Why do so many people on here choose Roanoke?

[badger74]

Just to show the value of anecdotes versus hard data, according to Moody's Economy.com, Lynchburg metro area has had net in-migration of 11,748 over the last 4 years compared to 7,424 for the Roanoke metro area. Thus L has had 58% MORE in net in-migration than R. Between the two areas the movement is nearly exactly even. 1081 from R to L and 1094 from L to R.

Facts are weird. After Roanoke, the top senders of people to L are Danville, Cville, Richmond, Va Beach, Cambridge MA, Blacksburg, Charlotte, Raleigh.

For R the top senders after L are Blacksburg, Richmond, Va Beach, Greensboro, Danville, Charlotte, Raleigh, and Atlanta.

Pretty similar. The reverse (places people from R and L move to) are nearly the same in similar orders.

[Teebyrd86]

Originally Posted by Luv4ThePaws

am very worried about being in a rebel-flag waving, narrow-minded anti-gay Southern town.

Ok, first off I have to admit.. Roanoke metro has its fair shair of rednecks. But most of those Rednecks reside outside of the city limits mainly in the more rural counties. Roanoke also has many other types of people from mexicans, to asians & indians. As far as the gay community is concerned I would say its pretty big here.. People are pretty open with their relationship and not too many people seem to say anything, though they may stare a little. I would also say Roanoke is segregated by neighborhoods although some neighborhoods are more diverse than others. I wouldnt say that any place is perfect but Roanoke (to me anyway) is close to it. As far as conservative values; I would say the city is divided between liberal and conservative.. and this is comming from an open minded middle of the road guy like myself. I work at a christian family owned grocery store and to be honest with you, most of our customers are urked by our no sunday hours and the fact that we dont sell alcohol which surprised me a bit because I thought more people here would support such. Keep an open mind, be yourself. Roanokers will welcome you, trust me! -teebyrd In love with Roanoke life for two years now and counting!!

[Luv4ThePaws]

Thanks you guys for your insight and honesty!! We really do appreciate it!! Are there any specific areas you could recommend for a nice home (4 bedrooms, a nice size lot) in a safe neighborhood with good schools for around $180k? We are hoping to sell our house here for about $280k and would like to have a manageable mortgage since we want to have a family in a year or two and I wouldn't be able to work for awhile. Any help is appreciated and we are thankful for your kindness so far!!!

~Kari

P.S. We have four rescued dogs who are our babies and does anyone know if there are dog limits in Roanoke? We couldn't find it on the city website and we would hate to get there and be told they weren't allowed! Two are very little Chihuahuas and the other two are bigger, although they are all inside dogs (or "kids" as we call them!!).

[PaperTrail]

Originally Posted by Luv4ThePaws

P.S. We have four rescued dogs who are our babies and does anyone know if there are dog limits in Roanoke? We couldn't find it on the city website and we would hate to get there and be told they weren't allowed! Two are very little Chihuahuas and the other two are bigger, although they are all inside dogs (or "kids" as we call them!!).

The limit in Roanoke is four dogs -- but oddly, you can have only three in Roanoke County. It's buried in the city and county codes, if you feel like hunting.

Neither Franklin Co. nor Bedford Co. have pet limits, if I remember right, and my wife and I (and our five dogs) settled on BedCo. -- which for the record doesn't have many folks whom I'd classify as rednecks.

[seanpecor]

I understand that in Roanoke City limits you are allowed 3 hens, but no roosters I wonder if there are any chicken coops hiding in city backyards

Sean

[j1n]

Originally Posted by seanpecor

I understand that in Roanoke City limits you are allowed 3 hens, but no roosters I wonder if there are any chicken coops hiding in city backyards

Sean

I've looked into it...it'd be nice to have some fresh eggs in the morning (again ). There's a square footage requirement and a "must be 50' from the nearest dwelling" requirement.

[Eeeee22895]

Originally Posted by Luv4ThePaws

What does that mean exactly?! My husband is considering a job in Roanoke and I am very worried about being in a rebel-flag waving, narrow-minded anti-gay Southern town. I am not trying to offend anyone, but I gathered from various posts on here that it is very much like what I described up there. We are going to adopt an orphan from Ethiopia and I don't want to get the condescending, judgemental attitude so many "Christians" seem to portray in these Southern towns. It is a shame that so many Christians are really not Christ-like in their actions! I mean, just the attitudes we have encountered here in NC over the years is shameful! I do not want to raise our (future) children in a town that would promote bigotry, ignorance or intolerance but we would welcome a more small-town kind of life. We are very easy-going people and are adaptable, and would appreciate any info! Thanks!

I have no idea why you highlighted 'conservative values' to mean bigotry. The fact is, Roanoke has a large adoptive community, particularly that sponsored by Commonwealth Catholic Charities. So these are good church people who have shown enough love to open their homes to children from many contries, all races, and all continents. I guess you would say they are backing up their religious faith with actions, tolerance, and love, just the opposite of the picture you are painting.

Unfortunately, I have read of government caseworkers in some northern cities who worked to undermine interracial adoptions when whites tried to adopt blacks. Thankfully, I have never seen that kind of bigotry or racism in Roanoke.

[Luv4ThePaws]

Originally Posted by Eeeee22895

I have no idea why you highlighted 'conservative values' to mean bigotry. The fact is, Roanoke has a large adoptive community, particularly that sponsored by Commonwealth Catholic Charities. So these are good church people who have shown enough love to open their homes to children from many contries, all races, and all continents. I guess you would say they are backing up their religious faith with actions, tolerance, and love, just the opposite of the picture you are painting.

Unfortunately, I have read of government caseworkers in some northern cities who worked to undermine interracial adoptions when whites tried to adopt blacks. Thankfully, I have never seen that kind of bigotry or racism in Roanoke.

Thanks for your input! I meant conservative values as in the intolerance Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson preach(ed). I have encountered some of that here in Charlotte even though it's a bigger town and I wasn't sure how tolerant people were in a smaller town like Roanoke. It has been our experience that church-centered towns can be influential on the people and community and for people who aren't overtly religious and who are more liberal-minded, we just wanted to make sure it would be a good fit for us! We try to live our lives right and are accepting of everyone, and we simply want to raise our children around others like us. Great to know about so many adoptive families up there! There are so many kids needing homes and that was wonderful to read about such good hearted people! I really appreciate you sharing your experience with the area!

[thejoe]

Originally Posted by ConceivedinKY51

Hi--What is SML? I'm still torn between Lynchburg and Roanoke and Chattanooga!

go to Chattanooga

[SV2012]

i like noke cause it actually has stuff to do. you live in covington all your life and noke seems like a big city. i honestly think its to much traffic specially on 81 but thats everywhere even staunton. But noke is greaatt, i think downtown looks pretty cool too. thats what happens when you grew up in a place where the tallest building only has 3 levels in it