California family considering moving to rural Kentucky (Louisville, Bowling Green: house, camp)

[KoHoSo]

Originally Posted by SFLWR

Sorry if "full of " crime and gangs was to harsh. I was just comparing it statisticly from where I live . I'm sure Louisville has some great neighborhoods . Didn't mean to offend anyone, sorry.

SFLWR, absolutely no offense taken and I in turn apologize if my response seemed harsh in any way (I really tried to not make it sound that way...sorry if I failed). You are absolutely right that Louisville (or any town of its size) would seem bad for crime and gangs compared to whatever great small town that you live in.

To explain myself...while I have made only a very few posts in the City-Data forums, I have been reading many sections of them for well over a year. Sometimes statements are read or interpreted as being a little too broad on these forums and it gives someplace a bit more of a bad rap around here than it deserves. I just wanted to make sure Anak and others didn't get the idea that his wife and children would not be relatively safe when visiting Louisville for shopping, culture, or sightseeing. While there is always room for improvement, there are plenty of statistics and surveys that can be searched out on the Web that show Louisville is about as good as it gets in today's big-towm America.

Then again, would I wander around at night in some of the neighborhoods on the west side of town? Not unless I was in an M1 Abrams tank!

But, that's why people like Anak are looking for that small town life -- so they don't have to worry about what parts of town are bad and how much of that spills out everywhere else. Especially if one can start their kids out early, it really is the way to go for raising a family if circumstances allow it.

[SFLWR]

Originally Posted by KoHoSo

SFLWR, absolutely no offense taken and I in turn apologize if my response seemed harsh in any way (I really tried to not make it sound that way...sorry if I failed). You are absolutely right that Louisville (or any town of its size) would seem bad for crime and gangs compared to whatever great small town that you live in.

To explain myself...while I have made only a very few posts in the City-Data forums, I have been reading many sections of them for well over a year. Sometimes statements are read or interpreted as being a little too broad on these forums and it gives someplace a bit more of a bad rap around here than it deserves. I just wanted to make sure Anak and others didn't get the idea that his wife and children would not be relatively safe when visiting Louisville for shopping, culture, or sightseeing. While there is always room for improvement, there are plenty of statistics and surveys that can be searched out on the Web that show Louisville is about as good as it gets in today's big-towm America.

Then again, would I wander around at night in some of the neighborhoods on the west side of town? Not unless I was in an M1 Abrams tank!

But, that's why people like Anak are looking for that small town life -- so they don't have to worry about what parts of town are bad and how much of that spills out everywhere else. Especially if one can start their kids out early, it really is the way to go for raising a family if circumstances allow it.

It's alright KoHoSo......we're good and thx !



Anak- please keep us posted on your search and if there's anything else we can help you with . Best to you and God Bless !

[Anak]

Originally Posted by KoHoSo

I just wanted to make sure Anak and others didn't get the idea that his wife and children would not be relatively safe when visiting Louisville for shopping, culture, or sightseeing.

Thanks to you guys for clarifying things, but I assure you, I wasn't much concerned by the first post suggesting gangs in Louisville. Crime in Kentucky is fairly low on my list of concerns. Shoot, I currently live within 40 miles of Tijuana, Mexico. Right off the path from Tijuana to Los Angeles. Let's talk drugs and human smuggling operations. Not that we have experienced problems first-hand, but I expect Kentucky to be a substantial improvement over San Diego with regard to overall safety.

I am still very much in information acquisition mode. I remain curious as to why EclecticEars recommends against Shelbyville. At the moment I am focusing on the area around Frankfort and around Berea. Getting out 10 to 20 miles from either of these would probably suit my family fairly well.

I really want to get out there and see the areas firsthand.

[SFLWR]

Anak- I've never been to Shelbyville but I do know someone who lives there. Let me email him and ask his opinion. It might take a day or 2 but I'll see what he says for you and get back.

[censusdata]

Shelbyville is a nice town but is further out from major employment centers (30 miles to Louisville or 25 miles to Frankfort) than other places. I'd guess school overcrowding is a problem as it only has ONE high school (w/ a county population of 45,000) {Oldham Co has 58,000 people and 3 high schools}.

Lawrenceburg/ Anderson County is only 10-15 miles from Frankfort but is still only 25 miles to Lexington and 45 miles to Louisville.

[CraigCreek]

The landscape twenty miles around Berea varies greatly, with rugged mountains to the east and south - not very high in elevation, but filled with cliffs, rock formations, waterfalls, woods...very lovely, but not ideal for farming. However, there are valleys, some of them broad, between the mountains, and the outer Bluegrass begins just north of Berea, with rolling hills to the west. Most of the town of Berea sits on a ridge, the northwesternmost part of the Appalachian Mountains, with great mountain views to the east and south (also to the southwest, to a lesser degree).

Berea itself is a sort of "Appalachian Brigadoon", with a select, focused, academically challenging, traditional but contemporary-minded college on a beautiful, classic campus right in the heart of town, an active traditional music and dance community ranging in age from elementary school students to seniors and everything in between, lots of outstanding artists and craftsmen, several major craft fairs and music and dance events each year, antique shops, a lively tourist business, good restaurants, and attractive parks in and just outside of town. Churches are welcoming and active, and range from conservative to liberal. Schools are excellent, and I know former homeschoolers who immediately and happily enrolled their kids in the public school system upon moving to Berea.

Rural land prices are going up just outside of Berea in Madison County, but look over to the east in Jackson County and down south in Rockcastle. Both are mountainous, wooded, and very scenic, and are close enough to Berea for the cultural attractions they themselves lack. Schools are not as good, however, and the general populace may not be as well-educated as are typical Bereans, but people are friendly and welcoming and land prices are lower in both Jackson and Rockcastle Counties. Public roads are paved but hilly and winding (I-75 does go through Rockcastle, however). You could certainly hunt and farm in this area and the land is well-watered with springs and creeks. There are too many ATVs tearing up Jackson County for my taste these days, however, and drugs are an ongoing problem (meth labs, marijuana operations) in rural areas.

Berea is twelve miles south of Richmond and thirty-five miles south of Lexington, both easily accessible via I-75. Four-season climate, mostly moderate, but with an occasional heavy snowfall, tornado, heat wave....The coldest months are usually January and February, but signs of spring start early (though spring doesn't arrive until mid-March or later). Spring is not great for those with pollen allergies, given the vast range of native plants in the southern Appalachians' Cumberland Mountains, but the beauty of the hills goes far to compensate for sneezing. Berea is usually a little warmer than Lexington, but has fresher air.

Just be sure you know about the nerve gas stored twelve miles away at the Bluegrass Army Depot outside of Richmond...they've been promising to get rid of it for years but seem to revise the promises at least twice a year, and it's still sitting there in those leaky "igloos". Predominant winds blow towards the east, from the west - Berea is southwest of the Depot, so you're not in usual range, but if those warnings go off, be aware and take action. Don't panic - I spend considerable blocks of time in Berea annually and have never had a problem, but still...I think everyone in the area will be very relieved when it's finally dealt with and the danger is gone.

[Mistoftime]

We live in those mountains about 20 miles south of Berea. we have an eighty five acre farm and love living in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains, "Where the bluegrass meets the mountains" we have a fellow from California who has lived here for about four years and swears he will live here untill he dies. We also have several "transplants" from Florida and other states who absolutley love it here. I can get you in contact with the guy from California who would have more of a perspective from your point of view if you would like. We send our children to a private christain school for $150.00 per month and a lot of families homeschool. Our government run schools are not in tune with families and kids. As for hunting, most kids here are taught to hunt by the time they are 7 or 8 years old and are qiute proficient by age 10 to 12. There is an abundance of game here. We fill our freezers every hunting season with deer, wild turkey, rabbits, squirrel and an occasional elk. We live the life Americans used to. A lot of the population raises large gardens and stores their food.We do have DSL. Fiber optics are coming within a year. Plenty of wild blackberries and homemade ice cream. And as with any "outsider" coming to an appalachain community there are always a few of the uneducated that won't accept you but there are far more of us who will.The key is to assimulate within the culture and not to demand change based on your perspective. Our winters are much milder than they used to be an average of 33 degrees in winter and 86 in summer but the humidity most of the time high in the summer because of the mountains and trees. I am an electrical contractor and have made my living here, everything we own is paid for. Your income wil not be as high here as in some of the other regions but it doesn't cost a lot to live here. There are plenty of denominations here and by enlarge our county is very family oriented, our motto is "Welcome to Jackson County, Where Everyone is Family." We realize our community and way of life is not for everyone and we don't try to accommodate everybody and those who want to change our way of life to what they think it should be, need not apply. There are farms available with hardwood timber on them. We do have pictures if you would like to see them or here is the county's web site. Jackson County, Kentucky Would be glad to answer any questions you may have. Good luck.

[SFLWR]

http://www.sentinelnews.com/



This is all I got about Shelbyville.....hope it helps though.

[Anak]

Thank you all again for the information.

With the exception of the nerve gas, Berea sounds awesome. Mountains and creeks are my kind of country. Climate sounds fine. I just need to experience the pollen first-hand. We get plenty of pollen here in San Diego too. I just want to make sure it isn't that much worse where I move to. Gotta be able to breathe.

I am still curious about Shelbyville. Thank you SFLWR for looking for information for me. I am looking forward to what you hear back from your friend/acquaintance who lives there. The high school is a factor worth considering. Our schooling plans are to homeschool K-6 for sure, evaluate junior high on a per kid basis, and then send them to a public high school. Figure by high school we should have them pretty well pointed in the right direction, and by sending them to a public high school they will get to face the real world challenges while still under our roof. It will also offer them better opportunities for sports. I expect at least one of the three to be into sports.

Thanks again for all the information.

[SFLWR]

actually ANAK , that link I gave you IS from my "friend" .....sorry, that's all he gave me.... and I've never been to the area to tell ya anything.
censusdata gave you some info though and maybe someone else can too