Asheville versus Charlottesville, VA (Chapel Hill, Matthews: apartment, chapel, lawyers)

[Diana Schreier]

Hi. I currently live in Florida and am wanting to get away from the awful heat and humidity and, I never thought I'd say this, the sun. I would like a "green" city, a pretty downtown and I need good public transportation since I do not have a car. I enjoy festivals, farmers' markets, art, concerts, etc.

I need to know if there are a lot of smokers in either city. I believe 85% of the people smoke in Florida and I am allergic to it.

I want clean air and good water to drink (without having to get it from bottled water).

I lived in Denver for 20 years and really miss the mountains. Love trees. Don't mind going back to the four seasons.

I am 65, live on social security and would need a part time job (was legal sec. for 40 years). I plan on going into a HUD-subsidized apartment. I'm not a flake, just didn't save my money for the future.

I am a good person. Can you help me make a decision on either Asheville or Charlottesville? I've never been in either place - just have done a lot of research. Thank you, Diana

[mm34b]

City of Asheville - ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA - Climate Summary

City of Charlottesville - CHARLOTTESVILLE 2 W, VIRGINIA - Climate Summary

[miokie]

I love Asheville, but it's not known for its public transportation,and smoking is allowed in restaurants and workplaces.. (for what it's worth, remember that NC and VA both are tobacco states).

"Clean air" is subjective, means different things to different people. Buncombe County's overall Air Quality Index Summary for 2007 showed only good and moderate days in the health category. However ozone (O3) and particle mass (PM) readings are not optimum.. You can pull up AQI reports at that site for areas you've lived in and make your own comparisons.

[mm34b]

Nc - 22%
Va - 19%
Fl - 21%
Co - 18%

[cooperwx]

Charlottesville is a lot smaller, and a lot more of a college town than Asheville. UVa has a MUCH greater influence on the feel of C'ville than UNCA does here.

[gigimac]

I live in Asheville, but I have visited Charlottesville. The Dave Matthews Band originated in that cozy northern Va town. The hospitals are first-rate, the college has a distinctive historical old-South flavor, and the Thomas Jefferson plantation is there, very nice grounds. Easy to get around, you could work for the college in some capacity perhaps, to enjoy the campus. Don't know much about Roanoke, but you could look into that, too.

Asheville is pretty unwieldy when it comes to mass transit, altho the system is in place for many fairly wide-spread areas. There are numerous lawyers working downtown. Don't know a whole lot about the HUD apartment situation, but the organization called the Land of Sky Regional Council has a webpage that has a wealth of information, much of it relating to senior citizens in the Asheville area.

[Boodee]

Originally Posted by cooperwx

Charlottesville is a lot smaller, and a lot more of a college town than Asheville. UVa has a MUCH greater influence on the feel of C'ville than UNCA does here.

Hi Diana -

I'm surprised that this thread came up because my four years spent in C'ville are the reason I want to be able to transfer to Asheville in the near future! I spent four years at "Mr. Jefferson's University" as it's known and loved it. However, my experience is colored by the fact that I was a student there and not a "townie" as the locals are called.

Both are very similar. They are both very "green", have festivals and farmer's markets, relatively clean air and water, and fantastic opportunities and excuses to be outdoors. And both need more "good people" like yourself.

C'ville is smaller than Asheville - the major industry in C'ville is the University - whether it's academics, sports or hospital-related. The reason it has so much of a greater influence on the town, as opposed to UNCA on Asheville, is that it's a much bigger school - it's a very selective major U.S. university, for heaven's sake (one of the finest in the U.S., accepting only top students these days, and one of the most cost-effective schools along with UNC in Chapel Hill). However, along with a major University, you get all of the perks that go along with living close: a top-notch library, a fabulous arts programs, an incredible teaching hospital system, inexpensive (free) transportation, access to a top national sports program, and a highly diverse population. And this is just for starters. To cater to all of those students, there are also numerous malls with the usual strip mall stores: Best Buy, Penny's, Sear's, Walmart, Appleby's, Chili's, Target, Lowe's, Home Depot, Belk, etc., etc., etc.

Is C'ville a college town? Most likely. But I believe that alot of the perks I noted above are not readily available in Asheville, at least in not a short distance from one another. A major dis-incentive for moving to C'ville is the cost of housing. If you can believe it, it's even more expensive to live there than in Asheville. Similar to Asheville, people have discovered how wonderful it is to live so close to the beautiful Blue Ridge mountains and it's wonderful climate. (BTW - they have virtually the same weather - C'ville may get more snow. And I don't recall using the AC too often.) But before you choose one or the other, check out the cost of living, especially housing. I know that it is an incredibly popular place for rich alumni to retire. Others with old money and the nouveau riche who love simply love the views have purchased monster estates. Warren Buffett, Sissy Spacek, Dave Matthews, Howie Long, and John Grisham have places there to name but a few. (They've also made it one of the wealthiest counties in the U.S., but I digress....) I mean, could a man as intelligent and diverse as Mr. Jefferson have chosen a more beautiful place to build his retirement home and University? But if you're headed to a HUD-subsidized apartment, you shouldn't have to worry about the cost of housing after all.

So, there you have my two cents. I would gladly move to either locale right now if I could afford it. I'd move to Asheville (Hendersonville) for the retirement community and C'ville for the benefits associated with the University. One of these days maybe - I can still dream!

[businessperson]

I've lived in Asheville and Charlottesville. I'd choose Charlottesville anytime. Shopping, culture, history, scenery all better in Charlottesville. And, by the way...Charlottesville isn't that much smaller than Asheville.

[Researching Retirement]

Originally Posted by businessperson

I've lived in Asheville and Charlottesville. I'd choose Charlottesville anytime. Shopping, culture, history, scenery all better in Charlottesville. And, by the way...Charlottesville isn't that much smaller than Asheville.

Interesting comments. I've never been to C'ville but it is an area on our list to consider. I can definitely imagine shopping, culture, and history as better there. Having been to A'ville and surrounding WNC areas, hard to imagine scenery is better in C'ville. Will have to go there and check it out.

How would you rate the two on cost of living and weather? For cost of living, not really looking at job market / wage comparison since we'll be retired. Therefore, more interested just the cost side of things such as land/housing cost, taxes, utils, etc.

[meskito]

Charlottesville is VERY expensive and the traffic can be awful. Locals love the area, but many end up moving further out of the city because of cost.