Fair Warning Relocation (Richmond, Alexandria, Charlottesville: best school, closing, living in)

[JJ60]

Originally Posted by Bigfoot424

Ref what I put in bold. I would argue that the quality of life opinion differs with every person. Wife and I left NOVA after 42 years to move to Edinburg. Very small town with no traffic lights and no chain restaurants. Woodstock is 15 minutes away and they have considerable more but you still need to drive 40 minutes N or S to get to Winchester or Harrisonburg for more shopping and restaurant choices. I call this a quality of life that stands head and shoulders above the DMV area. People here are not pretentious and traffic is certainly very manageable with the exception of a major crash on 81. But even then if you know the area you have many back roads to avoid 81. While I'm no longer a big fan of Charlottesville for reasons you didn't list I'd still take it over the DMV area.

I've met people here in my 4 years in the valley that bailed from Arlington, DC, Fairfax and so on who are like me and would never go back. I find the views out here to be very calming with the mountains something I never want to move away from. Views that you cannot find so easily in the DC area.

Absolutely. It really boils down to what you want. I grew up in NOVA, have family there, etc. So with all of it's flaws, and there are many, it's still like home to me.

Glad you like where you landed!

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by JJ60

Absolutely. It really boils down to what you want. I grew up in NOVA, have family there, etc. So with all of it's flaws, and there are many, it's still like home to me.

Glad you like where you landed!

You're right and at times I do miss some of the things there. But then when I sit on my deck watching the Hawks ride the thermals in the valley behind my house all that melts away.

Both areas certainly has their advantages. And my comment about preferring C'ville over NOVA was only due to its location in the state.

[ladywarrior]

I live in ghetto Waynesboro but worked in Cville for 3 years because Wboro does not pay enough to live even half way comfortable. As for the city itself they want only high class whites, I am white but found that UVA politically is the high honcho and makes all the decisions. People that work there move to surrounding areas (such as Waynesboro) because the cost of living compared to the pay is unreasonably high. People working in DC have moved to Cville because the cost of housing is cheaper than DC. Don't know about the schools for children but I do know it was a nightmare as far as traffic. The drivers are aggressive and would rather run you off the road to allow you to merge into traffic. Because it is a college town you have to deal with alot of college students. The only plus is that is alot of night clubs, activities and other great cultural things to integrate into. Great place to visit but would not want to live there. Cost of living is high compared to the activities you can get involved with. The pay is not high enough to comfortably live there if you are the average "Joe". That is why people are working there but living else where. Beware though of Waynesboro; it is a ghetto town. Staunton would be your best bet but only slightly higher in intelligence people wise.

[Bigfoot424]

You may not know "nightmare" traffic if you live in Waynesboro and work in C'ville. For those who've lived in NOVA/DC area they know traffic and C'ville is not that bad.

[NC211]

In terms of traffic and DC, the town that invented the “loophole”, this one is my favorite twice a day! Ha! Bigfoot, given your background, you’ll definitely recognize this one...

But all the other roads around here suck..

[JJ60]

Originally Posted by ladywarrior

I live in ghetto Waynesboro but worked in Cville for 3 years because Wboro does not pay enough to live even half way comfortable. As for the city itself they want only high class whites, I am white but found that UVA politically is the high honcho and makes all the decisions. People that work there move to surrounding areas (such as Waynesboro) because the cost of living compared to the pay is unreasonably high. People working in DC have moved to Cville because the cost of housing is cheaper than DC. Don't know about the schools for children but I do know it was a nightmare as far as traffic. The drivers are aggressive and would rather run you off the road to allow you to merge into traffic. Because it is a college town you have to deal with alot of college students. The only plus is that is alot of night clubs, activities and other great cultural things to integrate into. Great place to visit but would not want to live there. Cost of living is high compared to the activities you can get involved with. The pay is not high enough to comfortably live there if you are the average "Joe". That is why people are working there but living else where. Beware though of Waynesboro; it is a ghetto town. Staunton would be your best bet but only slightly higher in intelligence people wise.

I agree, C'ville wants to be all that, and at times, believes it already is all that. LOL

I would hate to make that drive over the mountain to Charlottesville, though. Ugh! But I knew many who did when I worked at UVA.

[JJ60]

Originally Posted by Bigfoot424

You may not know "nightmare" traffic if you live in Waynesboro and work in C'ville. For those who've lived in NOVA/DC area they know traffic and C'ville is not that bad.

Nope, not even close.

[Ebck120]

Originally Posted by JJ60

Ebck120: you're all over this thread. Do you now or have you ever lived in Charlottesville? And, why would TNLilly care what I post on a different thread? Why would you even check? Strange.

If you want a reply, here it is:

If you leave a metro area, such as say, the greater DC metro area, to come to C'ville, be prepared for culture shock. Metro areas may be expensive, but in the case of the DC metro area, it is offset by a higher quality of life.

TNLilly asked what do I consider culture in her post. Well, across the river from NOVA, in DC, you have the Museum of Natural History, The National Air and Space Museum, National Gallery of Art, and many other museums that I haven't named here. There is The Kennedy Center and Ford's Theater if you like going to plays. There's the National Mall and all the monuments to explore. They are a bus or metro ride away. Not a two hour drive up 29, depending on the time of day you go.

In addition, there is the aforementioned public transportation system. Nothing like that in C'ville. The shopping choices, expensive to cheap, are endless. Have you ever seen Fashion Square Mall in C'ville? Definitely nothing to write home about.

And, as to the airport, if you happen to prefer riding puddle jumpers out of a small regional airport, Charlottesville is for you. CHO is nothing more than a glorified bus terminal. If you want an international flight or a flight anywhere other than the east coast, you need to go to Richmond or Dulles. Whereas Dulles, Reagan National Airport and BWI are options when living in the greater DC metro area.

As to education, Fairfax County has some of the best schools in the nation.

The cost of living is somewhat cheaper in C'ville, but you don't have the above mentioned activities, services, etc., so of course it is. The traffic is less because there are less people. And despite what some individuals from the north think, it gets damn cold in the winter.

All of these things, and more, are what you give up when you move to Charlottesville, or somewhere similar. It is definitely culture shock. I listed NOVA because I grew up there. I imagine leaving the Philly area or New York area would be the same.

I did not choose to come to Charlottesville; I ended up there due to my husband's job. As stated in my previous post, it's a nice place to visit but I would not live there again.

Why are you even comparing the two? It's such apples and oranges. Nova is a suburb of a major city and CVille is a nice college town. Wouldnt it be obvious that Nova would have more amenities? I've lived in Nova, DC, CVille, NYC, Richmond etc... it just doesnt make sense to compare a 250k metro to a 6+ mill metro. Perhaps you just have a preference for larger cities..

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by JJ60

Nope, not even close.

What's not close?

[gregir]

Originally Posted by Bigfoot424

What's not close?

I took it to mean that the traffic in C-ville is not even close to NOVA. Which is true.