Artist looking in North Carolina... (Asheville, Rutherfordton: salary, living, cost of living)

[creativeye]

Hello, I'm in the thinking process of moving out of Dallas and trying out North Carolina...I'm an artist and photographer and I can't seem to get adjusted in Dallas. I'm looking for a small town feel, lots of nature, cool shops, antiques, and I love those areas that are cozy and have a nostalgic feel when you walk, I guess you would call that a charming place. I want to be close to an art community. My art is very eclectic as well as my photography. I'm planning on opening a small shop asap. I also do window displays as a freelance basis. So with all this information, I'm hoping that someone gears me to the right direction. Any other feed backs would be great. I love the downtown feel, so that's also something to think on. Hope to get some great feed back.. Thank you for taking the time in reading this. Laz

[eightiesfan]

I've also considered a similar move. IMO there seems to be a fairly good arts scene in Asheville although it is a much smaller town than Dallas. There is some great architecture downtown and fair amount of galleries. The surrounding areas and scenery are beautiful and offer lots of outdoor activity options.

The biggest gripe I've always heard is that it's a "bring your own job" kind of city, not a lot of career options with a heavy focus on tourism and the service industry. If you're looking at a start up business this may not affect you as much. The other complaint I seem to hear is that the cost of living doesn't match the typical salary for most people. By reading these forums I've also got a feel that lots of folks aren't real happy with the local Government either.

Here's a couple links to give you an idea of what's going on there.

River Arts District, Asheville, NC

The Arts | Asheville, NC's Official Tourism Web Site

[coxe]

Have you thought about Rutherfordton?

It's about 50 miles southeast of Asheville...beautiful area...smalltown with an improving downtown area.

Rutherfordton, NC - official page of the Town of Rutherfordton