Help for a young family looking to relocate... (Knoxville, Chattanooga: crime, job market)

[aaronncas]

My daughter (10 months), wife (24), and I (25) currently live in Portage, MI. We have both spent the majority if not all of our lives in MI and feel its time for a change. We aren't going anywhere in MI due to the lack of a decent economy and jobs. We have both taken many vacations south and love the eastern Kentucky, western Virginia, eastern Tennessee area. Its an amazingly beautiful area with all the mountains, forests, lakes, and rivers. This coming summer or fall my wife and I would like to relocate to an area that has all these amenities but yet still has a decent nightlife or at least things to keep younger parents entertained or places to let loose. We would also like a place that we can raise our daughter without fear of endangerment or a lot of crime and a good set of schools. It would be nice to at least be a short drive away from good shopping (malls and et-cetera), places to see some good live music, places to get good food, maybe even an airport and/or train station. Although, we do not want to be stuck in the city. I guess you could say we would like to live "just up the mountain" from there where we can have privacy and where we can get on some four wheelers and romp around the mountain, put on some hiking boots and go for a hike, or go fishing or hunting. Anyone have any good ideas or locations??? Thanks a ton!

[alleycat]

I don't really have any many specific suggestions for you; others here know East Tennessee better than I do. Maybe Signal Mountain or Monteagle near Chattanooga, Maryville near Knoxville, the Tri-Cities area.

You might also put the Cumberland Plateau area (between Nashville and Knoxville) on your list of possible places. It's not mountains in the sense that East Tennessee is, but some of it is "mountain like" and there's some beautiful countryside in the area, and some nice lakes within a short drive.

[jabogitlu]

I agree, focus your areas on Chattanooga, Knoxville/Maryville/Oak Ridge and the Tri-Cities (Johnson City, Kingsport, and Bristol). The Tri-Cities is a bit smaller, and thus has less traffic and headache-inducing infrastructure, and is closer to mountainous areas east of the metros, like south Greene county and Unicoi up the ridge through Johnson County.

[tsimmu]

May I recommend Corbin, KY east, Blacksburg, VA or if you like a bit larger town, how about outside Lexington, KY or Charleston, WV or even Roanoke, VA?

[JMT]

Originally Posted by aaronncas

My daughter (10 months), wife (24), and I (25) currently live in Portage, MI. We have both spent the majority if not all of our lives in MI and feel its time for a change. We aren't going anywhere in MI due to the lack of a decent economy and jobs. We have both taken many vacations south and love the eastern Kentucky, western Virginia, eastern Tennessee area. Its an amazingly beautiful area with all the mountains, forests, lakes, and rivers. This coming summer or fall my wife and I would like to relocate to an area that has all these amenities but yet still has a decent nightlife or at least things to keep younger parents entertained or places to let loose. We would also like a place that we can raise our daughter without fear of endangerment or a lot of crime and a good set of schools. It would be nice to at least be a short drive away from good shopping (malls and et-cetera), places to see some good live music, places to get good food, maybe even an airport and/or train station. Although, we do not want to be stuck in the city. I guess you could say we would like to live "just up the mountain" from there where we can have privacy and where we can get on some four wheelers and romp around the mountain, put on some hiking boots and go for a hike, or go fishing or hunting. Anyone have any good ideas or locations??? Thanks a ton!

I noticed you said you want to ne near an airport and/or train station. If you plan on doing much flying, then of the places you mentioned Knoxville would probably be the best bet. Air fares are generally much cheaper out of Knoxville than out of the Tri Cities or Chattanooga. The parking lot at the Knoxville airport is full of cars from the Tri Cities, SE KY and SW VA. Knoxville is also a lot closer to Nashville which has the cheapest air fares of all. My ticket to Salt Lake City was HALF out of Nashville what it cost out of Knoxville. And it was even more expensive out of Chattanooga and the Tri Cities (and I looked hard for bargains).

What kinds of jobs are you going to be looking for? Knoxville has the strongest economy among Tennessee's metro areas, but the Tri Cities isn't too far behind. The small towns in the areas you mentioned generally don't have nearly as many job opportunities, and some people in this forum have complained that it's sometimes difficult for an "outsider" to get a job in those small towns.

At any rate, my vote is for somewhere like Norris or Dandridge, both are great little towns in beautiful settings and within easy commuting distance to Knoxville. Norris, in particular, is in Anderson County which because of Oak Ridge has some excellent schools.

Anyway, let us know about your job situation and we can offer even more suggestions. I can certainly understand why you want to live down here. It's a beautiful part of the country, and I am grateful to be lucky enough to live here. I hope we can help you, too.

[aaronncas]

Thanks a ton folks! Quite a bit of great info. The job scenario isn't as big a deal. My wife will transfer to another Red Lobster as she has worked for them for 6 years. As for myself, I have not really laid down a career. I have some experience in pharma research but most of my experience lies in factory life. Though, one of the reasons for moving is to get into a different job market to try and find a career I can enjoy, be successful in, and that can provide a decent income to my family. Like I said, we are still a very young family. So, we still have time to look into different industry's and find a decent career. Any other suggestions?