LI and Huntersville NC (Florida, Morrisville: chapel, credit, home)

[bpoerio]

Has anyone visited or moved to Huntersville NC? I have heard many Native Long Islanders mention they have moved to NC and moved back. Curious to know besides not being on the Island... what made them all return. How different is it really??????
Thanks.

[iluvmycuties]

I did not live there, but we looked there for about 2 weeks. Our friend went down there and could not stop raving about it.

I thought it to be a litle too country for me...a very big Nascar area. Not us at all.

The shopping is abundant, especially at Birkdale Village. One of THE nicest shopping plazas I have EVER been to, anywhere.

We liked a development named MacAuley (sp?), it was filled with families.

The schools do not perform well there (this is based on our tours of schools, talks with numerous families, some northern transplanted realtors, and published scores through greatschools), and that was the final issue for us. A lot of northerners who go down choose private schools.

Our friend ended up coming back this year. She couldn't get anyone to move there. She should have tried it for another year. I think she missed her family and friends, and did not allow enough time to pass. I also think once she shopped so many times at Birkdale that it became old and she didn't know what else to do.

We thought the Raleigh area was a bit more for us (Cary, Apex, Morrisville, Raleigh, Chapel Hill). We just got a different vibe from there. Wake schools perform well, as long as you don't mind the current issues with the SD such as traditional vs. year round, and the reassignments each year throughout the district. I know people in Wake who have told me they wouldn't come back to LI if you paid them.

I give credit to anyone who has the guts to pick up and go down to NC. You need an adventurous spirit to do so.

You have to go down there and see for yourself. Best of luck!

[bpoerio]

Thank You!!

[moonbeams]

I live in Charlotte very close to Huntersville. I think it is a great place to live. I disagree with the previous poster...it is a big misconception that the schools down south or in CMS don't perform well. The truth is that the kids that come down from the north are usually behind the kids here. I have had this very conversation with my daughter's teacher regarding us moving back to LI (I missed my family). You can PM me for more detail. I also was worried about the NASCAR thing but honestly haven't met anyone that is into it yet. I love the church that we go to in Huntersville that is filled with NYers. Probably the nicest place in the Charlotte area is South Charlotte or the Ballentyne I would check that out too.

[bpoerio]

Thank You for the information. I heard the same about the schools.

[iluvmycuties]

Just want to make it perfectly clear that I never said that southern schools do not perform well, before this thread turns into something ugly and we get shut down. And I'm not bashing anyone who lives there or moves there. I was responding to the OP's question, and giving my opinion based on touring, speaking to parents, and researching performance scores.

I'm not too sure about the idea that LI children are behind NC children in school. My Kindergartener has art 3X/week, music 2 X/week, and Spanish 2X/week. Next year he receives swimming lessons as well, and this is provided by the district. The programs here are abundant.

The really big impact on NC will be the migration of NY teachers to the state. NY requires a Masters degree for teachers, whereas NC does not. Once again, this is not me saying that the north is better than the south or that the south needs rescuing from NY teachers. But it will certainly mean that NC will be paying a fraction of what NY pays teachers for all of that extra education and certifications.

[OhBeeHave]

My son and his friend came home after exams today. They are both in 10th grade. My son took the Math B regents while his friend, who relocated from Florida, had to take the Math A (usually taken in 9th) as the math program in the school he came from was behind in comparison to NY.

That is one school. I'm not tar and feathering the entire southern school systems.

[AlexisT]

Parts of NC are really good (certainly heard many good things about Chapel Hill and Cary). FL is notoriously bad. Overall, the south lags behind, schools wise.