Nice Town in between Lexington and Louisville thats easy to commute to both? (Frankfort: transplants)

[ohiosgreat]

Hello, our family is looking to relocate from Ohio...were considering both the Lexington and Louisville area......so were wondering is there a town in between the two that is an easy commute to both?

Any insight you might have would be greatly appreciated.
Were not necessarily looking for a BIG city...but would like to find a place that is nicely located to a bigger city/town that has a Wal-mart, restaurants, and most importantly people that work....an economy....

We work for ourselves and would not mind being centrally located in the middle of a few thriving economies....(but is nice and has relatively affordable housing)....does such a place exist?

*We don't necessarily have to be in between Louisville/Lexington..we would not mind being closer to either one...as long as were located close to thriving areas......places where people who work like to live...(I hope that makes since)
Thanks So Much!

[Wilson513]

I'd live in Shelbyville in a minute.

[CraigCreek]

Frankfort would also meet your preferences.

Would you want to be closer to Louisville or Lexington?

[ohiosgreat]

In regards to the question if we would like to be closer to Louisville or Lexington:

Not exactly sure....which area is nicer....what are the bedroom communities most people prefer for either Louisville or Lexington.....?

and in response to Shelbyville comment....Why Shelbyville?
Thank You..and look forward to your response....

[EclecticEars]

Frankfort is my recommendation. There, that was easy! Very good town.

Midway is nice, also, but that's closer to Lexington. Simpsonville is nice, but that's basically a far flung suburb of Louisville. Taylorsville as a town is great, but access to Lexington could be problematic during winter weather (taking KY 55 to I-64) and the locals, as I remember them growing up, are remarkably standoffish to the point of rudeness.

Shelbyville has become an odd blend of illegal immigrants and snooty Louisville East End transplants mixed in with rural hillbilly locals. They had a nice looking downtown five years ago, however, and I assume it still is today. The Shelby County countryside is great, but Shelbyville itself sucks. Plus, the big deal in that town, as is the case in most Kentucky small towns, is Walmart, and their Walmart is quite filthy in my experience. That really does matter, IMO, when considering a small town, b/c Walmart is all that many rural areas really have for their community gathering and one-stop shopping.

Lawrenceburg is one of those towns that has the potential to be "the showplace of central Kentucky," and that's actually a quote by one their local political candidates about ten years ago. For it to be in the county with the 8th-highest median family income in the state, the town is damn near embarrassing aesthetically and culturally. Terrible school system, too. Disclaimer: I grew up in Lawrenceburg, I should know; I don't hate the place or hold any personal ill will, but in only 20 years it has gone from a generally nice small town to a poorly-planned exurb with acres and acres of shoddily-constructed new homes that, in some cases, already look "trashed out."

Summary: Frankfort is your best bet.

[CraigCreek]

Actually...Shelbyville's downtown area contains several excellent antique malls and shops with very friendly and helpful staff. Just outside of the business area, there are many well-maintained historic homes, making for a very attractive, visually charming Main Street. There are the usual chain stores and fast food restaurants, but that's not all there is to Shelbyville!

Frankfort, Kentucky's state capitol, probably has a livelier cultural scene than does Shelbyville, but is farther from Louisville (but closer to Lexington). Frankfort also has a very attractive historic area - Old Frankfort - plus the Kentucky state history museum, the old and new capitol buildings, a convention center, several historic museum houses, interesting shopping and dining downtown, some excellent city parks, several good restaurants that are not chains - plus the usual generic big box stores and fast food restaurants. Kentucky State University is located in Frankfort as well.

I think I'd also go for Frankfort, just because it has a lot to offer. But the previous poster does Shelbyville a disservice by his very jaundiced, five-year-out-of-date personal view.

Best advice would be to visit both towns for a couple of days, see the sights, and talk with the locals. Good luck with your move.

[cab591]

OP: Shelbyville keeps coming up as a recommendation, because geographically it's right about in between Lexington and Louisville, and is a relatively large town (compared to the intersections they call "towns" in the surrounding area). In other words: they have a Walmart. Though as EclecticEars was saying, Shelbyville is slowly becoming a satellite community of Louisville. As Louisville metro is spreading out past the Gene Snyder Parkway, people who want to live in a small community, outside of town are settling in Shelbyville. Definitely a lot of development in the past 10 years there.

I agree with some of the other posters: Frankfurt would be nice. Downtown is quite nice, you've got the capital building (great scenic overlooks on US-60/Louisville Rd). If you're into hiking / mountain biking, Capital View State Park has some awesome trails! While geographically, it's closer to Lexington, it's a much bigger town than Shelbyville. Lexington is about 30-45 minutes away, via US-60, through Versailles (The "s" is pronounced. Get used to it). Very scenic drive, but DON'T SPEED! State Troopers love pulling people over on US-60. You'll even get to see Castle Post (as it's now called) when coming into Lexington. It's been converted into a very nice Bed and Breakfast. You'll hit metro Louisville after about 30-45 minutes of driving West on I-65 (farther distance than Lexington, but faster speed limits on the interstate).

[Crazee Cat Lady]

Versailles and Midway are really, really cute little towns. Frankfort is nice also.

[LEXpert]

I'd check out Frankfort. I lived there when I was a kid. It has two exits on 64. Most people seem to prefer the west side of town for shopping and schools. Even if you lived on the west side of Frankfort, you can still take the East-West Connector (which I remember playing on as a kid when it was being built) to 421/Leestown Road if there is ever a traffic jam on I-64.

If the job is deep in Louisville, I'd look at Shelbyville just to even out the commute times.

[InLondon]

Frankfort, Georgetown, Shelbyville, Midway and Versailles. All nice towns!

My personal preference would be Frankfort.