A new yorker in TN? (Knoxville, Chattanooga: transplants, home, purchase)

[ligirl]

Hi,
I also live on Long Island and is planning to move. I may be getting a job in Chattanooga. Does anyone have any info on how I may fit in there. I have been trying to do some research.
Any help will be welcomed.

[aga vater]

I live in Nashville and was beginning to wonder when someone was going to bring up Chattanooga, since most of the talk on this thread seems to be eastern TN leaning. I usually run over there for the weekend every now and then in the summer. I like Chattanooga! I've never lived there but you can't help but notice how much it's grown. The Tennessee Aquarium is definently something worth seeing and I like what they have done downtown and in the shopping part of town on the other side of the river. My favorite restaurant is Big River Grill (much better than the one here in Nashville) and it is a pretty happening little town overall. IMO.

[GrannyLois]

Someone mentioned the UT Gardens in Knoxville.

What a glorious place that is! It's filled with experimental gardens - dozens and dozens of them - shade, sun, water gardens, climbing plants, herbs, annuals, perennials, lots of trellises and trails - such a scrumptious place it is! (I understand UT in Chattanooga has a similar one - haven't seen it yet though.)

[CarolynB]

Originally Posted by LauraC

Oak Ridge is in Anderson County (actually a piece of it is in Roane County, too. It is to the immediate west of West Knoxville and Farragut (those two are in Knox County) and about 24 miles from downtown Knoxville.

It is known as The Secret City because during WWII, it was where the atomic bomb was created in secret. It is known for nuclear research and as the other poster said, the reservation is not an Indian reservation. It is the location of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, a securty complex, and the East Tennessee Technology Park.

I don't know who is interested in taking classes when they retire but the reason I was primarily attracted to Oak Ridge is because of the classes (and trips) offered at the Oak Ridge Institute for Continued Learning (they have their own website if you want to check out their Fall courses and trip activities - just Google ORICL) . ORICL is a sponsored by the State Community College so this is not a commercial for a private organization.

The Convention and Visitors Bureau have a 15 page outdoors photo gallery on this page of their website for anyone interested in the Oak Ridge area:

http://oakridgevisitor.com/outdoors.html

Thank you LauraC that is a great site ,, great photos of the area,, but is this primarily a retirement area, as we also need to be near employment opportunities?

[LauraC]

Originally Posted by CarolynB

Thank you LauraC that is a great site ,, great photos of the area,, but is this primarily a retirement area, as we also need to be near employment opportunities?

I don't think it is primarily a retirement area since most of the people who work there are in science, research, technology, either government or private industry, or are businesses that feed off of or are related to those workers (for eample, the area has a few hotels, the building industry seems to be booming, too). You might look at this website for jobs. It's a searchable database

http://oak.ridge.jobs.topusajobs.com/

Also, the town of Farragut (in Knox County) is a suburban town within commuting distance of both Knoxville (17 miles) and Oak Ridge (11 miles). Here's the town website:

http://www.townoffarragut.org/

and this page has a lot of outdoor Farragut photos:

http://www.townoffarragut.org/parksandrecareas.html (broken link)

The median age in Oak Ridge is 43.4 and in Farragut it's 41.9.

[tngrl60]

LOL...Hi ya'll...I'm from Tennessee by way of Mississippi...love the Rebel Flag but not cut-throat...Tennessee is God's Country...but I don't dislike anyone that doesn't go to church...yes, it is the Bible Belt and lots of Church of Christ here...but I don't feel I have to be anywhere in particular to pray or worship....so ya'll come on down!!!!!

[cjlg620]

Hi,

First, I want to say that if it is just you and your husband moving or you have children under 8, and you are looking for a slower pace, a change in culture, and a 50% cheaper lifestyle than I say YES, Try Middle TN. It is beautiful, the winters are mild (summers are very humid), and the people are nice. Williamson county has tripled in population in the last 15 years. Since I left in 1998, there has been a huge northern influnce which has influenced the arts and culture, education system and opened people's mind to diversity. Williamson County offers a safe place for children to grow up without too many negative influences. You could almost say the children are sheltered in a good way. The country keeps them young longer.

In regards to the religion. Yes, it is the bible belt! Yes, you will be asked what church do you go to and if you say you don't have one, be prepared to be invited. This is how southerners include you in their community and like to socialize. Note that Catholics are in the minority to the Protestants. There is a Protestant church every mile. Sometimes two or three right next to each other. Yes, you will stand out as a foreigner but if you work at it you will eventually find people and a community to be apart of. My parents have been in Franklin for 22 years and have worked very hard to fit in. They still don't goto church, have trouble with the conservative politics and my father's NY attitude often turns people off BUT they love the slow pace and cheaper standard of living. My mother has a flurishing music buisness and my father is excited for retirement. They have not compromised who they are and have found a way to meet people and establish themselves. They are not moving back to the Northeast anytime soon. They are content.

However, if you are moving with children between 10-18 than I suggest you stay in the northeast because the culture shock is too overwhelming for a teenager to adjust to. This is my experience. In 1984, when I was 10 my NJ native parents and I moved from Bayshore, L.I. to Franklin (Williamson County). It was a very difficult time for me to fit in. I know the reason was because I was from New York. I was teased for being a Yankee. My thick L.I. accent did not go over too well at school. I DID get the "What church do you go to?" and when I said, "I don't go to church", it was a though I was the devil. My parents raised me as a secular Christian, only celebrating Christmas and I was taught to be open to other religions. I married a Jew, from Brooklyn.) Anyway, going through adolesence was hard enough but I really didn't adjust well to the southren way of life. It was a huge culture shock. After undergrad in KY, I knew I needed to get out. I moved to NYC in 1998. I had majored in theatre and wanted to try my luck. 8 years later and now a K teacher, I live in Brooklyn with my husband. Despite my negative experiences as a teenager, through my years of therapy and maturity, I have grown to appreciate Nashville/Franklin, Tennessee and the south. My husband and I visit twice a year and enjoy our visits to the country.

My suggestion is that you plan an extended visit and really feel the lay of the land and get a sense of the way of life. One test to do is to really listen to people talk and see if you can handle listening to the southern drawl. It is an acquired taste.

I hope this gives you some good advice and helps with your decision.
Good luck,
Christine

[DADDYO49]

Originally Posted by Joe P

Yankees are 50/50, New Yorkers are considerably lower odds. Don't feel bad though, it's not the people in Tennessee. Heck, there are people all over the country that don't like New Yorkers. Even Iowa!

.......As a Native New Yorker who is considering retiring to East Tennessee ( perhaps Greeneville ); .....Many years ago I drove Trucks cross Country ( made good money & went to College ) & encountered many different types of people. I recall that I once arrived at a Construction Site 1 day ahead of schedule ( Sunday ) & a young Construction Worker ( Painter ) from Kentucky graciously offered to put this New Yorker ( who he did not know ) up for the night in his modest home........I also; however; met many people on the other end of the spectrum ( who I wonder if they could be a Good Neighbor to Anyone ? ) who had nothing but animosity for me ( even though they didn't know me ) simply because I was a New Yorker. I suspect that " Joe P " may be one of the latter

[Dawny]

I have live in all main cities of TN. Nashville, Knoxville, and Memphis. The safest by far is Knowville or east TN. Memphis is #2 in crime rate in the US and this crime rate moves further and further out into the county towns everyday. The time will come soon that even ouside of TN will not be safe, matter a fact it already is getting that way. When I go home to Nashville the places that were safe when I grew up there are to bad to live in. At this point in Nashville you are safer to live totally outside the Davidson County line. East Tn all of it I would say is your best bet, although it is not the best place to find work out of the three, but as far as for retirement most areas east of Nashville are the safest places and definately the most beautiful. We plan to retire in the next couple of years and if we stay in TN it will definately be somewhere in East Tennessee. When we originally moves to West TN there were only a few public schools to choose from and now in my opinion there are none, you have to put your children in private schools and still live in fear they may be attacked due to what the school may stand for. In Knoxville public schools in all of knox county with the exception of inner city schools are still good quality, safe schools. I also agree with your answer to the tri-cities area. Hope this is helpful.:

Years ago Chattanooga was the armpit of the south. Now I feel it is one of the better places in the state. It has really been cleaned up and is a beautiful area. Not only that you are living in a good central area to get to Knoxville or Georgia both beautiful places. We have even talked of retire there once out youngest graduates from High School. But I can tell you we live for the day we can return to east Tennessee, for many reasons, the safety, beauty, convenience, etc. As far as fitting in hard to say, in most TN cities outsiders have already moved in due to job relocation. Chattanooga not being one of the mostly the larger cities, Knoxville, Nashville, and TN. I would say if I was guessing that East TN is where you are going to find the most Southern personalities. But I would hope since I was born and raised in the state and have lived all over it that you should fit in. I am from TN and find that in my own situation Northerner that have moved in are nicer than original Tennesseans.

[jpnLI]

Hi we are also from Long Island and we have lived here for 6 years. Everything you said is the truth. We are catholick too . I still dont feel like I fit in here.It is nice here in pigeon forge .