Smaller towns around Knoxville (Oak Ridge, Maryville: buying, good schools, pros and cons)

[dusk25]

I am looking for a good place to live around Knoxville. Not right in the city, but possibly a smaller town/city within 30 minutes of it. My husband will be working in West Knoxville.

We have 2 kids, so good schools are a must. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

[MetropolitanTN]

Maryville, it has good city schools. Oak Ridge also has good schools. Those two are both 30 mins or so from West Knoxville, give or take some traffic, actual distance, etc. They also are relatively small with populations below 30,000.

[hiknapster]

Farragut has excellent schools as does West Knoxville. I'm from a small town and Knoxville is a small city that seems like a large town. If you live in Farragut or the West Knoxville area you will not feel like you are in a city, you won't have the commute, either. Oak Ridge does have excellent schools but it is a very different vibe than I am used to. It's an unusual town for East Tennessee and I often think it is because it was created as the Secret City as part of the Manhattan Project. I don't know. It has a lot of things going for it but the cons, for me, are a deal breaker.

[bdj5773]

My family are looking possibly to make a move in a year. We have looked at either Oak Ridge or Maryville, but are leaning heavily toward Maryville. What are the pros and cons to each town?

[MetropolitanTN]

Maryville has more to offer. They have a Target, more restaurants, more cultural activities (Clayton Center for the Performing Arts), a green belt, etc. The traffic in Maryville is worse, but not unbearable by any means. It's also more expensive between the two in terms of housing. You're also closer to downtown Knoxville which is a destination now with restaurants, festivals, etc.

Oak Ridge is cheaper and still has plenty to do in terms of shopping, restaurants etc. Just not as much as Maryville. Oak Ridge also looks older when you're driving through. This is largely due to the history of the town dating back to the nuclear era or whatever went on there.

If having more amenities is important to you, then choose Maryville. If it's not so important then just visit both and see which you like better when you're in town.

I hope some of this helps.

[bdj5773]

It's been nearly 15 years since living there; we really liked Oak Ridge and went there a lot, but it did seem a little run down in places. Maybe it has changed. The back drop of the Cumberland mountains are breathtaking.

Maryville seemed like the cleaner place with a lot more amenities but it is closer to the Smokies. Anyway, I'm sure things have changed a lot over the last 15 years, although we did drive through there a few years ago. All in all, it seems like Maryville would be a better fit for us personally. Nothing against Oak Ridge, though. Yes, we will be making some visits to the area to be sure.

[MetropolitanTN]

Your description seems right. Good luck with your move! Welcome to the area!

[hiknapster]

Oak Ridge has terrible shopping. They generally go to Turkey Creek. I'm pretty sure the mall is now completely closed.

[bdj5773]

Oh yeah, forgot about the mall. We did go there some. Why did it close? Seems like I read of some big name developer buying it. Any ideas of what they plan on doing with it?

[MetropolitanTN]

Possibly a mixed use development the last I heard. I think that would be best and I hope it happens.