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I thought I had found the perfect new place to live...a great little vacation town in Michigan called Saugatuck. I unfortunately discovered on my trip there this past week however that it is not likely to be a good fit for my small business start-up that I had been planning.
I'm looking for the following:
a small town or small city with a vacation destination history.
a heavy presence of lake houses/B&Bs
a funky, somewhat diverse vibe
in the same vein, a town that embraces diverse/quality food establishments
a low cost of living (especially commercial rent/home prices)
someplace east of the Mississippi and more northern (not into hot/humid)
Thanks, I'd appreciate any information you might come up with. Starting up the search process again is kind of frustrating, but unfortunately necessary.
I thought I had found the perfect new place to live...a great little vacation town in Michigan called Saugatuck. I unfortunately discovered on my trip there this past week however that it is not likely to be a good fit for my small business start-up that I had been planning.
I'm looking for the following:
a small town or small city with a vacation destination history.
a heavy presence of lake houses/B&Bs
a funky, somewhat diverse vibe
in the same vein, a town that embraces diverse/quality food establishments
a low cost of living (especially commercial rent/home prices)
someplace east of the Mississippi and more northern (not into hot/humid)
Thanks, I'd appreciate any information you might come up with. Starting up the search process again is kind of frustrating, but unfortunately necessary.
Maybe places in NY like: Oswego, Sackets Harbor, Alexandria Bay, Geneva, Canandaigua, Watkins Glen, Ithaca, Sylvan Beach, Plattsburgh, the Tri-Lakes area(Saranac Lake, Tupper Lake and Lake Placid) and the Fredonia/Dunkirk area.
Well you don't have to look too far from Saugatuck, also look into these popular tourist spots in Michigan: Traverse City, Michigan Marquette, Michigan Muskegon, Michigan ( mainly known by me due to Michigan Adventures Amusement Park... many tourist)
Mackinac Island is also a very popular spot in Michigan ( won't be able to start a buisness on the island, but maybe some city near the coast.... not sure which city many tourist travel back and fourth often, I think it's St Ignace)
Michigan Adventures ( in Muskegon):Michigan's Adventure Amusement Park
Mackinaw Island ( fairy boat travel back and fourth from St Ignace, many who can not afford things on Mackinac Island such as meals travel to St Ignace...well that's what I was told ): http://www.mackinacisland.org/
Traverse City ( will give extra links, doesn't really have a definite attraction like Mackinaw Island/ St Ignace area and Muskegon, heard TC is popular with making wine ): http://www.visittraversecity.com/http://www.downtowntc.com/http://www.traversecityfilmfest.org/
Marquette ( does have two public universities, Northern Michigan University and Michigan Tech): http://www.marquette.org/
I would suggest you to look at these areas in Michigan, think they could offer a lot
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These are ones I'm not too sure about: Duluth, Minnesota Green Bay, Wisconsin Holland, Michigan ( Tulip festival) http://holland.org/
Last edited by timeofseasons; 08-10-2009 at 05:10 PM..
Maybe places in NY like: Oswego, Sackets Harbor, Alexandria Bay, Geneva, Canandaigua, Watkins Glen, Ithaca, Sylvan Beach, Plattsburgh, the Tri-Lakes area(Saranac Lake, Tupper Lake and Lake Placid) and the Fredonia/Dunkirk area.
Forgot about Penn Yan, Lake George, Union Springs, Aurora, Hammondsport, Liverpool, Skaneateles, Cooperstown and Old Forge.
Forgot about Penn Yan, Lake George, Union Springs, Aurora, Hammondsport, Liverpool, Skaneateles, Cooperstown and Old Forge.
Why not Penn Yan? It is a cute little town on the finger lakes. I know it is a little far out there from Rochester or Syracuse, but I always thought it was nice
Add Glens falls and Saratoga springs to your recommended list
Why not Penn Yan? It is a cute little town on the finger lakes. I know it is a little far out there from Rochester or Syracuse, but I always thought it was nice
Add Glens falls and Saratoga springs to your recommended list
I agree and I thought about Saratoga Springs with Saratoga Lake being close by. Heck, what about Irondequoit on Lake Ontario by Rochester? Maybe even some towns south of Buffalo on Lake Erie like Angola too.
Interesting places people recommend. My thoughts...Sackets Harbor is beautiful but homes are pricey and taxes are way high. Canandaguia is pretty, on the lake, homes are affordable, relatively speaking, but nightlife is nonexistant and restaurants are pitiful. I would recommend Burlington VT, Middlebury VT (love it there, pretty college town), Saratoga Springs NY. Lake George (for me) is just too commercial and tacky. Lake Placid in NY is very pretty but very expensive. Old Forge is ok but pretty quiet in the winter. Oswego gets wicked snow in the winter. Alexandria Bay is just plain tacky. Ithaca is really nice and a little further south in NY state. Penn Yan is pretty far from everything, has a very big Amish influence. Hammondsport is really nice, pretty and quaint. Another place to look into is Clinton, outside of Utica. No lake there but very picturesque and affordable and nice people. Again though, winters can be long and gray. Good luck.
I thought I had found the perfect new place to live...a great little vacation town in Michigan called Saugatuck. I unfortunately discovered on my trip there this past week however that it is not likely to be a good fit for my small business start-up that I had been planning.
You should have kept going up the lake shore further. Saugatuck is mostly artistic and not really the things you describe. Sounds more like Holland, or Grand Haven. While Ludington has been a tourist destination for well over 100 years it really doesn't have the "funky vibe" you are looking for. Maybe even some further North in the Leelanau Peninsula would fit. Traverse City is larger and has a good amount of tourists every year, plus it is a bit more trendier than a lot of the smaller places. "Different" business get along better there than some of the smaller mostly tourist based towns. Remember that while tourists may make up a good portion of the business you are targeting, they are only there a few short months, you need a local customer base to survive the "off-season" and TC would have a larger population to draw from. They are also one of the more diverse places on this side of Lake Michigan for types of restaurants (which really isn't saying a lot) so people there are used to going out for something different.
Forget Burlington, VT! I live near Boston, and my research on Burlington in the past 10 years shows expensive apartments, and few basic condos under 125k (plenty of basic condos within 40 miles of Boston under 125k, believe it or not)/
Plus, I heard from someone several years ago that Burl. doesn't have a big B&B scene (seems that tourists don't want a city if in Vermont).
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