Long Island to Sring Hill (Tampa, Clearwater: appointed, obgyn, home)

[Rierye]

Hello everyone. I am currenlty selling my home in Long Island with the hope of moving my family to Spring Hill. My husband and I have two children--a girl 16 years old and a son 10. I was wondering if I could get some feedback from former New Yorkers (Long Islanders) who made the move there, and what you think of the area? How do you feel about the schools, medical care, lifestyle....etc? We are well aware that it will not be Long Island, and we are ready to make the adjustment. It is just that this site offers so much negativity, that I wonder sometimes about the move. We really do want a lifestyle change from Long Island, but we want to make sure that it is a positive one. Once we leave, we are not looking to move back. We do have some family already in Florida--Clearwater, Citrus Springs, Brooksville, and Port St. Lucie. Any feedback would greatly be appreciated. Thanks to all.

[sange77]

Where in LI are you from? Then I can give you better advice.

[Mike Peterson]

Here is a link to many CD threads about Spring Hill.
Some should be helpful, some not so much.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/searc...rchid=13314364

[Rierye]

I am currently living in Bay Shore.

[sange77]

Well there are a ton of NY'rs in Spring Hill..mostly from Suffolk (the ones I meet anyway). It's not LI.... the move is an adjustment and takes years to settle in. It's a cross between old suffolk with a bit of country life mixed in. You will find people on this website who bash the area, you will find those who love the area. I think it's ok.... coming fr NY 3.5 years ago, I am now getting use to it. If I had to do it all over again, would I still move here?? I think I would have moved closer to Tampa.

Schools: Elementary and Middle Schools have great to good ratings...
High Schools not so much in Hernando County but if your teen is one who does her work she should be fine.

Medical Care: I find myself going to Tampa for decent specialists. You also tend to see Physician's Assistants and midwives instead of general doctors or OBGYN's. The hospitals are decent.

LifeStyle: Things to do mostly include eating out or shopping. You will have to get use to driving a distance for things. Not a long distance but certainly not as close as things are in NY. The class of people is so so. You will see a lot of people calling this a retirement area but I disagree. I see a lot of families and young children. A lot of the newer communities have younger families where the older ones have more retirees.

Employment and Salary: This is probably where the area scores the lowest in my book. Great paying jobs are few. Even with a college degree. If you want to work in the area, the medical field is your best bet. If you dont mind a daily commute to Tampa then you'll be ok.

Rent before you buy to make sure you like the area. Think about sub-division vs. non-subdivision. It's a personal preference.

[Rierye]

Thanks for the input. I will check all these issues out. I appreciate it.

[Keeper]

Don't expect it to be like LI or you will be disappointed. I think you will find more ppl who like the area than those who don't, it is just the ones that don't are more vocal. Look for the good things.. the bad show up soon enough.

Will you be working in Spring Hill area?

[Gatornation]

Originally Posted by Rierye

Hello everyone. I am currenlty selling my home in Long Island with the hope of moving my family to Spring Hill. My husband and I have two children--a girl 16 years old and a son 10. I was wondering if I could get some feedback from former New Yorkers (Long Islanders) who made the move there, and what you think of the area? How do you feel about the schools, medical care, lifestyle....etc? We are well aware that it will not be Long Island, and we are ready to make the adjustment. It is just that this site offers so much negativity, that I wonder sometimes about the move. We really do want a lifestyle change from Long Island, but we want to make sure that it is a positive one. Once we leave, we are not looking to move back. We do have some family already in Florida--Clearwater, Citrus Springs, Brooksville, and Port St. Lucie. Any feedback would greatly be appreciated. Thanks to all.

Spring Hill is nothing like Clearwater for starters. The further south you go towards Tampa the more culture/jobs/education you will find.

[Rierye]

Keeper, I'm a teacher. So it all depends on where I would find the job. It may not be in Spring Hill. I know that teaching jobs are very hard right now due to the financial strain. My salary would be the same there compared to here because I presently work in a private school--its extremely political to get into the public schools on Long Island. So I am extremely underpaid here.

[Rierye]

Gatornation, is Clearwater very conjested?