Relocating to Monroe County Area (Knoxville, Maryville: fit in, real estate, motel)

[Kim]

We are looking to relocate to Tennesee this summer and would appreciate any information regarding schools (elem. and high school), healthcare facilities, real estate, etc. in the Vonore or Madisonville area. We plan to visit the area soon to look at the towns--where would be a good place to stay during our visit?
thanks for any advice!!
Kim

[mikki925]

We moved to Madisonville from Arizona 6 months ago. We love it, but depending on what you're looking for and what you're used to, it could be a pretty big adjustment for you.

The schools are bigger than I expected, but there aren't many. In Madisonville, there is a Primary, Intermediate, and Middle school; in Vonore, they just have the Elementary school and I think a junior high. There is one high school, Sequoyah High School, to serve both Madisonville and Vonore. My son is in 4th grade at MIS and we're fairly happy with the school.

The best thing about Monroe County is that the people are so friendly and nice. We came from a big city, so the difference is night and day for us, and we just love it. But we were ready for a slower pace and a simpler life; if you want night life, culture or ready entertainment (i.e., movies), you'll be bored to death. If you mind driving a ways (45-60 min) for shopping, you won't like that either - there is a Super Wal-Mart in Madisonville, and grocery stores in both Madisonville and Vonore, but we go to Maryville or Knoxville for any specialty or serious shopping. We were Costco members in Arizona; the nearest Costco is in Atlanta. Now we make a monthly trip to the Sam's Club in Knoxville.

We were also really lucky to find a very good church. Almost all of the friends we've made have been through our church. If that's important to you, you shouldn't have any problems. If not - I won't say it's mandatory to attend church here, but if you don't, it will be harder to fit in for sure.

There is one motel in Madisonville, but we never stayed there, so I don't really know what it's like - it looks pretty basic. We always stayed at one of the Comfort Inns in Swee****er (7 mi. NW of Madisonville). Also pretty basic, but we had to have Internet access while here, and they offer HSIA.