Clifton Forge, VA: 2012 Input sought for possible relocation (Roanoke, Staunton: transplants, crime)

[Mafster]

Living in MD, north of Baltimore, concrete jungle, no view. Looking for a large house with a mountain view and pool, found one in Clifton Forge. The small town living has a great appeal. Self-employed, so can work anywhere. Empty-nesters. I have read every post on the forums about C.F., the promising ones were about five years old. Contacted a realtor and was informed that the area is very depressed and the smell from the Covington paper plant makes it over to Clifton Forge. The house, if anyone knows anything about it, is "Hillcrest", at the end of McCormick Blvd. I am concerned about the proximity to I64 but it appears there is enough of a tree block and I see many properties even closer.

Any thoughts and input are greatly appreciated!!

Maf

[roanoker 4]

Clifton Forge is less than an hour from Roanoke via a road that has little traffic.
It is in a very rural area and most of the people there hunt, fish and have slow
lifestyle. It is a quiet and refreshing place to be. If you are from an urban area it will take some time to get into the small town lifestyle as everyone seems to know everyone else. If you are of the outdoor type the scenery is spectacular and undiscovered. When I was younger I would go with my friends boating and snow skiing in nearby West Va. The state parks are much nicer in WV than VA.
The people are very friendly. Yes, Covington has a smell from the paper mill but I didn't notice it in CF. There is an Amtrak station at CF and a neat little downtown, a typical small town. Yes, it is a depressed area being a former railroad town but it is not far from other bigger cities. While CF doesn't get much
attention I think it is a very nice town.

[Mafster]

Thank you for taking the time to write, your information is greatly appreciated.

[Henry Bowman]

Might want to check the cancer rates for the area.

That paper mill is not exactly churning out cookie dough and unicorns.

[ShadowBat]

If you have your heart set on Clifton Forge, I seriously recommend a visit. It will be a night/day transition for you coming from the Baltimore area. It is a very small town. It's true that CF has/had a nice downtown, but it is very run down with many vacancies. At least there was last time I was there in '08. It is in a very beautiful area though. And in the next county up is the Homestead. A very awesome resort tucked away in the mountains that brings in a lot of money. I have a friend who came from Jamaica just to work at the Homestead. He chose to live in Clifton Forge. He loved working at the Homestead, but didn't say too much about Clifton Forge. He eventually moved to Staunton and commuted, for whatever that's worth.

[Mafster]

Thank you all for your insight. We'll be heading down first week of April and have a much better idea at that time.

[citytransplant]

Hi,
I didn't see a post after you said you would be visiting. I live in Clifton Forge and have lived here for about a year. There are basically three types of people in this town: transplants (like us), who are mostly empty nesters, independent, and love the place. We enjoy the antiques, restaurants, hills, trails, and low housing prices. We are a growing group. The other two types are born and bred Clifton Forgers: the first are proud of their small town, own businesses, work hard, and are involved with the many organizations. The final type are also born and bred, but see nothing but gloom and doom in the area. They are unhappy, miserable sorts and don't understand why the second group is happy and why the first group even exists. The reply that you received about cancer rates is clearly from this group. As I said, we have lived here for a year and love the place and the area. The people are nice, the crime is low to nonexistent, the teenagers call people ma'am and sir, and the scenery is beautiful. Yes, there is a paper plant in Covington, ten miles down the road, and yes, it stinks. The smell (think old sauerkraut), however, almost never reaches around the mountains to Clifton Forge, and when it does, it is only early in the morning.

Basically, my comment to you would be, come on down, the water's fine!

[ShadowBat]

The final type you speak of in Clifton Forge unfortunately exists in every town/city. They will never be happy anywhere.