Am I crazy to uproot my family from Chicago & move to Nashville? (Franklin: vacation)

[SPTLSS1]

Longtime lurker and 1st time poster.

I was born in Chicago along with my wife and we reside in the NW suburbs. We have 1 yr old & 4 yr old. All of our family & friends are here in Chicago.

I travel quite a bit for work & was in Nashville a few years back and the town just seemed like the right place for myself & family. The people were friendly, scenic, and just a nice place to raise a family. My wife has never been to Nashville.

To move would require leaving our jobs, friends, preschool, ...plus the wifey is not keen on moving since she doesn't do well with change.

My reasons for wanting to leave Chicagoland are the severe winters, traffic, & cost of living. Our house is worth around $800K with $10K in annual taxes. I know we can find more affordable housing.

I guess my question is what do those from Nashville have to say about the city...both good and bad. I hear quite a bit and have read a lot on Franklin...again both good & bad.

My most motivating factor for moving is the weather. I am to the point that I can't deal w/ the cold & snow any longer.

Look forward to any input.

[alleycat]

I've been to Chicago a few times and really like the city. But, like you, I don't care much for the weather there.

As for Nashville, it's not perfect, but a lot of us like living here. I like living in a city the size of Nashville; it doesn't have all the things to do and choices of restaurants that a city like Chicago does, but it has enough, plus several advantages of its own (apart from the milder climate and lower cost of living).

While it wouldn't be a mansion, you could certain buy a very nice house here for $800k.

By the way, I was just out at lunchtime. A friend and I took a stroll after lunch; it was quite comfortable being outside.

[denawilliams]

I lived in Columbus for a couple of winters, and I have consulted several companies in the past on long term projects in Chicago. Most of the time I spent there went through the entire winter. I feel your pain. Just so you know this past week, I've seen people in shorts here because it's been in the 70s...I even think we hit 80 1 day. It's colder now, but the chill is not the same here as it is in Chicago. If you are ready to get out of the cold, then this will be a great decision for you. Our winters are much milder and shorter. We RARELY get snow. And you don't experience as many delays at the airport. I do love it here personally because I believe it's a great city. The most frustrating part to me has been the lack of road system planning. Traffic is not horrible here because most everything is in close proximity, but it shouldn't be as bad as it is. Again though, when you compare it to major cities, especially Chicago, traffic really is a non-issue. We have great entertainment, parks, schools, shopping, restaurants and neighborhoods here. Good luck in your decision. I think it will be a hard sell when other family members have only known that one area, but I've known many people who have done that very thing and love it here.

[SPTLSS1]

I am glad others share in severe displike of cold weather...as I watch snow blow in the wind outside my office window.

To me if I never saw snow again I'd be very happy; although I want to move to a location that is not clear across the country from Chicago since the grandparents will want to have somewhat close proximity to their kids & grandkids.

A 2,500 sq ft house w/ 4 bedrooms is all we need. Basement is nice but not sure if basements exist in TN.

Biggest obstacle is my wife. Not handling change well she dwells on all the little things like finding new doctors, decorating a house, along w/ jobs, social network, missing family, etc. Not taking anything away from her concerns but like I tell her things will fall into place.

It's a tough sell...& I'm a Sales Mgr.

[luvmyanimals]

I can understand the cold weather since I use to live in Michigan. I suggest bringing your wife down to Nashville for a week, let her look around and see the area. I think once she's here she will enjoy it, but it's going to be hard if she's leaving her family and friends behind. Don't move to an area without both of you agree to it, she will resent you for it. I don't live in Nashville anymore but lived there many years and loved it. Your kids will love Franklin, great schools too.

[SPTLSS1]

Problem is if it were up to my wife she would be buried in 6' of snow here in Chicago. No matter where we move it will be partially against her will.

Like I told her nothing is permanent & we can always come back if it's not what we thought it would be.

[akm4]

That's what we said when we moved to Franklin from the Tahoe area in Northern CA.
That was over 6 years ago. We love it here.

As for the weather, we had our windows open here earlier this week, while it was snowing back in CA.

Suckers!

[artemis]

I used to live in Chicago, I've been here 7 yrs. A windbreaker is my winter coat most days. Some here get cold when the temp drops below 70 degrees.

If you are going to work in Nashville, and commute from Franklin, be forewarned that traffic on I-65 can be hellish. I used to work in Brentwood, and several times I've seen traffic backed up for miles.

Nashville has a lot going on, but not on the same scale as Chicago. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing. You can't get Gino's East pizza here, but I have the recipe so I make my own deep dish.

Maybe you & your wife should make a few trips down here without the kids if you can. Maybe that would change her mind.

But, as the old saying goes ...."if Momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy".

I wish you well.

[alleycat]

Originally Posted by SPTLSS1

A 2,500 sq ft house w/ 4 bedrooms is all we need. Basement is nice but not sure if basements exist in TN.

A lot of houses have basements, a lot don't.

Because of our topography, many houses are on sloping lots and a basement serves as a garage. That doesn't mean people always put their cars in them however. Sometimes there's everything but a car in the garage.

[groovamos]

Originally Posted by SPTLSS1

Longtime lurker and 1st time poster.

I was born in Chicago along with my wife and we reside in the NW suburbs. We have 1 yr old & 4 yr old. All of our family & friends are here in Chicago.

I can provide some input from the following perspective. I grew up in Nashville beginning at age five and my Dad took a job in Park Ridge in spring '68 a couple months before my graduation, so we moved to Arlington Heights that summer right before my 1st year at college. At that time, Nashville metro pop. was around 600K, Chicagoland was circa 7.5M. I was really overwhelmed at suddenly being in the environs of a truly world class city, the epicenter of the Midwest. And at age 18 and up I took advantage of this and prowled the city during all of the summer and holiday vacations there, and had a girlfriend in the city for a couple of years. Nashville seemed a little bit bush league at that point, irregardless of the natural beauty of the area. Chicago environs not having the same geographical beauty (the lake shore being the exception) seemed not so relevant.

Now the situation has changed. Chicagoland is 9M, Nashville nearly 1.6M. Still a huge difference but not as overwhelmingly lopsided as before. Nashville is infinitely more interesting now than it was back then not only because of all of the nice things that have happened from an urban design standpoint, but the area has more of a sense of historical place now, and consequently greater cultural richness than it had say 40 years ago. Example: the recording/songwriting industry in Nashville now has 60 years of history. And the city is quite gorgeous, expecially the residential areas -- way more so than Houston, where I am now. At my age I really appreciate that more than say the '68 Democratic convention, or the huge hippie population/culture of the Chicago of 1970.

And to this add a smoking economy and Nashville looks like the current jewel of the South. Check out my long post in another thread replying to another Chicagoland resident:
Question re: something I've seen in quite a few posts...