Perfect small town (Knoxville, Chattanooga, Johnson City: transplants, 2009, low crime)

[amberjo]

I live in the chicagoland area and...i hate it! I have a daugther and i don't want to raise her here. I am looking to move to Tennessee by Sept 2009. I live been researching a couple of towns such as Greenville, Sevierville, Crossville, Cookeville, Hendersonville and Franklin. I am really unsure where to go. I plan on going to TN in May to get a better idea. I want to have my list at least narrowed down to 2 or 3 cities.

I am looking for a small town..i realize some of the towns i listed are really not small towns. I want land, low crime rates, clean, small town tone to the city. I don't want anything like chicago. I want a place my daugther can grow to be a wholesome person. A historical town would be great to.

Some of the towns i listed i am afraid are a little bigger than i want. Without being from TN i m having a hard time finding that small town with 4th of july parades down main street.

Any imput would be great. Thanks So much!

Amberjo

[mbmouse]

Sounds like you are wanting Jonesborough TN. It is the oldest town in TN, has 4th of July, Christmas and other parades right down main st. Very good schools, low crime and short drive to Johnson City which has just about everything you would need or want.

[Tri-Cities Native]

Hey amberjo! As I read your post I thought the same thing mbmouse did. Jonesborough seems like a great fit based on your desires. Here's a link to the Jonesborough website Town of Jonesborough. It has some great information on the town. It's also very close to Johnson City which would provide most of the things you'd want/need that J'borough couldn't provide. Good Luck to you!

[JMT]

Originally Posted by amberjo

I live in the chicagoland area and...i hate it! I have a daugther and i don't want to raise her here. I am looking to move to Tennessee by Sept 2009. I live been researching a couple of towns such as Greenville, Sevierville, Crossville, Cookeville, Hendersonville and Franklin. I am really unsure where to go. I plan on going to TN in May to get a better idea. I want to have my list at least narrowed down to 2 or 3 cities.

I am looking for a small town..i realize some of the towns i listed are really not small towns. I want land, low crime rates, clean, small town tone to the city. I don't want anything like chicago. I want a place my daugther can grow to be a wholesome person. A historical town would be great to.

Some of the towns i listed i am afraid are a little bigger than i want. Without being from TN i m having a hard time finding that small town with 4th of july parades down main street.

Any imput would be great. Thanks So much!

Amberjo

You've come to the right place!

You didn't say anything about needing to get a job. Things are tough down here as they are everywhere, but small towns are hit particularly hard. Greeneville, for example, has an unemployment of over 14% right now.

Besides a nice, small town with 4th of July parades and low cost of living, what else are you looking for? That should help us narrow it down for you, particularly if you need to look for a job once you're down here.

[amberjo]

JMT,
That was my next question. I take my national test for EMT in may. So emergancy care field would be ideal. I would love to find a job at a fire department. I am also in the military as a reservist doing construction. I am a EO-Equpiment Operator-. I also need to still live near a college. I have 2 years left in my degree.

So i guess a town with a hospital near by and an university near by as well.

I am moving with my 4 year old daughter and my 2 sisters, 15 and 20. They are urging me to find a place that is at least near a town with attractions and things to do for a social life. Me on the other hand i want a place where i can ride 4 wheelers on my property, swim in a lake, have a boat. I love runnning, rock climbing, fishing, camping, hiking. I still need a place where i can do all those things, i am a total outdoors person, one of the reasons i hate Chicago is you have to drive so far to do most of these things.

Another thing i should mention is that i am not a fan of gun laws. I need to be in a town that does not have strick gun laws. I know up here at least it is very liberal and harsh on gun laws, but there are a few counties that have varied laws.

Thanks!
amberjo

[jabogitlu]

The more you post, the more I say look towards the towns around Johnson City if you can find work here.

But your job might necessitate living closer towards Nashville or Knoxville. Finding colleges and hospitals near those two cities won't be difficult at all. The outdoors stuff you mentioned would definitely be easier around Knoxville or Johnson City/Jonesborough.

Sevierville is a little different than the other places you mentioned. It still retains some of its town characteristics but has largely been run roughshod by the rampant tourist trap development of Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. Millions of tourists go through Sevierville every year. I wouldn't recommend moving there unless you REALLY know that you do, for some reason, want to move there specifically, or of course if you found a job there.

I think maybe the first thing you need to do is decide if you want to live in middle TN or east TN. The culture of the two is somewhat different (now mostly to the numbers of transplants in middle TN) but the big difference is the geography. Middle TN is mostly flat, with the Cumberland Plateau to the east. NETN is largely mountainous, with the foothills (SETN) and the edge of the TN Valley (Knoxville area) as well.

[Grizzlybear34]

What about South Pittsburg? Lots of the activities you mentioned, about 25 minutes outside of Chattanooga. Whitewater rafting within an hours drive, small town. Included with Jasper, Kimball, and Whitwell as a connective collection of small towns in Marion County. While it is very close to Grandview Medical, there are several large hospitals in Chattanooga, Erlanger and Memorial to name a couple. University of Tennessee - Chattanooga, obvious location...

The one drawback is for nightlife for the 20 year old, you pretty much would have to go into downtown Chattnooga - depends how much a 25 minute drive would bother her.

Worth a look in my opinion... good luck!

[BlueCuzco]

I have lived in Chattanooga my whole life of sixteen years and like the majority of the city a lot. (My only important complaint is all the urban sprawl in the suburbs, but I guess that's the same for all cities.) There are several small towns close to the city that would offer a quieter scene but still be reasonably close to downtown. But really, compared to Chicago, even downtown Chattanooga is very small (160 k), and on the whole the city is pretty laid back (no traffic yuckiness), and the pedestrianized riverfront is hard to beat.

I want land, low crime rates, clean...

Chattanooga meets these standards. While the official crime rate is high, that's something I didn't know until I came on to this site; crime's not any kind of issue in most areas of the city, it seems, and is mostly gang or domestically related.

A historical town would be great to.

Here's one place where Chattanooga really, really shines. There are loads of historical sites, large and small, all around town. The city area was very important in the Trail of Tears, Civil War, and early US tourism industry. Sites include Audubon Acres, Chickamauga Battlefield, the military park on Lookout Mountain, Reflection Riding Arboretum, Point Park, Sunset Rock, the Natural Rock Bridge (in the process of being improved into a city park), the Walnut Street Bridge... The list goes on. The history museum, which was pretty good before, was recently demolished with plans to reopen an expanded, higher-tier museum in the near future. (They're looking for a good location right now.) A new national park is soon to be instated at Moccasin Bend. Yeah, no shortage in this category.

So i guess a town with a hospital near by and an university near by as well.

There are several hospitals around Chattanooga including Erlanger and Memorial. The latter is currently ranked as one of the top fifty hospitals in the US. And, of course, there's the UTC campus downtown.

I love runnning, rock climbing, fishing, camping, hiking. I still need a place where i can do all those things, i am a total outdoors person, one of the reasons i hate Chicago is you have to drive so far to do most of these things.

Chattanooga is a mecca for outdoor sports; there are plenty of options for all the activities you mentioned. Within a short drive of downtown (less then twenty minutes) you can be at a big nature preserve like Lula Lake Land Trust, one of the military parks, the river gorge, or a pocket wilderness. You're just two hours from the Great Smoky Mountains and an hour away from loads of parks on the Cumberland Plateau. Can't beat Chattanooga as far as the outdoors go.

attractions

Again, plenty to do. Besides the riverfront and nature preserves there's the Tennessee Riverwalk (part of a rapidly expanding green way system), the Tennessee Aquarium (one of the best in the world), the Hunter Museum of American Art, the Children's Discovery Museum, attractions on Lookout Mountain (Rock City, Ruby Falls, Incline Railway, Chattanooga Nature Center), Chattanooga Zoo, Towing and Recovery Museum, Tennessee Valley Railroad... Again, plenty of options.

[Beretta]

HI Amber,

I have a son that is also an EMT and currently in Paramedic school and then will go to a bridge RN program. There are so many places around here that will suit your wants. One thing I want to caution you about is that EMT pay around here is pretty low. It is pretty hard to live and support at least two mouths on the pay. It isn't impossible though. Salaries and benefits do vary but most EMT pay is between $7.50 to $11.00 an hour. Some do 12 hour shifts but most are 24 so that helps with gas costs. My son works for three different agencies (in addition to college classes and clinical hours!) and the pay varies. Each situation has their pros and cons but the people are great at all three. Jobs in the field are a bit harder to come by right now, one recent PT opening drew 82 applications at one of my sons jobs! It really does pay to know someone to open doors. The hiring folks are just overwhelmed with the number of applicants as I am sure you can understand.

If we (mostly he) can help you further please don't hesitate to DM me. I admire you for wanting to pull up stakes to make a better life for you and your family.

[amberjo]

Hey! Thanks for the new cities to check out. Man its overwhelming tring to pick out just a couple of cities to look at in may. So i guess i should add Chattanooga and surrounding areas to my list, and Johnson City and surrounding area.

I was curious about Towns around Cookeville, no one mentioned any towns in that area. Is it not an attractive place to live?

SmoktyMtnGal, What town are you around or from? Thanks for the response!

thanks again to everyone helping!

amberjo