South's 2nd ranked Metro for Quality of Life.
March 2005
Expansion Management Magazine

[snowghost]

Well, thanks for the info. We were leaning towards Huntsville (strip malls and all) until another job opportunity came up. I must say that after reading this forum, I have a more positive view of that region than I did before. I just lumped all of Alabama into an old cotton mentality. I had only spent one day in Montgomery, about 15 years ago, and that image stuck in my head all these years...

[Amust]

Can anyone give me their opinion about a small city called snallville, Georgia?
I am looking to relocate in the southern states.. Alabama, South Carolina,Georgia..

Can anyone give me some advise.. Looking for a suburban area, good quality schools, union employment in carpentry

[Southlander]

You really can't compare the 2 cities. They are totally different from each other.

Originally Posted by Amust

Can anyone give me their opinion about a small city called snallville, Georgia?
I am looking to relocate in the southern states.. Alabama, South Carolina,Georgia.. Can anyone give me some advise.. Looking for a suburban area, good quality schools, union employment in carpentry

Do you mean Snellville, Ga.? Then you need to post your question in the Georgia forum.
About the only union activity here is electricians, and UAW workers associated with car parts plants. I believe there is a carpenters union, but most are jackleg and don't belong to any union.
Good luck.

[financelife]

Originally Posted by jonw

There's ghetto trash in Huntsville too, but not as many. And the areas are much more segregated in Huntsville. You can tell which areas are okay (white) just by looking.

If you need some help selecting an area or schools I'll be glad to help. Stay away from Chattanooga. Oh, and there's not alot of military in Huntsville. I lived there for quite some time and I can't remember ever seeing anyone in uniform. Most people are Engineers.

Not a lot of military? Has Redstone Arsenal changed because of the BRAC?

[ionlife]

Friends of ours moved to Chattanooga and loved it. We considered it 11 years ago but then the gov't called DH to D.C. and we ended up there till now. I love Chattanooga to visit, but it feels a little smaller than Hville/Madison. I've been to Chattanooga several times when I lived in Knoxville for day trips. They have a great aquarium and fun things to do there. It really just depends on what you want out of life. I think either city is accessible to other larger cities as well which is nice.