Possibly moving from TX to Albion (Detroit, Ann Arbor: real estate, houses, rent)

[JessicaGM08]

There is more than "mom and pop" stores in Albion. It IS more deserted when the college students are gone, but there are certainly very nice parts of the town. Our professors are required to live there... professors from every walk of life who are making a decent living. I agree, however, that from Sugarland to many parts of Michigan, you may be in for a shock Once you are here though, you just have to find things to do- there really are plenty.

And Homer??? I do not know too much about it, but my stepmom grew up there and it has not changed at all... very, very small. Everybody knows everybody...kinda like most towns on the west side of the state.

It is all a matter of opinion... but please, let's have a little hope for our improving communities and school districts...

Jess

[JessicaGM08]

Plus- Michigan has A LOT of lakes...everywhere. Hope you like water.

[us2indaup]

In small towns like Homer or Springport, I haven't found it to be true that everyone knows everyone, at least not taken in a bad context. It's true that there are many people of the same last name, related or married-in relations, but even in a town as small as Springport (700 people +/-), you can walk down the street on any given day and not see one familiar face. But so what if you do see people you know? One of the greatest things about small town life (I currently live in a town of 3000) is that you feel you're amongst friends. People smile, wave, say hello, as how you are and really want an answer. Also, in small towns, it's easy to make friends. Just joing a local club, committee, or organization. It's a truely beauitiful feeling to feel you're an integral part of your community. For you city-dwellers, don't knock it till you've tried it, you don't know what you're missing!

[JessicaGM08]

I agree I am a small town girl myself- Pennfield and Dowling native. My point was that Albion has some positive qualities of a small town. On first glance it may seem bad, but it's not...so compared to a top ranking town....well, I guess I would just ay to visit before making any final decisions!

[pjmiami]

"BTW - what is with referring to Marshall as "small"? With a population of over 7,000, its comparable in size to Albion and has the advantage of it's proximity to Battle Creek to offset it's size."

LOL, um, the OP is moving from a suburb of Houston so Marshall AND Albion are small in comparison. In fact, Marshall and Albion are considered small without the comparison. If you grew up in Springport, you may have a different perspective as to what constitutes a small town but for most these two would fit the bill. :-)

[us2indaup]

Originally Posted by pjmiami

" If you grew up in Springport, you may have a different perspective as to what constitutes a small town but for most these two would fit the bill. :-)

I have to disagree with the word "most". It's long been a point of contention with me that the media portrays America as an urban nation. This is simply not true! Farm country, the Great Plains, Mountains, deserts-all of these have a population base and although I don't have any hard data, I suspect that if you added all of America's rural dwellers together they would present quite a staggering percentage of our overall population.

[sugarland]

Your feedback has been extremely helpful.....You've convinced my husband to remove Jackson from the 'possible places to live' list. In looking at homes in Albion...its very slim pickins. Hopefully Marshall is an option- eventhough the district would want us to live in Albion. Im sure renting is impossible... though its my preference ... where do the professionals with young families live in this town? Also curious... is Starbucks an amenity ?

[sugarland]

Originally Posted by JessicaGM08

I don't know much about Jackson, but I'm from around Marshall- Battle Creek actually- which is very close. Everyone knows everyone else. There is a wonderful restaurant there called Schulers- expensive, but good food. The downtown is very nice, but the people are not diverse.

Albion- I went to the college for English and Education and therefore spent many, many hours in the public schools. For elementary age children, I would send them to Harrington over Washington Gardner in a heartbeat or send them to Marshall. I have more experience with Hughes Elementary in Marshall, but the other one is newer and just as good! Albion is like many other small towns in America... the industry business went down, factories shut down, people lost their jobs, town became smaller. Also, when I-94 was built, Michigan Ave.-which was the main route for many people, became deserted-think of the movie "Cars" for a good comparison! Albion, like other towns, has good areas and also areas I would stay away from. All Albion professors are required to live in town so we have quite a diverse perspective and plenty of people who have resided in Albion their entire lives.

There are a lot of foster homes in Albion for children which makes the town even more diverse in it's needs. It's a good thing the teachers are so wonderful-for the most part, of course! Also, for more in depth background information you may or may not want- Starr Commonwealth is a major non-profit organization that does wonderful work in Albion and for priveledged children as well... but sends some pretty tough kids to Albion for schooling. these kids sometimes group together and need extra help to stay "on the right track."

I not only went to college in Albion, but it really feels like home to me. I rented two houses there and felt safe most of the time. I would not, however, walk by myself at night in a lot of areas but feel comfortable with my window open

If you have any other questions, let me know!!!


Jess

Jess-
What parts of town are not safe to walk in? We have 3 labs!

[us2indaup]

Originally Posted by sugarland

......Also curious... is Starbucks an amenity ?

Etremely unlikely. I haven't even seen a Starbucks in Lansing. I know there isn't one in the entire U.P. or Northern L.P.

[JessicaGM08]

There are cute coffee shops/bookstores in Albion and Marshall. I think the closest starbucks, unfortunately, is in Battle Creek-only 15-20 minutes away. My mom lives in Maryland- but kind of far from a Starbucks so she and her husband buy the coffee pods and brew them in their own grinder thing . I personally prefer the Mocha Fraps

Jess