Charlottesville, VA (Richmond, Blue Ridge: relocating, hospital, houses)

[Miaiam]

Hi all, I would like to ask the people who live in Charlottesville about the city. My family is considering relocating there and even though I have some info about the city I was wondering whether locals could tell us "the good and bad" about it. Our topics of interest would basically be safety, affordability, services, convenience, and transportation. Thanks much for your help!

[Pavel]

The good: beautiful mountains, historic sites, friendly people, university town, major hospital center, good schools, major sporting events (UVA), major concert venues (the Pavilion, the Paramount Theater, the John Paul Jones arena, etc.), lots of cultural activities, family friendly, downtown mall, unique shops, lots of restaurants and coffee houses, centrally located - the VA beach is about 3-4 hours a way, Richmond is 1 hour away, Wash DC is 2 hours away, Blue Ridge Parkway - around the corner. Great music scene.

The bad: traffic is getting worse (29North corridor, Pantops) but still not bad as compared to any other city, cost of living is high (although home prices are coming down significantly in some areas), not a big choice of major retailers: i.e. Macy's, Create & Barrel, Nordstroms, Children's Place, etc.