Atlanta = Over-saturated, Overpopulated, Overrated (Kennesaw, Blue Ridge: best neighborhood, find a job, to buy)

[plessthanpointohfive]

Originally Posted by Big L

I went to college in Baton Rouge, so I can attest that Atlanta summers are bearable compared to that foolishness.

I used to play rec soccer in BR. During the summer it's co-rec and all the games were at 5pm. Somehow, back then, I didn't notice it being so hot after the first couple of games. Then I moved here. My first July 4th back home to visit family, about 3 years after moving to GA, I had acclimated to GA temps and I thought I was dying during that visit. And the air just does not move!

By comparison, the climate here is so very nice.

[Big L]

Originally Posted by DTL3000

What about those of us who have been here for a while and have witnessed the quality of life in this city go down hill? I enjoyed living in Atlanta for about the first 3 or so years then it started becoming more and more of a hassle to put up with the BS. I became tired of the city paying nothing but lip service to the problems that have held this city back for decades.

This city has "grown' since I've moved here but all these shiny new skyscrapers and condos have done little to make this a more enjoyable place to live. With no planning, they simply add population to a city that already can't properly manage the strain on its infrastructure.

And for all you "Delta is ready when you are" folks, believe me, I am working on getting out of this place.

I guess everyone's situation is different. My personal quality of life has improved overall. However, that probably have more to do with my career and personal accomplishments than what has or hasn't happened in the metro area. I have worked and lived in various spots in the metro and have seen good and bad in most areas.

Another thing that may make me different than some who frequent the board is that I have no desire to live within Atlanta proper. That is not to say that Atlanta proper is bad, but I tend to find what I am looking for in terms of housing and employment OTP. I grew up in car-crazy Southern California, so I couldn't care less about some of the things that bring people to some spots ITP ("walkable" neighborhoods, rail, etc.). Some of the outlying areas have their issues as well, but I have found that if you do your due diligence you can at least be somewhat-satisfied with where you choose to rent or purchase a home be it ITP or OTP.

[noladarling]

Originally Posted by A&M Bulldawg

LOL! So not true!

I agree, I left ATL for NYC and I miss being around middle class black people. I miss the music, the nightlife, the BBQs and everything else. Once the job market returns to something tolerable I will be on the next plane back!

[AcidSnake]

Booyah!!!

Originally Posted by ga jerk

couldn't get a date huh?:d

[Ciao_BellaBella]

Originally Posted by Originally Posted by OneloveU
IF u black, atlanta probably the best places to be in america! hands down!
A&M Bulldawg;14506065

LOL! So not true!

THANK YOU!

[plessthanpointohfive]

Originally Posted by AcidSnake

Booyah!!!

OK, as unkind as this sentiment (not picking on you AS) is, it does point out one big perspective - single vs not.

I am not single and have not been single for 13 years. I wasn't single when I moved here. So, my entire perspective on Atlanta is that of a middle-aged married working mom. When I go out, it's solely for non-match.com entertainment value. It usually revolves around food and alcohol, specifically beer. And neighborhood events. And outdoor recreation. And family stuff.

So, from where I'm coming from Atlanta is GREAT!

I can't at all comment on Atlanta for singles. My comparison city would be Lafayette, LA in the early 90s! And that's not even a comparable city to Atlanta in ANY way, much less 13 or more years ago. Last time I went to a club they were playing Dunky Butt.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA, *snort*

[kayrob]

Originally Posted by OneloveU

IF u black, atlanta probably the best places to be in america! hands down!

Yeah I guess it is if you want to speak like this.

[WilliamM]

Originally Posted by Georgia

Wow! Bad day in Buckhead I gather?

Hilarious. This is spot - on.

[WilliamM]

Originally Posted by Ciao_BellaBella

Hello, Atlanta.

I am on my way out. I've lived here for what will be 5 years by the time that my day comes where I can say I am finally leaving. Although moving here was the change that I needed in my life at that time, this place is surely not a place to settle and stay in. Well, let me just state for me, at the least... some people love it here, but most that I converse with, are completely over it.

I've had so many different experiences here, I have to say that I've learned a lot, but I have never come across so many women who are desperate, so many men whose arrogance reeks simply from their presence, and so many couples who are in denial and settling for reasons being that the dating scene is based on bull**** due to the lack of genuine people that exist in this city.

I am from the North, and I will be running back next year. I have never really had a "home" feel while eliving here. People are very opportunistic in Atlanta. I understand that most people's goals are to be successful in life, but, the fact that most people are "users" and the rest of them are "acceptors" is just beyond me.

SO Atlanta, keep your over-saturated, overpopulated, and overrated city. It was a learning experience while it lasted... Some people don't know what they have until it's gone... I may not like the snow, but I will take the yucky weather opposed to the yucky city of "Wana-be Hollywood" any day...

Good luck to all of you moving here for the "hype." Enjoy!

What gives you away here is the way you address your post: "Dear Atlanta". Sorry to be brutal here my friend, but you won't get to address all of Atlanta I'm afraid. You're not important enough. Don't take offense though. Neither am I, or for that matter - I'm assuming - are most of the others on this forum. So sadly, looks like you'll have to settle for just addressing all of us here at the Atlanta forum as kind of a 'stand in', if you will, for the city of Atlanta which you seem to feel so aggrieved by. But it's ok. We'll listen. We're used to it. In fact, it almost seems to be the most frequent kind of post we see here - the disgruntled resident who's had enough. So go right ahead. We're quite familiar with it. The post that's tossed off in righteous anger towards the shallow and superficial city that lured you (probably just after graduation, was it?), only to cruelly let you down with its uninspired, new modernism and crass materialistic ways. Yes, sadly, Atlanta hasn't been around long enough to have the Museum of Fine Arts, or the Guggenheim, or whatever, or other legacies of filthy rich robber barons with a bad conscience who thought they needed to give a little back. No, Atlanta's still cutting its teeth in this category. So go right ahead. Vent away. We've heard it all before. We won't get mad. We know the story line all too well. The story of the disgruntled transplant who's fed up. They're headed back North (usually). Back where things are real and things get done not because they make for flashy marketing campaigns, or please focus groups, or chambers of commerce, but because they grow organically out of the honest soil, back in those places that are still 'real cities' that haven't been corrupted by Sun Belt boosterism (which is the only kind that exists of course) or haven't had the old character bleached out of them by overexposure to LA sun (and its fake wannabe also-rans like Atlanta). So good luck to you. I hope you'll keep us posted on how things go when you lack back on solid ground. Fare thee well traveler. And remember, don't take it so hard. It's really not that important. It's just, after all, a city.

[MisterNY]

Originally Posted by LovinDecatur

I find it a amusing that someone that accuses Atlanta of being 'oversaturated' and 'overpopulated' also believes that the solution is to move to the Northeast. Lots of wide open spaces there for sure.
I take threads like this with a grain of salt.

Her post is more like a rant to herself. Who cares? She was looking at herself in the mirror, as she wrote this...

Originally Posted by tahitiblue

Yes, property taxes are higher in the north, but at least you get something for them. I'm tired of the constant violence and crime, tired of being surrounded by shootings (like the one across the street from our house recently - that makes me real happy with a small child at home), tired of seeing the police stand around and twiddle their thumbs while people get victimized. Tired of calling 911 and getting put on hold for 10 minutes.
It makes me sad, because I love this city and I think it could be so great. It has so much potential. But the idiots who keep getting voted into office seem intent on flushing it down the drain by refusing to look at the city's long-term well-being instead of what lucrative contracts they can pass to their cronies this month.

In another post, you said you barely see cops, now you see them twiddling their thumbs, and you're tired of it? Which is it? You really are the icing on the cake.

If there are constant shootouts around you, it's your poor choice of neighborhood, not Atlanta's fault.

Originally Posted by tahitiblue

Because in return, I'll get a 1-1.5 hour commute (thank you Atlanta, for refusing to plan any sort of decent public transportation system!). With what we pay to live in Midtown, we can move to a city up north, live within reasonable distance of work and get decent city services in return for our tax dollars. Yes, the cost of living is higher, but it's actually not *that* much higher and the quality of life is better too (and I'll admit, I won't miss June-August either!).

I'll give you two thumbs up about Atlanta's public transportation system lacking vs NYC, or Boston, but it's still better than hundreds of US cities. It can and should improve if it wants to survive as a big city. That's Atlanta's Achilles' heel.

Good luck trying to get something decent in South Brooklyn or Manhattan for what you're getting in Midtown Atlanta. Good Luck.

Originally Posted by tahitiblue

Edited to add: We actually did live up north for a while and came back to Atlanta, so I've experienced both (and my husband is a yankee native). We thought the trade-off for the lower cost of living down here would be worth it, but unfortunately, it's not. Nor is the lower cost of living as low as we thought it would be, what with all the tax increases lately.

And it will be nice to have a decent newspaper to read once in a while!!

You can read most newspapers online these days, you know?

Originally Posted by A&M Bulldawg

LOL! So not true!

Yeehaw for Alabama.....