Looking To Relocate From Southern CA to Kingsport (Johnson City, Bristol: real estate, houses)

[CobolKing]

Folks

I and my wife are retirees in our 60s and we are seriously considering moving out of our Southern California home to a more rural, less hectic place with a good quality of life. We no longer "fit" in this area - a bit too conservative (moderate?) and quiet, and let's not get started on the taxes here. We are looking for a place that welcomes retirees (even those from CA) and has good medical care, good churches, a vibrant civic life, and parks nearby where we can picnic and walk. We've have been considering Kingsport as a possibility.

I've been reading some of the threads and was hoping that folks could comment on whether Kingsport meets the brief description above and what are the best/worst features of the area. I see that some think that there is an odor problem - comments about that are welcome, as well as other suggestions.

[Josh Woods]

You would love Kingsport if you are looking for Parks/Recreation, Churches and a Civic Life.

I currently think that Kingsport offers the best real estate in the area as well. Prices seem to be lower than those in Johnson City for equal houses and Kingsport has everything Johnson City has to offer except for a college.

JC Medical Center may be more highly rated, but Kingsport has a great facility of it's own. Their downtown area is growing and becoming a nice place to go again. I think soon Kingsport will pass Johnson City for places to live.

[mbmouse]

I agree with Josh Woods. However I have a quick question for you. Are you looking for a less conservative place or more conservative? I am not quite sure by your wording and I am a little short on coffee intake at the moment which might have a lot to do with my confusion.
Kingsport is very conservative, progressive, yet conservative.

[rccrain]

more rural, less hectic - Kpt is probably the most busy, followed by JC, then Bristol
good medical care - JC is best by far, then Kpt and Bristol are fine
good churches - not a problem anywhere in the area
a vibrant civic life - Probably Kpt, then JC, then Bristol (this one is hard to know)
and parks nearby - Bristol and Kpt have wonderful parks, JC has good parks.

Considering everything you mentioned, I would recommend:
#1 - Gray (between Ktp and JC)
#2 - Piney Flats (between JC and Bristol)
#3 - Blountville (between all three cities, placed 3rd because of distance from a hospital)

[Tri-Cities Native]

Relative to the odor - The source of the odors is from a paper mill (Domtar) and Eastman Chemical Company. I personally have only smelled it in the areas fairly close to the facilities. In other areas of the city I have never noticed it. I'm certain some of the folks that live there can elaborate further.

Otherwise I think Kingsport and most other areas would work well for you guys. Here's a website that contains excellent information about Northeast TN. Through it you can link to the sites for each of the cities/towns in the area and see specifically what each one has to offer as far as recreation, dining, attractions, etc. - NETTA: Visit Appalachian Mountains – Northeast Tennessee.

Good Luck!

[gsp4ever]

Originally Posted by Tri-Cities Native

Relative to the odor - The source of the odors is from a paper mill (Domtar) and Eastman Chemical Company. I personally have only smelled it in the areas fairly close to the facilities. In other areas of the city I have never noticed it. I'm certain some of the folks that live there can elaborate further.

The odor from those facilities is quite bad. You can even smell it in Bristol when the weather conditions are right (overcast IIRC) and I would think that you could periodically smell it in Johnson City as well. Not to try to discourage you from moving there, but East TN has some of the worst air quality in the nation. However, I doubt most people notice anything different on a day-to-day basis. For the other things you are looking for, you would find Kingsport to be appealing as well as Bristol and Johnson City. Might give Bristol a serious look. It has a VERY vibrant/active civic life (civic clubs, Chamber of Commerce volunteer programs, downtown revitalization programs, festivals, etc.) plus a few nice city parks that have pretty extensive trails and picnicing areas (Steele Creek, Sugar Hollow and South Holston Lake/Dam/Weir Dam area come to mind). Bristol also has closer proximity to Abingdon, VA and Damascus, VA areas where the VA Creeper Trail and Appalachian Trail comes through.

[jabogitlu]

Hm, I've never smelled it in Johnson City. I've actually never really smelled it in Kingsport either, but you can catch whiffs of it here or there if you're in the right spots near downtown.

A lot of people make a bigger fuss out of it than what it really is.

However, as far as allergies go, the air here CAN be very, very bad, and I would suggest you investigate further. Pollen here can coat your car so that it looks like taxi.

[rccrain]

There is NO way "the smell" extends beyond the Kingsport city limits. "The smell" has now reached mythological proportions.

[gsp4ever]

RC--I'm tellin' ya...when the weather conditions are right, you can smell "the smell" at my parent's home in Bristol It doesn't happen often but it does happen.

[jabogitlu]

As a die-hard Johnson City fan, I hate to say it, but Kingsport might just be your best choice. There is quite a bit of civic/government activity and the folks there seem to be WAY on the ball with redevelopment, business attraction, etc. etc. Plus with all of the new retail developments (Target etc.) Kingsport now is on par or surpassing Johnson City in just about every way.

There is no university there, though, if that's even important to you. Kingsport does have plans for an Academic Village of sorts in its downtown with contributions from many area universities and colleges (UT, Walter's State, Northeast State, Tusculum College, etc.). It will be ultimately beneficial to the population but I don't believe it will create the "university" feel that permeates the areas around universities - hipster scene, bars, etc. That probably isn't important to you specifically, but I thought I'd throw it out there.

I'm not sure on healthcare quality Kpt vs. JC. I guess there are some stats somewhere, but I believe Kingsport would be able to take care of your every need. And if you ever did have to come to JCMC it's only a 20 minute trip from Kingsport city.

ETA - yes, your original post was a tad confusing. Are you looking for more or less conservative? Kingsport is about as conservative as they come. All of east TN is.