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Artsywoman, with all due respect, there are *******s in every city, not just Richmond and if you left here in 1993, I can assure you this place is very different than it was 15 years ago. Very different. But there is no point arguing. I mean, I've been reading these boards a lot and I'll read someone's rant about a city or state and how much they hate it and then they mention their "new" city and how wonderful it is. The only problem is, you can go to the forum of their "new" city and see people with the same complaints as this person has about their old city. I see it all the time.
I'll agree that the core of the city of Richmond is not someplace I'd want to live, but there are fabulous towns in the surrounding areas. If anyone thinks Richmond is so bad, I immediately think they haven't moved around very much in their life. Believe me, there are FAR worse places than here.
Richmond wasn't very great in 1993... it's true...but we're not even in the same century anymore and the area has changed substantially since then. Sounds more like bitter personal issues...
i wasn't in richmond in 93, but i'm sure there were a bunch of people that loved it back then as well.
it's all subjective, in no city is there NO positives. i really didn't like virginia beach but i wouldn't say something close minded like "virginia beach SUCKS, period". it had some good traits, just wasn't for me.
man, i hope some of you guys who like to complain find your utopia soon.
I guess that's what I can't stand are the kindergarten type insults like "this place sucks!" without explaining why. I think it stands to reason that most people on this site are here because they are looking to move sometime in the future or they just moved. I think it's much more helpful when people explain what they did and did not like and how it affected them. Why does something "suck" Why is it "boring"
For me, give me a boring town anyday. Usually they have very low crime, like the town I'm in now (small town in Hanover county) . For the record, I don't plan on living in Richmond forever. My husband and I would love to get further north where I'm from. I just like things a little cooler, more snow, and more New Englandy for my tastes. But that does not mean Richmond is a bad place. We've loved our time here.
I moved to Richmond 5 years ago and I have liked it less and less every year. This is not the place I want to be living this time enxt year. People here are fake friendly. I've never seen so many friends come and go. They get what they want and then leave you like nothing. I am from the NE and was hoping for some southern hospitality here...NONE! My biggest mistake in like was not moving away from here ALOT sooner. Sorry for the rant, the home prices are great and the lack of traffic are great but plz. I personally want out!
Why is there no Southern Hospitality in Richmond? Because we have so many more Northerners living here. But THERE IS Southern charm!
Ron, I can suggest LOTS of reasons why Richmond is a great place to live. I've lived in the north and the south. I'll admit I hate the south and the only reason I like Richmond is because it doesn't feel very southern. A southerner can live here and not feel totally out of place but if you want southern charm (barf) you need to be in the deep south like Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, etc.
Here's what is fantastic about Richmond for my husband and me.
My husband makes a salary almost as much as he would have in DC, but cost of living is about half here from what it would be in a bigger city like DC or NY. Very few cities can boast that they pay good salaries but have a lower cost of living.
Housing here is very affordable. Check out other cities in NC or look at any prices north of Fredericksburg and you'll see a huge difference.
VA has some of the cheapest insurance in the country. Our car insurance and homeowner's insurance is ridiculously low compared to when we lived in Florida.
I live in western Hanover county and it's gorgeous country out here. Woods, farms, rolling hills, nature, non existant crime, and great neighbors. However in 25 minutes I can be in the West End where there is Short Pump mall (one of the most gorgeous malls I've ever seen) and every single store you could imagine. Our Whole Foods just opened, Trader Joe's is coming we have Tom Leonards and overall awesome shopping.
We are very close to the ocean and mountains and DC. VERY few cities can boast that they are 2 hours from all of these places. Usually it's one or the other.
We have 4 great seasons. The heat never lasts that long and neither does the extreme cold. Want more snow? Head about an hour west to Charlottesville and there it is.
We hardly have much traffic at all compared to other cities.
The "bad" part of Richmond is pretty much concentrated to the east side. It's very easy to stay on the good side of town. Just stay west of the city. I know in Tampa, the city had pockets of crime all over. You could quickly go from a good area to a ghetto. With Richmond, the east side is the ghetto. (sorry but it is, you couldn't PAY me to live there) But the West end, South side and even north side isn't bad.
You can be in a city and drive a little bit and be in gorgeous country. As bad as the sprawl can feel here, it's nothing compared to other places. Like I said, I live on acreage out in the country and yet I'm in Short Pump in 25 minutes. I can be downtown in 45.
It seems with other cities you have to have one or the other. If you want a good paying job, you have to deal with high cost of living and traffic. If you find a city with low cost of living and little traffic, the jobs pay awful. My husband is a software engineer and like I said, Richmond, so far is the ONLY city I have been able to find that we can make excellent money and still have low cost of living and mild traffic.
I think the best thing a person can do is pop into different states on this forum and start reading. You will see the SAME things over and over and over said about each and every state. "It's too expensive, too crowded, people are rude, it's hard to fit in here."
Of course there are downsides to Richmond as every other city. But again, you'll find that with every city. There is no utopia. Remember that.
This is just me experience, but I've found the transplants to be some of the friendliest people with the most excitement for the city. The worst people as far as snobbery goes are the old money folks whose granddaddy's granddaddy lived here and they remember when Richmond was all farmland before the yankee's took over, etc. THOSE are the people who seem rude and cold. They have their little tight circles of friends down on the rivah' and they HATE the change that they see.
I've been here 4 years and Richmond is very much a changing city, however I see it changing for the better.
To me the locals should be thankful for the transplants. All of the new housing and shopping is bringing life to the city and making the economy better. Want to see what happens to a city when there are no transplants and nobody moves there anymore?
See: Ohio and Michigan, namely Toledo, Cleveland and Detriot. They are dying cities on their last breath. Transplants are good for the area, despite what the old timers seem to think. Most of them still think the Civil War is going on anyway, so I try to ignore them.
What do you mean by Richmond 'is not very Southern" Is that a joke?
Richmond may not be in the Deep South, but ironically it is much more Southern than Atlanta or Charlotte or Nashville. Richmond OOOZES Southern charm. It is very much the South- I guess you havent walked down Monument Ave and stopped to smell the Dogwood and Magnolia trees or pay visit to Robert E. Lee's statue
Or Sally Belle's kitchen where you get a boxed lunch. And of course, in Richmond you can get sweet tea in at least MOST of the restaurants. Cant say that about NOVA or even other parts of the South.
And while Im at it, I would like to say Richmond is one of the most charming cities in the USA. It has art, culture, Southern charm, and its just right close to everything!
Why is there no Southern Hospitality in Richmond? Because we have so many more Northerners living here. But THERE IS Southern charm!
Are you stomping your foot and crossing your arms while you say that? Yeah I can feel the southern charm "oozing" all over your posts.
I can't believe that there are pages all over the Richmond forum doing nothing but bashing the city and you choose to attack my post because I say Richmond is not extremely southern?
Look the ONLY people who think Richmond is just as southern as the deep south are people who have lived here their entire life. Richmond is southern. It's pretty darn southern, but it's not like the deep south states like Mississippi, Alabama, or Lousiana. Not saying it's better or worse. It's just different. I personally don't care and I'm not insulting Richmond by saying it's not extremely southern.
Ask someone from the deep south and they will agree. But you know what? Being the yankee that I am, I don't get caught up in the "my state is more southern than yours" deal.
My inlaws are from Florida. They take their Southerness very seriously. I had to laugh one time when this woman from Alabama told my mother in law that Flordia wasn't really the south and they got into an argument over it. My point is, as "southern" as you think Richmond is, someone living in Texas or Lousiana will think otherwise. It's all about perspective. Who cares though? Why is it insulting Richmond to say it's "Southern Light?"
And considering Richmond used to be one of the murder capitals of the US not too long ago, maybe you should be thankful that the "Yankees" moving here have brought some life to the city. I know back in the 80's, you could not have paid me to live here. Now it's a gorgeous and thriving city. You don't think that maybe, just maybe, transplants have a little bit to do with that?
Are you stomping your foot and crossing your arms while you say that? Yeah I can feel the southern charm "oozing" all over your posts.
I can't believe that there are pages all over the Richmond forum doing nothing but bashing the city and you choose to attack my post because I say Richmond is not extremely southern?
Look the ONLY people who think Richmond is just as southern as the deep south are people who have lived here their entire life. Richmond is southern. It's pretty darn southern, but it's not like the deep south states like Mississippi, Alabama, or Lousiana. Not saying it's better or worse. It's just different. I personally don't care and I'm not insulting Richmond by saying it's not extremely southern.
Ask someone from the deep south and they will agree. But you know what? Being the yankee that I am, I don't get caught up in the "my state is more southern than yours" deal.
My inlaws are from Florida. They take their Southerness very seriously. I had to laugh one time when this woman from Alabama told my mother in law that Flordia wasn't really the south and they got into an argument over it. My point is, as "southern" as you think Richmond is, someone living in Texas or Lousiana will think otherwise. It's all about perspective. Who cares though? Why is it insulting Richmond to say it's "Southern Light?"
And considering Richmond used to be one of the murder capitals of the US not too long ago, maybe you should be thankful that the "Yankees" moving here have brought some life to the city. I know back in the 80's, you could not have paid me to live here. Now it's a gorgeous and thriving city. You don't think that maybe, just maybe, transplants have a little bit to do with that?
Okay, Ill agree and take that. I just dont agree with people who try to make us look like Trenton, NJ in comparison to the Deeper South.
Richmond is absolutely not northern at all. I never implied that. It's just I've lived and spent a lot of time in all over the south from Virginia, down to Florida and have family in Mississippi and friends in Texas. By the same token, a rural area in the Appalaccian mountains in New Jersey will not feel as "northern" as Brooklyn, NY will. Every place is different and you can't paint an entire region with one brush.
Here's my opinion as a non-southerner: The people in the south speak of being southern as though it's a race or religion or ethnicity like being Polish, Irish or Jewish. When in fact, each state in the south is really and truly different. You are not all the same even though you label yourselves as such.
It also depends what state you are in and where you are in the state. The cities typically feel less southern than the outskirts do. Rural Alabama is nothing like Richmond is. Western Viriginia is nothing like Atlanta, Georgia. You're all southern, but in a different way.
I live out in the country in western Hanover county. It feels MUCH more southern here than it does in the city of Richmond. Richmond does feel southern but when I say it's not "extreme southern" in my own twisted way, I'm paying it a compliment. I think that anyone could move to Richmond and find a neighborhood that they can fit into. It's a very diverse city.
I've been to places in the south where if a person who was not a white, southern, Baptist Republican, they would feel like a fish out of water. Richmond is not like that. I find the people to be pretty open minded. I love the history here. I only want to move further north because I love the snow and snow sports and I want to be closer New England. That's another way I meant that Richmond didn't feel extremely southern. There is NO other southern state that has the colonial history that Richmond does. I felt very at home here. The arcitecture of the buildings and the colonial names are unique to this place. Parts of Richmond feel like New England and I've spoken to New Englanders who say they feel at home here for the same reason.
So you see, I wasnt' insulting Richmond in any way.
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