Cities that would fit my bill?

[popwar]

I would not consider anything north of TN to be mild in the winter time, its cold. Stay away from Nawlins as they seem to get the worst hurricanes in that area of the Gulf. The SE in general is not safe from natural disasters like AZ is , but inland is much less of an issue. Have you considered Arkansas? what about NC/SC?

[gabetx]

Originally Posted by iDontLikeSand

Hello good people of this new forum I found. I currently reside in Arizona but due to the horrid heat and rapidly increasing population + cost of everything I have decided that I wanna go back to my roots and head to the midwest. The question is, which of the many midwest cities would be the best to call home for me? Here is a more detailed listing of what I am looking for;

Climate - Overall pretty mild, yet varied enough to get all 4 seasons (emphasis on autumn) (minimal natural disasters preferred)

Location - Would prefer to be east of the Mississippi River

Population - I do not want to be in another rapidly-increasing city and I would prefer to have light traffic

Infastructure/Crime - I would prefer to be in a city where crime is not rampant and the buildings are in good shape (basically not St. Louis)

Politics - I'm not really political, but I found people who vote republican to be much more friendly than those who vote democrat

Geography - I don't really care about if a place is flat or not as long as the grass is green and there's at least some trees

Amenities - I want there to be plenty of fun stuff to do in the the city yet not so much that you see more out-of-state license plates than in-state (basically multiple Tennessee cities)

Surrounding area - I would like to be in a city with all sorts of charming suburbs and (at least sort of) nearby rural towns with low cost of living

Chattanooga and Knoxville are mild, moderately growing cities, with limited tourism, and have a lot to offer. Other cities that come to mind are Louisville, Greenville or Columbia, SC, Greensboro, NC, Roanoke, and even Birmingham, although it can be comparable to a mini St. Louis.

If you didn't want mind going west of the Mississippi, Tulsa is a gorgeous and overlooked city with a lot to offer and ticks every other box.

Overall, you have several options in the south eastern US.

[Adamson865]

Originally Posted by gabetx

Chattanooga and Knoxville are mild, moderately growing cities, with limited tourism, and have a lot to offer. Other cities that come to mind are Louisville, Greenville or Columbia, SC, Greensboro, NC, Roanoke, and even Birmingham, although it can be comparable to a mini St. Louis.

If you didn't want mind going west of the Mississippi, Tulsa is a gorgeous and overlooked city with a lot to offer and ticks every other box.

Overall, you have several options in the south eastern US.

I second the recommendation of Tulsa... and in the "and now for something completely different" department, I'll throw in El Paso. Great seasons, great scenery, low crime, and lots to do. Both are finalists in my "place to live post-retirement" competition.

(I know, I know, wrong side of the creek... sorry)

[sub]

If we’re recommending Tulsa, might as well throw Kansas City into the mix.
It has everything but sits west of the river and the storms get a little hairy once in a while, but that’s like just about anywhere in the east.
In the grand scheme of things, the lower midwest is still quite mild even though it gets some snow. It’s one of the better areas to experience each season.
I’m also thinking Cincinnati or Indianapolis.
St. Louis area overall is actually pretty good, but the city has problems to a greater extent than the others. A lot of it is that the city takes up a tiny portion of the metro in both physical size and population which makes it appear worse comparatively.

[NDFan]

Knoxville, Louisville, Winston-Salem, Charlotte (growing a lot but seems reasonably controlled IMO), Lexington KY (if you're ok with smaller)