Moving from St. Louis to Raleigh or Charlotte--Please advise (Durham: chapel, high schools) - North Carolina (NC) - City-Data Forum

brown_nerd_girl · 11-07-2008, 11:58 AM

I am looking to relocate to Raleigh or Charlotte. We are native St. Louisians seeking a vibrant area, nice weather, and most important, good high schools. I have been researching Raleigh and Charlotte and I have been steered to Raleigh. I have no family in NC , so I am looking for input of course. I am completing my BA in Science and Math Education. So I would like to be in an area that I could also find a teaching position as well. Also I would like to be fairly close to one of the universities to complete my Graduate Degree. We really are looking for an area with diversity, good neighbors, affordable housing, and not too fast-paced. Does this area exist?

spiderbear · 11-07-2008, 12:48 PM

I just moved to Charlotte from Raleigh. I'm here for college, otherwise I'd be back up there in a heartbeat.

Raleigh is the best place I've ever seen to raise a family, period. You have the culture of Durham and Chapel Hill, the revitalization of North Raleigh, and the ability to be 20 minutes away from work and live on a farm if you want. Downtown is small, but still feels like a city. You have comedy clubs, very nice jazz venues, and there's a huge coffee shop culture. You can walk just about anywhere and feel safe. The farmers market/flea market is amazing. The bad areas aren't as close to the "good" areas as they are in charlotte. If you never go East/New Bern, you'll probably never see it at all. However, try to get your kids into Enloe High School. It's an amazing school, near the bad part of town, but that's the magnet program, unfortunately. Some amazingly talented kids come out of there, and it's a great place if your kids are motivated.

If you're going into math and science, look into NC State. The teaching positions there are are great, and I know a lot of very satisfied teachers who work there (in chemistry). If you're going for a graduate education, it's even better. RTP is a short commute away, and there are tons of jobs up that way.

It's also a little more laid back, so you won't get the excitement that you do in Charlotte. Public transportation isn't as popular, so it's not a very good way to go. You pretty much need to have a car, unless you live in the downtown area. Sometimes it can be downright boring. It's getting better, but it has a long way to catch up to the glitz of Charlotte. And I think that's a good thing.

brown_nerd_girl · 11-07-2008, 02:11 PM

Thanks for the input. The education aspect is the most important for myself and my kids. I am looking into applying to NC State soon. My goal is to fly there in the next month or so. What area would you recommend that is central to the university and a good point to check the surrounding areas?

spiderbear · 11-07-2008, 02:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brown_nerd_girl

Thanks for the input. The education aspect is the most important for myself and my kids. I am looking into applying to NC State soon. My goal is to fly there in the next month or so. What area would you recommend that is central to the university and a good point to check the surrounding areas?

Staying in Cary off of 40/440 will make it so that you can get into town for NC State, and check out UNC-Chapel Hill/Duke if you'd like. Otherwise just about anywhere downtown is good. Off of Glenwood is nice, and you can go into downtown or north Raleigh from there. Hillsborough is the main drag, there's a lot of neat stuff around there. Go on a weekend so you can go to the flea market.

Will you be looking to live in Raleigh downtown or just outside?

jstevens44 · 11-07-2008, 03:21 PM

I'm in Charlotte, and I came from St. Louis. I've never been to Raleigh, so I can't really compare. Charlotte is nice though.
I also moved here with no family or friend in NC to speak of.

brown_nerd_girl · 11-07-2008, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spiderbear

Staying in Cary off of 40/440 will make it so that you can get into town for NC State, and check out UNC-Chapel Hill/Duke if you'd like. Otherwise just about anywhere downtown is good. Off of Glenwood is nice, and you can go into downtown or north Raleigh from there. Hillsborough is the main drag, there's a lot of neat stuff around there. Go on a weekend so you can go to the flea market.

Will you be looking to live in Raleigh downtown or just outside?

More than likely I will want to live outside of the city. I'm not really quite sure. I know there are places that I have visited and some cities are good to visit but not live in. I am not familiar enough with Raleigh yet.

I have been hearing of the flea markets. It must be a big deal

NCN · 11-07-2008, 04:46 PM

If a slower pace is what you want, Raleigh should be your choice. Charlotte is more like Knoxville or ST. Louis.

brown_nerd_girl · 11-07-2008, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jstevens44

I'm in Charlotte, and I came from St. Louis. I've never been to Raleigh, so I can't really compare. Charlotte is nice though.
I also moved here with no family or friend in NC to speak of.

Charlotte appears to have lots of opportunities for teachers which is a plus. But I keep hearing there are issues of crime? What has been your experience?

We live in St. Louis currently and I get tired of worrying every morning if my car is still in the driveway. I have to avoid certain areas at certain times. I worry about my kids while they are in school. There have been incidents with guns being brought in. We have had a few drive-by shootings in the area (we live in the decent part). I know these issues are mostly everywhere, but not to this magnitude. I do not want to jump from the frying pan to the fire.