[SciFiNerd1]

My wife and I are considering a move away from Arkansas for a change of scenery. Florida happens to be one of our choices. Florida is a huge state with many metro areas.


Please tell me which one is your favorite and why. You can tell me more if you have more than just one favorite. I also included the poll listing all metro areas from this source:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...eas_of_Florida


FYI, I used to live in Florida for two years as a young teenager during 2003-2005. I recalled not liking Florida but maybe I just didn't like the locations: Daytona Beach, St. Cloud, and Melbourne areas. It was incredibly boring with nothing to do outside the beaches. My single mother with 4 children had a hard time in Florida so we ended up moving back to Arkansas. I believe other parts of Florida are actually better than where I lived.

[kyle19125]

It's actually a fairly diverse state in terms of metro areas and you mention already being bored in some areas so perhaps if you could outline what was missing from those places it would help narrow the search. Apparently the beach isn't a big thing for you, so besides that what else are you looking for in terms of things to do?

[MrJones17]

Sarasota is my happy place, but that's because I'm a beach bum. Tampa/St. Petersburg were cities I was kind of disappointed in. I expected a bit more. Orlando is just Disney and boring.

[SciFiNerd1]

My wife and I do like beaches and water activities. We do not want it to be the main thing to do. I felt that way in Daytona Beach and Melbourne since I was not into NASCAR and Space Travel.

We also would like to see our new city to have culture, such as museums (art, history, etc.) that are active by having their own events and showings, decent theater for plays, and opera performances. We wouldn't mind having aquariums, amusement parks, and water parks nearby. It would be nice if everything do not cost an arm and a leg.

We wouldn't mind attending professional games (football, preferably). I know Arkansas Razorbacks do come down to play the Gators every other year so driving out to Gainesville is something we could do.

We also enjoy walking/hiking trails at parks.

We prefer to live somewhere that is moderate to liberal in politics. Maybe living somewhere with less pine tress will help our allergies and sinusitis. We plan to rent first to get the feel of the area before buying a house in a good school district. We have twins on the way.

Any suggestions? We are thinking Clearwater in Pinellas County near Tampa. Some of our friends have been trying to convince us to live in Pensacola in the FL Panhandle but we feel that it is still too southern similar to Alabama and Arkansas.

[kyle19125]

Originally Posted by SciFiNerd1

My wife and I do like beaches and water activities. We do not want it to be the main thing to do. I felt that way in Daytona Beach and Melbourne since I was not into NASCAR and Space Travel.

We also would like to see our new city to have culture, such as museums (art, history, etc.) that are active by having their own events and showings, decent theater for plays, and opera performances. We wouldn't mind having aquariums, amusement parks, and water parks nearby. It would be nice if everything do not cost an arm and a leg.

We wouldn't mind attending professional games (football, preferably). I know Arkansas Razorbacks do come down to play the Gators every other year so driving out to Gainesville is something we could do.

We also enjoy walking/hiking trails at parks.

We prefer to live somewhere that is moderate to liberal in politics. Maybe living somewhere with less pine tress will help our allergies and sinusitis. We plan to rent first to get the feel of the area before buying a house in a good school district. We have twins on the way.

Any suggestions? We are thinking Clearwater in Pinellas County near Tampa. Some of our friends have been trying to convince us to live in Pensacola in the FL Panhandle but we feel that it is still too southern similar to Alabama and Arkansas.

Your main criteria in my opinion points toward St Petersburg, St Pete Beach, South Pasadena, Gulfport and Madeira Beach. Pinellas County is fairly liberal at the south end (though moderate overall) and gets progressively less so as you head north north through Clearwater, though there are exceptions in the more newly built northeast end around Palm Harbor/Oldsmar and East Lake. Your feelings regarding the panhandle are spot on and given what you're looking for, very much NOT a match.

[SciFiNerd1]

Originally Posted by MrJones17

Sarasota is my happy place, but that's because I'm a beach bum. Tampa/St. Petersburg were cities I was kind of disappointed in. I expected a bit more. Orlando is just Disney and boring.

Sarasota does sound appealing to us just like Clearwater.

Could you tell me in what ways you are disappointed with Tampa and St. Petersburg?

I’ve been to Orlando several times and have lived in Kissimmee/St. Cloud area once attending schools in Poinciana. Other than good shopping and restaurants, Orlando can get boring fast because the city is more focused on tourism and Disney World. Orlando also feels more humid due to the lack of sea breezes.

[SciFiNerd1]

Originally Posted by kyle19125

Your main criteria in my opinion points toward St Petersburg, St Pete Beach, South Pasadena, Gulfport and Madeira Beach. Pinellas County is fairly liberal at the south end (though moderate overall) and gets progressively less so as you head north north through Clearwater, though there are exceptions in the more newly built northeast end around Palm Harbor/Oldsmar and East Lake. Your feelings regarding the panhandle are spot on and given what you're looking for, very much NOT a match.

Thank you for your post. My wife and I are strongly leaning towards Tampa Bay over other parts of Florida.

Jacksonville seems not to have a lot going for it as the largest city in Florida. Duvall County overall is more conservative than we like.

Florida Panhandle and Orlando are definitely no for us.

Miami Metro sounds great for visiting but not to live and to raise a family. Miami and the Keys are more prone to hurricanes than other parts of Florida.

[Tominftl]

If you are a liberal Don’t even think about Naples or the Villages in central FL. Very republican red. You will be a minority.

[kyle19125]

[quote=SciFiNerd1;50619065]Thank you for your post. My wife and I are strongly leaning towards Tampa Bay over other parts of Florida. Jacksonville seems not to have a lot going for it as the largest city in Florida. Duvall County overall is more conservative than we like./QUOTE]

Actually much has changed about Jacksonville except for it's reputation, which is unfortunate. While true it's lacking in things to do versus other major metros in the state, one has to realize it's a city/county combined population minus the sprawling densely populated suburbs seen elsewhere in the state. Jacksonville's metro population is 1.6 million and Tampa Bay's is around 2.7 million which is obviously pretty significant. In terms of being "more conservative" that too is waning as Jacksonville's growth has taken off the past 10-12 years. In 2016 both Duval County (Jacksonville) and Pinellas County had nearly identical voting results, both giving Trump the edge by a point (48% to 47%) which reflects the overall state average. In 2012 Jacksonville favored Romney 52% to 47% over Obama, while Pinellas was about the reverse. Going back to 2008, McCain won Jacksonville/Duval by 1 percentage point. The point being here I wouldn't necessarily eliminate Jacksonville based on some skewed perceptions of what it is and what it has to offer, as it's not quite the picture that's been painted for you.

[TD*]

check out Tallahassee, we have hills, and a great city to live in. Lots of parks and greenways.