Moving to Greeneville tennessee from PA (Memphis, Knoxville: rental, crime, daycares)

[destineesmom94]

Hi, I am thinking of moving to greeneville from PA in a few months with my 3 yr old son and 13 yr old daughter. My boyfriend is moving down there in May to his father and wants me to come as soon as I can. I was wondering, what kind of jobs are there? What is the distance and time to the nearest city for a good job? What is the average starting rate of jobs? I also was wondering where to find rental properties or possible mobile home dealers where we could purchase a used trailer to put on our own land? I have looked into the Greeneville sun with little or no luck. I have never made a move like this, and I have no idea where to start. Could someone help me out? I sure could use it. I really need a good paying job. The only thing I have is a high school diploma so I can do any type of general work as far as warehouse or factory work. Is there anything like that in greeneville or any city close by? My boyfriend is starting a business with his dad and going to live with him for a while until I get there. I would just like to know what I might be getting myself into before I pick up and move with the kids and then realize there aren't any jobs or housing. Also, what kind of childcare is available? Is there anything for a teenager to do besides getting in trouble? I know I ask alot but this is a big move for someone who has lived in the same town for 36 years Please, any help will do. Thanks so much.

[mbmouse]

Hi destineesmom94,
Welcome to the forum. Boy, those are tough ones. I just it all depends on where in Greeneville you are looking to live. I know a lot of locals say they live in Greeneville but they really live out side of it in the county so I guess that would be my first question. Where in Greene County is your boyfriend going to open the business? If it is truly in Greeneville then there are places to rent but they are mostly advertised on fliers in the grocery stores and such like that if they are not in the paper. As for jobs there are several factories that pay pretty well (for this area, remember starting wages are less here than many other places in the country but cost of living is lower too) There is Bush Hog out towards Jonesborough, John Deer in Greeneville. There is an industrial park just west of Greeneville heading towards Moshiem that has 4 or 5 plants in there and there are a few more right in town. Your best bet for jobs in Greene County is to get in touch with the employment agencies. At Work is big in Greeneville. The closest larger town/city is Johnson City which is about a 35-40 minute drive from downtown Greeneville.
As for child car, there is some in Greeneville but once you get out of town, not much. As for things for the kids to do, there is quiet a bit. Besides hiking and creeks and nature type stuff, there is a big YMCa in Greeneville, a bowling alley, roller skating rink and several community sports activities. There is a huge 4H camp in South Greene County.
I hope this answered some of your questions? Several pages back on this forum I posted a bunch of pictures of Greeneville and the surrounding areas, you can use the "search" option at the top of the page for threads that have Greene in the title. There is also a lot of past posted info about Greeneville form other folks as well that might be of interest to you. Just take some time reading through past post. Any other questions, ask away, and we'll see what we can do about answering them.

[hoosier07]

Hi...don't forget about Morristown, it's not too far from Greeneville and has a lot of factories that could meet your job requirement. I'm working on a job transfer to Morristown as of now.....you'll have to drive perhaps 35 miles but I'm sure there is no traffic.

[jabogitlu]

There are some more factories in Greeneville on Snapps Ferry Road -- I forget their names, though.

There is also a large industrial park with PSI (Packaging Services Inc.) and others on the Andrew Johnson Hwy down near Mosheim/Mohawk.


There are several daycares / child care centers but the good ones are usually very full. A good friend of mine runs a large one on the Newport Hwy and their waiting list is at least 100 children. So this might be an area you need to start researching now. A word of friendly caution - there are many small, in-home daycares but they're not all equal. Be sure you know where you're leaving your children!!!

Otherwise, I think the other posters have it pegged. Greeneville is a nice, small town - my home town, actually. There's nothing for teenagers to do, but Johnson City is only about 25-35 minutes away (depending on what part of town you're going to). If you're used to a slow-paced life you'll be fine there!

You can find cheaper housing outside of the city limits. Check out the communities of Chuckey, Afton, Mosheim, Mohawk, Midway, Limestone, Telford, Camp Creek. (Some of these are in Washington County.) You might want to avoid housing in areas like Baileyton, Horse Creek or Rock Batter (Greene).

[destineesmom94]

thanks so much for all the advice... you were a big help!!! I will be checking out more theads. thanks a bunch!!

[Firefighterdon]

Find the greene county website and ask them for information regarding relocation. I received a huge packet with all sorts of information and one of the most comprehensive booklets I have ever seen anywhere for everything in the area.

[destineesmom94]

Originally Posted by Firefighterdon

Find the greene county website and ask them for information regarding relocation. I received a huge packet with all sorts of information and one of the most comprehensive booklets I have ever seen anywhere for everything in the area.

thanks so much! thats a great idea!!

[Rcm58]

While Tennessee is the 18th largest income producing state in the nation it ranks 43rd for household income. As of June or July of 2007 Guam will have a higher minimum wage than Tennessee does. This article from the Kingsport Times News would be a good place to start looking before you jump into anything you'll regret later http://www.sullivan-county.com/x/north1.htm

Starting pay at most factories is from $6.50-$8.00 an hour in this area.

Crime is well above the national average, you can check that on this site.

Although Tennessee offers a vast amount of things to do for the outdoors enthusiast There are very few organized activities for kids, most cities rely on local churchs or the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. I ran a search on google and was only able to locate two cities that offered a summer program for kids of any kind that wasn't gun or fishing related and that was in Chatanooga and Memphis.

[SuzieQFL]

Originally Posted by Firefighterdon

Find the greene county website and ask them for information regarding relocation. I received a huge packet with all sorts of information and one of the most comprehensive booklets I have ever seen anywhere for everything in the area.

I've been on the web all morning trying to find a relocation packet for Johnson City, or Washington County. The County website doesn't offer anything (that I could find) and neither does the city website. I also checked some realtor sites and the ones I found didn't offer a packet. Any suggestions as to where I might get one? Thanks!

[hiknapster]

Hey Suzy!

I'm from Fort Myers, Florida, but live in Knoxville. Try posting this in the Tri-Cities forum.