Moving to Roanoke, VA (Jefferson, Salem: relocate, showing, jobs)

[GradVT06]

Lots of people live in 'raleigh court', and around the intersections of brandon and grandin ave. Also, I think areas out near cave spring are nice too. Or, if you don't mind the extra drive, a lot of people like salem as well

[Steven2149]

To the poster who wanted to check out some of the areas to get a flavor of the region. Downtown is quite nice and clean. Look around in the market area and Center in the square for a good walking tour. Parking is cheap and pretty easy to find from my experience. The valley view mall area is pretty decent with a good selection of food and shopping. The blue ridge parkway is nice, but in my opinion the best *sunday drive* is driving up highway 311 (Catawba Valley Road). At the top of the mountain, there are some magnificent views. Also up that way is (in my opinion again) the best restaurant experience in the entire region. Homeplace is a country style restaurant set on a farm with more great views and excellent food. I must say that my wife and I miss that more than anything else in Roanoke. Areas within the city you will want to check out are the Electric Road/ Franklin Road areas, Raleigh Court, Southeast Roanoke near Roanoke Memorial Hospital has some very nice neighborhoods. And just like everyone else, take the free ride up to Mill Mountain for the great views from the star.

[kiroshi1]

Originally Posted by GradVT06

Sure. That area is definitely fine. Go to Brusters Ice Cream, it's pretty good and made fresh each day. The area I'm talking about is the stretch in between the intersections of Williamson/Hershberger and Williamson/Orange. Especially right in the middle of that stretch. Especially at night. People hang out at the gas stations/fast food places and other places on the road. At night, especially on weekends, people who modify their car park them in parking lots, put the hoods up and then drive up and down Williamson. Almost as if they are racing. Even more specific, there's a GoMart gas station and 7-11 right across the steet from each other. A few miles each direction, we'd refuse to drive there. A handful of businesses are all written in spanish and you have no idea what kind of stores they are. We lived, for a short time, in a neighborhood area on a road directly off of Williamson right in that middle stetch between Hershberger/Orange.

It's not like a ghetto, I would never feel comfortable with my wife on that road, and would never take kids or live near there. Several roads that are closer to downtown, like stretches of Campbell are worse off. If you're looking somewhere to possibly live, I'd strongly advise Salem or Roanoke County (as opposed to Roanoke City limits). The areas in Salem and Roanoke Country in the Cave Spring areas are nicer.

now i am a little confused here,let me see if i am alone,you state you spent time in jersey and traffic in roanoke scares you?that peoople drag race?ever been to south philly,atco ?any highway any day in any section of jersey?
ok i get the distain for hills as jersey is almost as flat as kansas except the nw end put rude people where invented here,well not quite,most came from NYC and settled here but,
crime loud obnoxious unfriendly and snobby rich rude behavior are as common here as politicians that lie.as you can tell by my feelings and the fact i am reading a roanoke forum my life experiences and 50 years of jersey life lead me to think roanoke,wind hills and all still beats life in the northeast hands down.anyone who disagrees PLEASE tell me i am wrong as i am looking to retire somewhere down this way .life is unaffordable here for retirees...highest insurance,property taxes and cost of living in the country unless you are a celebrity,politicallly connected or a gangster.
any replies will be appreciated.

[GradVT06]

Yes, I gree up when I was young in New Jersey, and have visited several times. Not recently. It's now been 2 months since I've moved from Roanoke. Don't miss it for a second. If I could sum it up in a few works, 'redneck hell-hole' best describes it.

Traffic doesn't scare me... just the fools that drive there do. I know you find bad drivers everywhere... but on many roads you'd encounter groups of drivers who are driving places together, and hang out or all drive together with extremely modified cars at double the speed limit. Or 18wheelers pull out in front of you over and over again on one-lane roads because there's so many, or its back up because there's so many hills and trucks. It's just not worth it to live there. No wonder housing there is dirt cheap.

[PaperTrail]

Originally Posted by GradVT06

If I could sum it up in a few works, 'redneck hell-hole' best describes it.

So, GradVT, about those rednecks. Would they include the 30-year-old hippie woman selling her art and jewelry down in the market? Or the people milling about the independent theater and coffee shops near Grandin Road? Or maybe you meant one of the hundreds of bankers that populate the town known for its financial centers?

"Redneck hell-hole" might sum up the neighborhood you last lived in, but it certainly doesn't sum up the city as a whole.

Originally Posted by GradVT06

I know you find bad drivers everywhere... but on many roads you'd encounter groups of drivers who are driving places together, and hang out or all drive together with extremely modified cars at double the speed limit.

I've seen barely a handful of these kinds of modified cars in Roanoke. Again, maybe it was just the area you lived in. Roanoke is saintly in that regard when compared to a place like Virginia Beach, where there's a healthy dose of thumping sound systems, neon undercarriage lights and Mustangs or T-top Camaros.

I've said it before, and I will say it again, I can't wait to move to Roanoke. The history of the town and the friendliness of the people there are tops in my book. And of course, the scenery!!

And, I'm just throwing this out there as a bonus: Roanoke made a list of Pinnacle Living's best Southern Mountain towns. Among the accolades mentioned: "Cities Ranked and Rated" #11 best place to live in America, and America’s Most Livable City 2004 by Partners for Livable Communities.

[mhuard]

Well, I'm moving to the Roanoke area in the Spring and I have visited the region a few times over the last 2 months. I find the area very appealing. As someone who spent years in New England and also in the "deep south," I can say with confidence that Roanoke is far from a redneck hell-hole.

While I personally wouldn't live in the more urban areas, Roanoke County and several of the other adjacent counties have a lot to offer. I was there two weeks ago and I didn't see one tricked out Civic! lol I drove dwon 81 all the way from NY and I found the density of traffic to be acceptable. Some major interstate junctions had significant traffic while other area had, well, just me!

Anyway, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I would check out Catawba and Blue Ridge. Those are my favorites. You can be pretty rural, yet 15 minutes to anything you need. Did I mention that it is gorgeous down there?

Sorry for the rambling...

-Mike

[nemfrey]

I plan to move to Virginia in February 2007. I will need information on employment agencies, who is hiring, companies, etc. I have a BS in Management, as well as working as a legal assistant for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy Trustee/corporate attorney.

Any help is appreciated.

[Silverfuji]

I am also considering a move to Roanoke from Chattanooga, TN. I have a potential job offer and would like some general information on the area, impressions, places to live, activities, weather, etc.

[PaperTrail]

Originally Posted by nemfrey

I plan to move to Virginia in February 2007. I will need information on employment agencies, who is hiring, companies, etc. I have a BS in Management, as well as working as a legal assistant for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy Trustee/corporate attorney.

Any help is appreciated.

Unfortunately, the job market is the one complaint about Roanoke that seems pretty consistent. Roanoke was born out of blue-collar roots, and those kinds of jobs are plentiful. Of course, that doesn't mean that white-collar management jobs aren't around there as well, it just means that you have to do some extra legwork in many instances to find them. The banking industry there is pretty big, as Roanoke is the hub for such a large area of rural Virginia.

I'm lucky because the company I work for now has a sister corporation in Roanoke, and I'm on track to get hired there in a really good white-collar job without any problem. My fiancee is planning on opening her own business working with animals, so all in all, employment hasn't been one of our concerns when looking at Roanoke.

Good luck with your search, and I hope that others here might be able to give you some further insight.

Originally Posted by Silverfuji

I am also considering a move to Roanoke from Chattanooga, TN. I have a potential job offer and would like some general information on the area, impressions, places to live, activities, weather, etc.

Coming from a town like Chattanooga, you should be in good shape to settle right into Roanoke. As for activites, there's a book you can buy in town called "So There's Nothing to Do in Roanoke." Or at least the title is pretty close to that. The city isn't right for everyone, but if you're into the outdoors and things like farmers markets, you'll find plenty to do. I know I will once I move there. Since I don't live there yet, I'm not going to speculate on any places to live, but my fiancee and I are planning on probably living on the outskirts of town or in nearby burgs such as Blue Ridge, Bent Mountain or Cave Spring. We've gone by those areas, and they seem to be places where we can buy a lot of land and get a farm going. We like that.

[azcavalier]

We may be moving to the area next summer, and i'm pretty excited. My wife is finishing a surgical residency and is about to spend a week in Virginia interviewing in Blacksburg, Henrico county, Hopewell, and Va. Beach. I'm torn between the Blacksburg and Henrico county jobs as my favorite. I grew up in Buckingham county (any of you ever heard of it?). Talk about rural. The closest McDonalds was a half an hour drive, and it was in FARMVILLE. But we loved it. Used to go to Chesterfield a lot for shopping and the like...anyway....

Is there any kind of communities between Blacksburg and Roanoke? If she takes the job in Blacksburg, I think that she would prefer to live there, but i'd like to be closer to Roanoke, I think. I didn't see a Blacksburg forum on here, so i'm assuming that this is the proper place to pose the question.