Relocating to Nitro from Phoenix (Charleston, South Charleston: apartments, rent, crime rates)

[Greggory]

I have a job offer in the Nitro area. I've Googled it ,but not much is available.
Can anyone tell me about that area, good and bad? And if I go it looks like I will be single again. What are the people like?

[atlantagreg30127]

You need to keep in mind that Nitro is a very small town. More like a very small suburb of Charleston. (I grew up in Charleston).

First of all, there is a chemical plant in Nitro. Monsanto has a large facility there, and for decades people joke (sorta) about the constant "rotten egg smell" the thing cranks out. A bridge that goes over the river near the plant is especially bad about getting hit with the stink, but residents can get a good dose of it too depending on wind and conditions. Get the idea? You probably DO NOT want to LIVE in Nitro.

Charleston is only a few short miles East of Nitro. If you want the city, go across the river and check out the Kanawha City or South Hills area of Charleston. Or, go further West from Nitro and see the burbs out that way.

[Evanesce]

Nitro and Charleston are especially dangerous and have a history of toxic releases from operating factories. Don't judge West Virginia by just looking at surface issues. And don't take my word for it. Dig deeper into the facts by further investigating these issues. They try to keep a lot of this is hidden, but if you will keep investigating you will find the truth. See my earlier post below.
Please, please, if you value your life and health and the lives and health of your family do not move to West Virginia. This State is an environmental nightmare. Some of the folks posting here sound like me before I moved to West Virginia from the big city -- looking for fresh air, country living, low population, peace and quiet, etc. What I found was that I am now living in a third-world country, where I have no rights. West Virginians are not aware of their constitutional rights and if you try to exercise your rights here you will get no where. West Virginians have been exploited and oppressed by the mining and timbering industries for many generations and do not know any other way of life. Here are a few of the environmental problems I have personally experienced:

· an uncontrolled release of anhydrous ammonia (deadly) requiring me to "shelter in place" in my home;
· mine subsidence with a sinkhole in my backyard;
· sewer gas
· sewage threats with my neighbors having sewage backups in and around their homes
· raw sewage running down the street
· an illegally operating factory spewing formaldehyde and VOCs out of a 4' pipe in the roof only 400 yards from my house (There is no zoning.)
· factory dumping formaldehyde resin into the local creeks
· high levels of lead contamination in the soil throughout the community
· living in a cancer cluster
· water quality issues (EPA violations) not even West Virginians will drink the water.
· PCBs, infectious medical wastes, and asbestos in the landfill that drains into our water system
I'll stop here, but my list of personally experienced West Virginia horrors is 4 pages long.
In case you think the State government will protect you, know that they are paid-off by industy to look the other way.
I am desperately trying to get out of West Virginia. I would rather live anywhere but here.

[firemailwv]

First of all, there is a chemical plant in Nitro. Monsanto has a large facility there, and for decades people joke (sorta) about the constant "rotten egg smell" the thing cranks out. A bridge that goes over the river near the plant is especially bad about getting hit with the stink, but residents can get a good dose of it too depending on wind and conditions. Get the idea? You probably DO NOT want to LIVE in Nitro.

This is not true any longer. I vividly remember the smell, but it is long gone. Atlantagreg must've moved out a while ago.

Nitro and Charleston are especially dangerous and have a history of toxic releases from operating factories

I call BS on this post. If true, I would like to find out where they live...

I have never been to Phoenix, so I cannot give you comparable area. However, Nitro is small town USA. THe homes within the city limits are older homes. There are bordering communities to either side of Nitro with newer, bigger homes. Just because you work in Nitro, doesn't mean you have to live oin Nitro. Even a short 15 minute commute will give you any type of living you would want. Country, city, subdivision, townhouse or apartments. I would recommend a visit before you buy or at very minimum rent until you hav etime to find the right area for you.

[mathis]

Originally Posted by Evanesce

Nitro and Charleston are especially dangerous and have a history of toxic releases from operating factories. Don't judge West Virginia by just looking at surface issues. And don't take my word for it. Dig deeper into the facts by further investigating these issues. They try to keep a lot of this is hidden, but if you will keep investigating you will find the truth. See my earlier post below.
Please, please, if you value your life and health and the lives and health of your family do not move to West Virginia. This State is an environmental nightmare. Some of the folks posting here sound like me before I moved to West Virginia from the big city -- looking for fresh air, country living, low population, peace and quiet, etc. What I found was that I am now living in a third-world country, where I have no rights. West Virginians are not aware of their constitutional rights and if you try to exercise your rights here you will get no where. West Virginians have been exploited and oppressed by the mining and timbering industries for many generations and do not know any other way of life. Here are a few of the environmental problems I have personally experienced:

· an uncontrolled release of anhydrous ammonia (deadly) requiring me to "shelter in place" in my home;
· mine subsidence with a sinkhole in my backyard;
· sewer gas
· sewage threats with my neighbors having sewage backups in and around their homes
· raw sewage running down the street
· an illegally operating factory spewing formaldehyde and VOCs out of a 4' pipe in the roof only 400 yards from my house (There is no zoning.)
· factory dumping formaldehyde resin into the local creeks
· high levels of lead contamination in the soil throughout the community
· living in a cancer cluster
· water quality issues (EPA violations) not even West Virginians will drink the water.
· PCBs, infectious medical wastes, and asbestos in the landfill that drains into our water system
I'll stop here, but my list of personally experienced West Virginia horrors is 4 pages long.
In case you think the State government will protect you, know that they are paid-off by industy to look the other way.
I am desperately trying to get out of West Virginia. I would rather live anywhere but here.

There are good areas and bad areas anywhere you go. West Virginia is a beautiful place to live. The crime rates are low. The people are nice. I would recommend maybe Dunbar or Saint Albans if you can't find a place in Nitro. The rent is higher in Charleston, I wouldn't rent there.

[awakenthesun22]

The natural beauty of WV: gorgeous.

Nitro: a dump. I wouldn't want to live there. That's my opinion, if you can visit before deciding, definately take that opportunity and check it out for yourself to see what you decide. People find treasures in different things, but my advice-don't do Nitro as a blind move at the least.

[hemidude]

Nitro is not a very nice town to live in but if you look just to the west across the river at the Hurricane/Teays/Winfield area, that all changes. That area is GROWING and very nice compared to living in Charleston where, as stated, the rent can be high depending on where you choose to live. I like Charleston, but there is no growth here, and really like the Hurricane/Teays/Winfield area.

[roanoke_expert]

Nitro and Charleston are especially dangerous and have a history of toxic releases from operating factories. Don't judge West Virginia by just looking at surface issues. And don't take my word for it. Dig deeper into the facts by further investigating these issues. They try to keep a lot of this is hidden, but if you will keep investigating you will find the truth. See my earlier post below.
Please, please, if you value your life and health and the lives and health of your family do not move to West Virginia. This State is an environmental nightmare. Some of the folks posting here sound like me before I moved to West Virginia from the big city -- looking for fresh air, country living, low population, peace and quiet, etc. What I found was that I am now living in a third-world country, where I have no rights. West Virginians are not aware of their constitutional rights and if you try to exercise your rights here you will get no where. West Virginians have been exploited and oppressed by the mining and timbering industries for many generations and do not know any other way of life. Here are a few of the environmental problems I have personally experienced:

· an uncontrolled release of anhydrous ammonia (deadly) requiring me to "shelter in place" in my home;
· mine subsidence with a sinkhole in my backyard;
· sewer gas
· sewage threats with my neighbors having sewage backups in and around their homes
· raw sewage running down the street
· an illegally operating factory spewing formaldehyde and VOCs out of a 4' pipe in the roof only 400 yards from my house (There is no zoning.)
· factory dumping formaldehyde resin into the local creeks
· high levels of lead contamination in the soil throughout the community
· living in a cancer cluster
· water quality issues (EPA violations) not even West Virginians will drink the water.
· PCBs, infectious medical wastes, and asbestos in the landfill that drains into our water system
I'll stop here, but my list of personally experienced West Virginia horrors is 4 pages long.
In case you think the State government will protect you, know that they are paid-off by industy to look the other way.
I am desperately trying to get out of West Virginia. I would rather live anywhere but here.

That quote is BS...don't let some moron keep you from moving to WV..grant it..it's not for everyone. I would seriously doubt ANY of this is true I've lived in Charleston, St. Albans, and Hurricane most of my life and loved it!

Secondly, I don't know where you are coming from in Phoenix, but by most standards Nitro is NOT a nice place to live. Look to Teays Valley, Hurricane, Winifield, Cross Lanes, or South Hills/Southridge!

[atlantagreg30127]

While the alarmist post above is a bit off the wall, there is SOME truth in the chemical valley warnings.

A few years ago one of the PBS stations did a documentary I believe called "Cancer Valley USA" in the Kanawha Valley, where they interviewed a good number of people who suffered from various ailments in small cluster areas. According to the show, which actually even aired here on the Atlanta PBS station as well, Charleston at least at that time had the highest number of cancer cases "per capita" in the USA.

I'm 41 and even as a child, there was controversy over some of the stuff begin let out into the air. Remember the chemical leak in India that killed all those people a number of years ago? They make and store it even today I'm told, in the Charleston plant.

Ok, so the guy above is an alarmist and panicy, but overall yes, the Kanawha Valley HAS had it's share of scares and chemical "issues" in the past. Whether it's still true today I don't know because I no longer live there, but they would have had to have done a lot of cleanup since I left to have solved all of it.

I still think WV has tons of "safe" places to live. I miss Charleston. But I'm not sure I'd live in South Charleston or Dunbar even these days, or Rand or Amherst - just too close to the plants.

[David Kennedy]

Any chance of patching up the relationship and making one last try in your present area? Would be the cheapest and most rewarding emotionally.
To take a job as an escape and go to Nitro, WV would be a form of horrible self-punishment in my opinion...