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Hello All,
My husband and I are relocating to the Pee Dee region of South Carolina for work and are looking for some suggestions on best places to live. We need to be within a maximum of an hour's drive to Cheraw, but preferably much less as we'll be commuting 5x/week. Important things to us include a safe town with good school systems, enough to do on the weekends to keep us in town (restaurants, hiking, biking, running routes, etc) and a good community.
Florence seems to be the biggest, but of course also the furthest away from Cheraw. Hartsville might be a good compromise but it does seem like super small town living.
Any suggestions you all have would be a great help! It's so difficult making a decision like this without some insider insight.
Hello All,
My husband and I are relocating to the Pee Dee region of South Carolina for work and are looking for some suggestions on best places to live. We need to be within a maximum of an hour's drive to Cheraw, but preferably much less as we'll be commuting 5x/week. Important things to us include a safe town with good school systems, enough to do on the weekends to keep us in town (restaurants, hiking, biking, running routes, etc) and a good community.
Florence seems to be the biggest, but of course also the furthest away from Cheraw. Hartsville might be a good compromise but it does seem like super small town living.
Any suggestions you all have would be a great help! It's so difficult making a decision like this without some insider insight.
Thank you in advance
Julie
Just curious.. why not just live in Cheraw? Its a small town but it has the minimum of what most people look for in a community.. I dont know about the Chesterfield County School System but I believe there are a few private schools around. Florence is the best option in terms of city life amenities and schools though the commute could be taxing expecially on the two lane roads heading over to Cheraw. Hartsville is another good option its slightly larger than Cheraw and may have a few more amenities due to the presences of Coker College. I would say Hartsville if you wanted to your commute to be less.. but Florence if you want to have more amenities and access to a wider range of options for schools and socializing.
Another option that you didnt mention was/is Bennettsville. It is larger than both Hartsville and Cheraw.. but some may argue less appealling than them... Its is closer to Cheraw and an easy commute. Schools in Marlboro are not the best though from what i have heard.. but there may be some private school options.
I definately have to agree with Woodlands. Hartsville would probably be your best bet since they have Coker College and has about the same amenities as Florence. And since we are talking about the Pee Dee, you may also would want to look into Lumberton, NC since it is the part of the Pee Dee. Lumberton is nearer to Cheraw than Florence and has almost the same amenities as Florence. The best schools are in Hartsville (i.e. Darlington County School District) for proximity. If you choose Florence, you may want to look for schools that are zoned to West Florence High School since this high school is the best school academically in the Florence area.
I live between bennettsville and cheraw but i don't have any kids so i'm not sure about the schools. there are alot of homes in and around cheraw forsale though. i love this area, it's very quiet. if you decide on hartsville as mentioned it's only about 30 mins from cheraw. also society hill is very nice and that's between hartsville and cheraw. if you need any local info i can probably help you out since we shop in cheraw and surounding towns. also florence is a 45 min drive. we go to the mall and other shopping down there. you will also be on the state line in this area. there are lot's of places to go in NC which is a 20 min ride from cheraw. like i said if you need any specific info i will try to help you out. we moved here 4 years ago. also stay away from bennettsville. not a good place to live. lot's of crime and shootings.....NOT THERE
Thanks for everyone's suggestions! I think the best will be to go there and check out the towns ourselves. We are very much considering the other direction as well, and leaning towards going into NC.
Thanks!
Julie
I grew up in west Florence and that is not a bad place to live. West Florence has the nicest fitness facility in the state (in my opinion) associated with Mccleod hospital there, and the area has a lot of chain restaurants and retail stores that it didn't have when I was there. If you are into tennis, Florence probably has the most active tennis scene in the state at Timrod Park and the Florence Country Club.
Hartsville is probably the nicest small town in the state and if you boat you have a lake right there that is warmed up by the nuclear plant. People in hartsville tend to be kind of weird, a lot of rich rednecks live there.
I ran a track meet at Cheraw high school and it seemed like a nice little town too.
Florence is the "capital" of the Pee Dee and it will have more stuff and more to do than the other places. I'm not sure if there is enough difference b/t Hartsville and Cheraw to justify commuting from one to the other. Hartsville doesn't really have that many restaurants, applebees is like the only "steakhouse" in town.
When you go to Florence, i recommend eating at Percy and Willies which is near the mall. They have steak and pretty much anything and most people think it is one of the best restaurants in town. I think there is a Peddler Steakhouse there now too and that is good too.
I think that I saw somebody suggest you live in Lumberton. That looks like it w ould be a tough commute from Cheraw, and I'd probably stick with Florence if I was going to go that far b/c the commute is easier, Florence has a lot more, and taxes and housing and utities all tend to be higher in NC than SC.
Great thanks for the restaurant tips in Florence, we'll have to try them! Lumberton hasn't really been on our radar so thanks for that tip too.
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