Washingtonians In Kentucky? (Louisville: transplants, neighborhoods, quality of life)

[Wrangler]

We are looking at moving to Kentucky in a couple years. I've never been there, but my wife has some family there. We live in Washington State now and would like to hear from any Washington transplants to Kentucky. What do you wish you knew about Kentucky before you moved?

Thanks.

[KimberlyW.]

I realize your post is old, but we are Washingtonians in KY. I wish we did not have to move but it was my husband's job that moved us. We will move back to WA one day but are trying to just enjoy some different things and seeing different parts of the country while we live here.

[cobolt]

I'm living in WA state right now and looking to move to Louisville and I have been to Louisville a few times. I CAN'T WAIT to get out of WA!!!

[EclecticEars]

Originally Posted by cobolt

I'm living in WA state right now and looking to move to Louisville and I have been to Louisville a few times. I CAN'T WAIT to get out of WA!!!

I'm curious as to why you want to get out of WA. It's always a place that has interested me, for living and visiting; which is better?

The people seem reserved but very decent, the geography very diverse, and Seattle a booming city with a strong metropolitan economy. (Of course, where I'll be voting for McCain in this election, I figure that might be a problem anywhere along the I-5 corridor.)

[cobolt]

Originally Posted by jcm1986

I'm curious as to why you want to get out of WA. It's always a place that has interested me, for living and visiting; which is better?

The people seem reserved but very decent, the geography very diverse, and Seattle a booming city with a strong metropolitan economy. (Of course, where I'll be voting for McCain in this election, I figure that might be a problem anywhere along the I-5 corridor.)

Quite honestly, this poster on the Tx forum (who moved from WA) says it better than I ever could, so I'll use her post to answer your question:

Washington State makes a fabulous first impression but there are aspects of it that don't wear well over time. On the other hand, Texas doesn't make a knock out first impression but there are ways in which the quality of life here is very, very good.

We moved to Sugar Land, Texas, after almost 10 years in the Pacific Northwest (mostly Seattle and Issaquah with brief stints in Colorado and Portland, Oregon). The main thing that is different between Texas and the Pacific Northwest is the scenery. The Pacific Northwest wins that contest. On many other quality of life dimensions, Texas wins.

First of all, while the Houston area does not look like the Pacific Northwest, it has a beauty and charm of its own. It is much more green and lush than most people realize unless they've lived here or visited extensively. You have to get off the main highways and into the neighborhoods to appreciate this.

If you don't like hot, sunny weather, you probably won't like Texas. But we found the sunny weather to be the biggest blessing. We've spent a lot of time this summer at the beach, swimming in pools, and visiting splash parks. Our children have loved it. I am completely looking forward to a winter in Texas that isn't just one gray rainy day after the next. You'll hear negative things about Texas beaches but for families with small children, Texas beaches are great. We just went to Port Aransas and it was wonderful. Lots of shallow water and clean sand for the kids and the atmosphere was totally family friendly. I didn't see many people there without children so perhaps someone looking for a romantic or party vacation would have a different reaction to the beach there.

The cost of living in Texas is less, so you have more time to enjoy life rather than work to keep up. Job growth seems stronger in Texas but I haven't checked the statistics to be sure. The people in Texas are friendlier. Despite native Houstonians' belief that traffic here is horrendous, it really isn't compared to other parts of the country. Texas actually builds highways large enough to hold the traffic, so traffic moves much better here.

The cultural climate is very different between the Pacific Northwest and Texas. Seattle and Portland are very liberal, but often it is a type of liberalism that is maddening rather than progressive. My husband jokes that Seattle will still be debating what to do about their aging infrastructure as it is crumbling down and killing people. In Seattle, there is process, process, process, always trying to make everyone happy and rarely succeeding. In Texas, you have more of a "can do" attitude but also some problems with protecting the environment or showing civic pride in keeping things clean. We are still shocked by how many people in Texas throw trash on the ground everywhere they go, never cleaning up after themselves at parks or other public places...you don't see as much of that in the Pacific Northwest.

In the Pacific Northwest, people TALK about diversity constantly. In the Houston area and especially in Sugar Land, it just IS culturally diverse. No need to talk about it all the time. Same with community. Seattleites talk about community but don't talk to their neighbors. I've rarely heard a Texan talk about community, but there seems to be a strong sense of community here.

My family doesn't miss the Pacific Northwest but we came to Texas with the attitude that we were going to like it. I imagine someone who doesn't have that attitude might be happier to stay in the Pacific Northwest.

[KimberlyW.]

That is for sure. Attitude is everything. We had to leave our grown daughters and that was the very hardest part. A 14 year old son had to leave his friends. Sad - but we will survive as we are survivors. KY might not have been my first choice, but it was the only thing available and my husband needed out of his job up there because of several different reasons which I can't get into. They seem to really appreciate him here, tho.