Wanting to relocate to wild and wonderful WVA (Charleston, Huntington: ski resorts, real estate)

[sunnywaves]

I was born and raised in VA, in between Washington and Richmond; have lived in Charleston SC (hated it), Hatteras Island NC (loved it but way to isolated for year round and too expensive) and I lived in Weston Wva for 2 years. Weston is what turned me on to the people of Wva. BEST people in the world when it comes to caring for your neighbors and having some moral fiber. I now have 2 small sons; 11 and 7. and my hometown has become a nightmare. Over populated schools, would never let my sons play outside without direct supervision, drugs can be bought like ice cream and you can visit the same store everyday and never see the same people twice in a week. I HATE it! I want my sons to hold the door open for others, to say please and thank-you and mean it and I recognize in order to accomplish this I must make a move to an environment where the standard of living is not based on what you have but who you are as a person. There is something to be said for not having too many choices. I dont need a hundred strip malls with hundreds of places to eat or to shop. I am looking on feedback from others who have made the move to Wva to raise their kids. I need good schools, good healthcare, but I dont want to have to drive an hour to get to any type of decent shopping. I want some land but I also want neighbors close. A small town with lots of kids for mine to grow up with. I want to be within a 4 hour or so drive of Fredericksburg Va. Yes I will need to work but I currently own a small business and want a town that will be receptive to and supportive of the small business owner. Any one out there with some ideas? And for those who have posted negative comments about the PEOPLE of West Virginia..... I say YOU ARE CRAZY! All and all EVERYONE I have ever met in my 41 years from West Virginia had a little something over the rest of us....Manners, loyalty and a STRONG belief in living good and living right! I hope to one day this year be able to say with pride.....my family lives in West Virginia!

[snorpus]

I have two suggestions for you.

Lewisburg, in Greenbrier County (about 3 hrs 45 min) and Elkins, in Randolph County (4 hrs 8 min, times according to maps.google.com).

Elkins has a population of about 7,000 in the city proper; Lewisburg is about half that size. Both have "enough" shopping for daily needs, without being dominated by malls. Both still have a "downtown" shopping district, as well as strip centers on the outskirts of town.

With your own business, you'll want a town large enough to have a sufficient customer base. There are lots of pretty towns in WV (I love Hillsboro), but you need more than 250 residents to have a viable business.

[sunnywaves]

Thanks so much!!! I will check out both right now.. Thanks again for all of your help!

[BJC]

Check out Summersville, WV 4hr 26min so map quest says!

[Hinton Bound]

I was looking for the same thing you are. I found it in Hinton, it's between Lewisburg and Beckley (30+/- mins to either via I-64). Property is pretty cheap, and the people are great. Not sure what type of business you run so I can't say if Hinton fits that bill.

If you're looking for great people in the great outdoors, WV is the place.
~Mark

[GottaHerdOn]

Originally Posted by snorpus

I have two suggestions for you.

Lewisburg, in Greenbrier County (about 3 hrs 45 min) and Elkins, in Randolph County (4 hrs 8 min, times according to maps.google.com).

Elkins has a population of about 7,000 in the city proper; Lewisburg is about half that size. Both have "enough" shopping for daily needs, without being dominated by malls. Both still have a "downtown" shopping district, as well as strip centers on the outskirts of town.

With your own business, you'll want a town large enough to have a sufficient customer base. There are lots of pretty towns in WV (I love Hillsboro), but you need more than 250 residents to have a viable business.

Well here I go again on my Elkins spill.. ha ha (sorry for those of you who have heard it 35,636 times)

Snorpus mentioned Elkins to you, I'm from there and lived there my whole life, aside from being away at college right now. Elkins is very historical and touristy. We're in the process of building a new state of the art water treatment plant and replacing the water lines in the city limits. Your small business would boom in downtown if you could tie it into the tourism. There is a tourist train that picks passengers up at the historic depot and takes them on an excursion deep into the mountains. We are also within an hour of 3 ski resorts, being the largest town centrally located to all three. Hiking, biking, fishing, camping are all big summer activities.

Taxes are very low in Elkins, or Randolph county even compared to the already low WV standards. It's a small town, it was voted one of the best small arts towns in America a few years back. We have low crime, and everyone is very friendly.

Schools are overall great. I'm currently in my Junior year of teacher ed. at Marshall University. Randolph County schools do an excellent job at educating their students. I did have had some rather dismal teachers though over the years. Stay away from Jennings Randolph Elementary - horrible school. I've heard from countless parents that Midland Elementary and 3rd Ward Elementary are the better elementary schools. Elkins High is a newer facility constructed around 1994. College courses are offered at the high school through Fairmont State University or Marshall University, or some students are permitted to leave school and take courses at Davis & Elkins College in Elkins. We have a large city park, as well as some other smaller parks, they are currently working on building a skate park

Weather.... I love summers in Elkins. Very nice, warm days, not too hot like in the 90's or 100's but usually mid 70's or 80's. Fall is very beautiful here, with the leaves changing colors. We are home to the Mountain State Forest Festival the largest festival in the state, attracting over 100,000 each year throughout the week.

Here are some links to check out, I'd really advise you to come to Elkins and visit it for yourself. To see if it may be what you're looking for. Elkins is easily accessible, US 33 a four-lane divided highway connects to I-79 at Weston. Once finished US 33 will be a four-lane highway connecting to I-81 near Strasburg VA making a trip to DC much faster and safer. Also routes US 250 and US 219 go through Elkins. I encourage your move, and would like to welcome you to the mountain state. I think Elkins has just want you're looking for

Welcome to the Heart of West Virginia

Elkins, West Virginia

Mountain State Forest Festival - Elkins, West Virginia

Realtors I'd recommend ...

Amy Busch Schumacher, Broker **by Reveal Systems, Inc.

http://www.thompsonrealty.com/

Johnson Realty: West Virginia Real Estate - Elkins, WV

Any other questions. Please feel free to ask me

[sunnywaves]

AWESOME! Thanks for the welcome and all of the information! I greatly appreciate it.. I currently own a staffing firm in VA and I am interested in providing some job coaching for college students and employment/human resource consulting for local businesses. I would love to own and operate a gift shop geared towards tourists. QUALITY of life for my little ones is why I ultimately decided that West Virginia is the place we should call home. I am so impressed with the lifestyle and life attitude of West Virginia. You guys have already been Great to me with all of your feedback. Elkins is a definite place I am looking hard into!::

[NOVAmtneer82]

Elkins is indeed a very nice area and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a nice scenic small town with a laid back attitude.

I'm going to get on my WV rant (this doesn't apply to the nice people here on city-data so don't get upset) brace yourself...

To the OP: regarding your anger over hearing negative comments about West Virginia people, I think you really have to be a native to understand. I grew up in Charleston WV and moved to the DC area (Arlington VA) about four years ago and while indeed the people here are really into a status oriented fast paced lifestyle, I cannot say I would prefer them over many in WV.

The small town attitude definitely wears after a while, people may be somewhat friendly but they also tend to be quite insular, regularly bashing anyplace that isn't their country paradise or Myrtle Beach. You have pockets of the state that aren't as bad about this, however these places represent a very small portion. When I chose to move to DC I can't even count how many people told me I would "hate it there so much" and THEY HAD NEVER EVEN BEEN THERE.

Many country folk also tend to be rather wary of outsiders entering their domain, several of my extended family members lives in a very rural part of the state and it is quite a shock when somebody moves in down the road, they don't know what to think. Going into some of these rural towns is honestly like stepping back into the 1950s, my dear grandmother (love her to death) and her fellow town residents (all 20 of them), tend to be somewhat racist. They still have rather vulgar choice words for African Americans, Latinos, Asians etc. My family RARELY comes to visit me in DC but when they do I have to CONSTANTLY listen to their ridiculous comments like "everybody is so foreign looking" or "are we in America, because I don't hear people speaking English." I get embarassed for them. It isn't just limited to their town/ county either I've noticed this type of behavior in MANY places in WV.

The majority of small towns in West Virginia will not be within an hours drive of any type of decent shopping unless you count the local Wal Mart or Dollar General. Elkins is somewhat of an exception to that although if you're used to the Central Park retail area of Fredericksburg or having Northern VA/DC shopping in your backyard, it will seem VERY limited. The issue of jobs will also be a major factor as the economy in West Virginia tends to be rather depressed (Wal-Mart is the states largest employer).

If you want a smaller town atmosphere with the convenience of at least having a Target or decent mall nearby I would recommend looking in the Charleston-Huntington corridor. Although both are the two largest cities in the state they each have around 50,000 residents with nice rural/surburban areas scattered in between. Great restaurants, nice walkable downtown areas, decent cultural attractions, etc. They have somewhat of a small town atmosphere but with a hint of urbanism. The people there are also friendly as well, they won't look at you like you're psycho if you take 2 seconds to hold the door open for an old lady or use a blinker when changing lanes.

Good luck!

[NOVAmtneer82]

I made a minor typo, at the end of the third paragraph I meant to say that I wouldn't prefer smaller town WVians over people in the DC area...

[appalachiangirl]

I was considering possibly moving to the Charleston,SC area.Why did you hate it?