Is Oak Ridge in decline? (Memphis, Knoxville: new home, neighborhood, schools)

[gnichols]

Oak Ridge is at the top of my choices for retirement. I am amazed by what this community has to offer for it's size. However, when I told a friend who works there, he was appalled - said the community is dying. Well, he lives in a half million $$ home in Karns, so I don't know how to evaluate his comment. It has something to do with the empty mall and no few restaurants, neither of which bother me. I'd really appreciate input!

[JMT]

Originally Posted by gnichols

Oak Ridge is at the top of my choices for retirement. I am amazed by what this community has to offer for it's size. However, when I told a friend who works there, he was appalled - said the community is dying. Well, he lives in a half million $$ home in Karns, so I don't know how to evaluate his comment. It has something to do with the empty mall and no few restaurants, neither of which bother me. I'd really appreciate input!

Well, Oak Ridge's population is aging, that's for sure. Young people who work at ORNL seem to prefer living in West Knox County and commuting. I think part of it is that Oak Ridge's property taxes are a lot higher than anywhere else in the area (I believe only Memphis has higher property taxes in the state).

Some in Oak Ridge will argue that their schools are superior to anything else around here. Maybe. They're certainly very, very good. But housing in Oak Ridge is kind of bland, and there's really no room in the city for new housing developments. The library is small and is merely a monument to the 1970s, and I think there is the same number of banks in Oak Ridge now as there was 20 years ago.

The mall in Oak Ridge is dead. Oh, the big stores are still there: Wal-Mart, Sears, JCPenney. But the inside of the mall is lifeless except for a few mallwalkers. There is a fairly new Home Depot in the northern part of Oak Ridge.

There are a few new restaurants in Oak Ridge, too, such as Outback, but there have been quite a few casualties, too.

I used to live in Oak Ridge, and the friends I have who still live there prefer to drive to West Knoxville to do their heavy duty shopping and to eat out, and I think that's the case with many people in Oak Ridge.

[jibanez]

The answer always boils down to what you're actually used to. I'm kinda used to the 'burbs, so Oak Ridge is just fine. It has just enough to get day-to-day stuff done and pretty quick access to W. Knoxville for other stuff.

Whether it's in decline is tough to say. Having only moved here last year, I can't give much perspective on any potential "glory days" of Oak Ridge. But I have seen some promising movement on much needed projects like the redevelopment of the marina and potential renovations to Jackson Square. That, in addition to some rumored new business coming to town gives me some hope.

On the other hand, all of these projects are in planning stages and, while I think they're good ideas, how well they're executed, if at all, remains to be seen.

That said, we have a lot of parks and greenways for hiking throughout the city. And, taxes aside, I was able to get more house for my money here than I was elsewhere. With that I get some great schools (I'll concede to JMT's questioning of the BEST, but very good at least), a short commute to W. Knoxville and a nice house in quiet neighborhood.

So it's not a no-brainer, but it's a nice balance of everything. Let me know if I can answer anything else for you.

[oldmanbob]

Congrats gnichols on your soon to be retirement status. As jmt and many have posted, its only an easy 30 minute drive to west knox and most of the resturants, are fast food type and my experience has been, housing is all over the board and the nicer subdvisions, are still runnning about the same as west knoxville. Since your retiring, one would guess your not that concerned about the schools, but they rank at the top, along with the ones in west knoxville.

[LauraC]

Originally Posted by gnichols

Oak Ridge is at the top of my choices for retirement. I am amazed by what this community has to offer for it's size. However, when I told a friend who works there, he was appalled - said the community is dying. Well, he lives in a half million $$ home in Karns, so I don't know how to evaluate his comment. It has something to do with the empty mall and no few restaurants, neither of which bother me. I'd really appreciate input!

Tell us what you like to do and maybe we can help you out.