Looking for a college town for retirement (Columbus, Oberlin: theater, live in)

[paintballer1708]

Defiance is a nice little town in NW Ohio. I need to make a stop there next time im up in Toledo.

[Zasu Pitts]

I would look into Athens, OH, home of Ohio University. Much, much smaller than OSU, but a very nice town with more to offer than the smaller college towns like Oberlin.

[mountains]

Wooster is beautiful. I've lived in Europe & all over the US &, in the fall, I still miss Wooster. The college is excellent & brings in many speakers, sporting events & the Ohio Light Opera in the summer. The Cleveland Clinc has also opened facilities out there. Eat at the South Market Street Bistro! Oberlin is a sweet little town as well. Oberlin College is also excellent & known for a fabulous music program.

[paintballer1708]

I really highly suggest Oberlin. When i lived in Westlake, Ohio it wasnt a far drive to Oberlin. It is a great little college town. I also speak highly of Wooster as well.

[defchunk]

Defiance is the place you want to check out.

[HomesInDayton]

In SW Ohio, Yellow Springs is a beautiful Village that offers a lovely park, a great walking/ biking atmosphere, independent movie theatre, a diverse population, boutique shopping, and a vibrant community life.

It is small, not exactly sure, but I'm thinking a population of about 5,000? And housing is expensive compared to other parts of the Miami Valley, but it is quite picturesque.

[jsmill]

All of these suggestions are great! Visited Oberlin, Miami, Ohio Wesleyan, Kenyon, and Denison over the years. Probably from a cultural and arts point of view, Oberlin -- because of the Conservatory -- would be a great fit. Ohio has so many excellent small colleges and universities of a managable size. I have one more to suggest: Wooster, near Akron. The College of Wooster is a terrific school and Akron, with the U of Akron and Kent State nearby, provides cultural and academic alternatives if needed.

[ikuout]

Check Out Charlottesville Va. -university Of Virginia. Not Too Big, Loads Of Cultural Activities, Great Sporting Events,and Mild Climate With All 4 Seasons. In The Blue Ridge Mts. Gorgeous. Good Luck! Ikuout

[OhioNerd]

Two thoughts come to mind:

1) Kent State. There are some nice rural areas within reasonably close proximity where you can find a quiet place to live. Portage County for instance, has a lot to offer in that regard. KSU isn't known for it's football team, not by a LONG shot; but it does have a good hockey team.

2) Ohio State. Now, I know you don't like the idea of going someplace so big, but that might be because you don't understand how quickly things get rural once you get outside the city limits. Based on the fact that you're coming from Florida, I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess you don't mind the water. I'm thining Chocktaw Lake (about 20 min West of the city limits.) and Buckeye Lake. (About 20 min East of the city limits.)


Tell me...
What are your top three priorities for your new home, in descending order of importance?

[streetcreed]

Columbus is too large, 2million people metro, to every fit the bill of being a college town

You could live near the city and in the rural country hills and lakes but you wouldnt be near any college, unless you looked into Delaware, which is north of Columbus and has a smaller college in its downtown. Delaware is developing a lot though, and since i grew up in the city, I view Delaware as a small town but you may think its quite large.

I would guess Athens, Ohio University, is a very small college town.
Kent, Ohio has kent state, and is very very small.
And Oberlin is a famous university in Oberlin, Ohio, i believe, and is a very quaint small literal and liberal college town.