Negative impact of transplants (Charleston, Aiken: condo, construction, moving)

[kat in aiken]

How far back are y'all taking the impact of transplants, anyway? I betcha the locals who first saw property being bought up by the "winter colony" people didn't like it much. Oh, gee, and that darned railroad thing, laying out the streets? Plumb ruined the place. The native peoples who lived here probably didn't think too highly of the first white folks who showed up here, either. So, I guess you could say its been going downhill for an awful long time. Hard to believe that it is still liveable here. Or, just barely liveable, what with no culture and all.

[JFRRACING]

i don't care the way other people live. they can live however they want and i don't want to change that. i just want to live where it doesn't snow and it's not 20 below. i don't want to change anything. just like up here, i coudn't really give a rats a$$ how the people around me live.

[elvislives]

Originally Posted by kat in aiken

How far back are y'all taking the impact of transplants, anyway? I betcha the locals who first saw property being bought up by the "winter colony" people didn't like it much. Oh, gee, and that darned railroad thing, laying out the streets? Plumb ruined the place. The native peoples who lived here probably didn't think too highly of the first white folks who showed up here, either. So, I guess you could say its been going downhill for an awful long time. Hard to believe that it is still liveable here. Or, just barely liveable, what with no culture and all.

Again you fail to grasp the concept of this thread .. It is about the dilution of cultures and traditions by a mass influx of outside influence and if you insist on using Aiken as an example so be it because it is the perfect example of the negative impact. The roads were never intended to support the masses of people who moved here so therefore traffic is a nightmare ... The places families used to swim, fish, and picnic are now off limits to locals who have used them for years. Crime has made a dramatic increase, Outside of the wealthy areas the infastructure is crumbling, But the blame cannot be placed on the transplants completely because in the frenzy of greed that has been going on since the mid 80's very little planning has been done for the town outside of Build build build and to hell with who gets hurt in the process. So once again good try on your argument but i suggest that in the future if you want to use Aiken history in your argument first learn it, visit the museum and learn the history of the town.. Try learning a little about Willam Aiken and exactly the reason the town is layed out the way it is ... Then we can talk about the history of this town right now you just don't know what you are talking about and it is just a waste of time to discuss town history. with you.

[kat in aiken]

I grasp the concept alright - someone came here and imposed their will on laying out the town. Someone came here with lots of money and several friends and bought up land for the winter colony. Betcha they bought up land that the locals had been using and that became off limits. Those actions were outside influences that diluted the existing culture and traditions. Just cuz it happened a long time ago doesn't mean it was good, and recent events are bad. The culture you talk about being diluted now, came about as a result of those long ago influences.

Sorry, but the growth of the little town of Aiken doesn't quite qualify as a mass influx... you want that, try looking at the effect of The Villages on the surrounding areas in Florida. Or Orlando once Disneyworld was built. Or Las Vegas. Or the effect of all those Navy bases in the Norfolk VA area. Or Hinesville GA when Carter was president.

[elvislives]

Originally Posted by kat in aiken

I grasp the concept alright - someone came here and imposed their will on laying out the town. Someone came here with lots of money and several friends and bought up land for the winter colony. Betcha they bought up land that the locals had been using and that became off limits. Those actions were outside influences that diluted the existing culture and traditions. Just cuz it happened a long time ago doesn't mean it was good, and recent events are bad. The culture you talk about being diluted now, came about as a result of those long ago influences.

Sorry, but the growth of the little town of Aiken doesn't quite qualify as a mass influx... you want that, try looking at the effect of The Villages on the surrounding areas in Florida. Or Orlando once Disneyworld was built. Or Las Vegas. Or the effect of all those Navy bases in the Norfolk VA area. Or Hinesville GA when Carter was president.

How do you get will was imposed building the town.. William Aiken wanted to build a Railroad from Hamburg SC to Charleston SC in 1828 which he did with the help of Horatio Allen.. Aiken was not even layed out until1834 when Alfred Dexter designed the town.. And the chartered in 1835. The winter colony didn't begin until 1870 35 years after the founding of Aiken and really didn't affect the locals until the early 1900's when Aiken became a tourist trap during the winter months.. It was still a ghost town in the summer. In 1980 the influx began Aiken had a population of about 14,978 compared to the 142,552 we have now so yes this could be considered a mass influx of people. The places i refered to were taken recently not over 100 years ago.. Had you grown up here and spent the last 40 or so years here you would have seen the then and now.. You have no clue whatsoever what it was like here then, all you see is what Aiken is now.. You have never fished and swam in places that are no longer there due to overdevelopment.. You attempt to argue your point using Aiken history but you have no clue as to what you are talking about you don't even bother to get the facts right. Which is what a lot of transplants do and is a contributing factor to why locals dislike and mistrust them. A lot of people in this town myself included have been here for many generations and go along to get along but understand that a certain amount of change will happen. But Aiken was not planned for what we have now and people even transplants are getting tired of unchecked growth without any planning for the consequence of the future. Aiken has nothing in common with Orlando or Las Vegas other than the overburdening of our resources to appease a few greedy individuals.It is an old town with new people who want it to be a shiny new version of what they left in the first place.

[ranger17]

for what it's worth, many of the concerns listed happen across the country. Over the years, in our "northwoods" area of WI, the land has been bought and built up with both vacation homes and over development. Much of the build up was courtesy of residents from IL. Have there been times when our interstates running to the north can have backups that could last for miles/hours due to congestion? Yep. Can the lakes and other recreational properties be swamped with lines at entrances and ramps? Yes again. But a couple things us in WI have to keep in mind, the $$ brought into the state can be a major source of income; and in general if any location has enough benefits ( whether recreational, work, climate, etc ) to make it desirable--people will want to be there. And you can't fault someone for wanting to enjoy what may be in your back yard.
I will add that my personal opinion is if one relocates to another region, they are the "guest" and should work to adapt in and not push or expect this new area to adapt to them. And it sounds like that is one of the issues down there, unfortunately that part may not go away. Hopefully more people then not make the transitions with respect to the new sites.

[elvislives]

Originally Posted by ranger17

for what it's worth, many of the concerns listed happen across the country. Over the years, in our "northwoods" area of WI, the land has been bought and built up with both vacation homes and over development. Much of the build up was courtesy of residents from IL. Have there been times when our interstates running to the north can have backups that could last for miles/hours due to congestion? Yep. Can the lakes and other recreational properties be swamped with lines at entrances and ramps? Yes again. But a couple things us in WI have to keep in mind, the $$ brought into the state can be a major source of income; and in general if any location has enough benefits ( whether recreational, work, climate, etc ) to make it desirable--people will want to be there. And you can't fault someone for wanting to enjoy what may be in your back yard.
I will add that my personal opinion is if one relocates to another region, they are the "guest" and should work to adapt in and not push or expect this new area to adapt to them. And it sounds like that is one of the issues down there, unfortunately that part may not go away. Hopefully more people then not make the transitions with respect to the new sites.

Man i have waited in traffic around the Dells and it is brutal.. The problem we have is development without common sense and too many people on roads designed for a far smaller number of people. But it is not all bad most are solid folks who just hate snow( we may get a little today LOL) But all and all there are much worse places in the world than my little town i guess thats why they all come here.

[ranger17]

the only time the Dells ( in summer ) would have been light for traffic would have been during this past summer. After the bad floods hit, Lake Delton actually washed out. Leaving no water for the Tommy Bartlett show, among others. So tourism was down unfortunately for the residents/businesses who rely on the traffic we sometimes complain about.
Of course, if winter here was mild like yours, my wife & I wouldn't have the need/desire to migrate south!
And for many of us, change for the better or worse is hard to accept.
Just make sure any snow is gone, and it warms back up in Feb for us--thx

[elvislives]

Originally Posted by ranger17

the only time the Dells ( in summer ) would have been light for traffic would have been during this past summer. After the bad floods hit, Lake Delton actually washed out. Leaving no water for the Tommy Bartlett show, among others. So tourism was down unfortunately for the residents/businesses who rely on the traffic we sometimes complain about.
Of course, if winter here was mild like yours, my wife & I wouldn't have the need/desire to migrate south!
And for many of us, change for the better or worse is hard to accept.
Just make sure any snow is gone, and it warms back up in Feb for us--thx

I understand where you are coming from right now i am in Darien WI and it is way cold .. But i have a bag of curds and the game will start soon so all is well.

[ranger17]

Originally Posted by elvislives

I understand where you are coming from right now i am in Darien WI and it is way cold .. But i have a bag of curds and the game will start soon so all is well.

^^


funny thing--the 12 degrees above zero now feels like a heat wave compared to a couple days ago.