Smithfield and Selma (Raleigh, Clayton, Knightdale: crime, homes, theater)

[njprintman]

Hope someone reads this.
Tried once before and didn't get any hits.
We are moving in a couple of months.
Our hearts are set on Calabash/Shallotte area.
Second choice is Smithfield / Selma.
It seems like there is more home for your dollar in the Smithfield/Selma area.
Anyone who can tell us ANYTHING about the Smithfield and Selma area?

[Bethanytedder]

You might be getting more home for you money in Smithfield-Selma but let me tell you that I lived there from 1985-1992 and absolutely hated it. My husband is from a smaller Johnston County town called Kenly and that is how I ended up there. The crime rate, particularly DWI's is really high, there was a lot of drug traffic up there, and I didn't see anything about the schools that impressed me although they have built some newer ones since I was there. There was this really old school when I was there near the western part of the county that looked like termites holding hands to keep it together. Hopefully this one is gone now but I am not sure. Do what you wish but I sure wouldn't move back to Johnston County if someone paid me. Good luck. One other thought, if you just have your heart set on Johnston County because of housing costs, go to Clayton, just as far out of Clayton to the west you can get and still be in Johnston County. That will put you within about 15 miles of Raleigh, the state capital. They tell me the Clayton is looking pretty good and it did seem to have something going that the other areas of the county didn't. Like I said, this is in the extreme western part of the county. You can get outside of town heading to Raleigh and find some right decent places.

[Tyster]

My wife and I have lived in Smithfield for 2 years. We moved here from nearby Knightdale and it was a smart move to make.

Smithfiled is a 20-25 minute drive from downtown Raleigh. I-95 is 2 minutes from downtown Smithfield. The beach is only a little over an hour away.

Downtown Smithfield is very Mayberry-like. Traditional mixed with some new, but clean and well kept. But there is excellent shopping just outside of downtown (2 minutes away). Downtown consists on 1 main street, but its pleasant. Clean. Much better than Knightdale! The city council here is mostly conservative and very concientious. Not much in the way of scandals.

There are some poorer areas around downtown but there are also wonderful (and huge) historic homes. But revitalization is occuring rapidly.

The main attraction downtown is the Ava Gardner Museum (she grew up here). She's buried just down the road. I also recommend the old Howell Theater. Ava went there as a child and it still operates. TWO DOLLARS to see a movie. Great place, great people. Lots of fairs, etc... in the summer. Nice (permanent, indoor) stage theater as well. Quite a few historic buildings around town.

Crime is fairly low (almost everyone here is armed). There are quite a few illegals here but that is due almost entirely to the booming housing growth here.

Housing is plentiful and most lots are fairly large. You get a lot for your money here. Jobs in this area are plentiful.

Selma is 5 minutes from Smithfield. Less developed, a bit poorer, but they have a nice antique district downtown and a great music theater.

I hope this helps and let me know if you have any questions!

Tyster

[Bethanytedder]

I forgot to mention the pottery outlet and other outlet stores which seem to attract a lot of people that are into shopping which I'm not. But there are a lot of outlet stores there that were just getting started good when I moved away in 1992. My husband says that Smithfield has literally exploded with growth over the past 10 years. But I still stand by my earlier statements. I wouldn't want to live there. If he insists on going back home, we will be moving further west to Clayton.