Twenty-Something Scene in Jackson? (Brandon, Madison: transplants, 2013, crime)

[aceeme09]

I am a single female in her late twenties who is considering relocating to Jackson for a new position. I am not from MS and I have only lived in metro areas of Texas up until now (mostly Houston and Austin). I consider myself a liberal, progressive individual and one thing that I've really enjoyed about the places that I've lived up until now were how culturally and ethnically diverse they were.

I'm having some major uncertainties about moving to Jackson- almost everything I've read seems to be that Jackson is still a very conservative area that is still somewhat racially divided. I've also been searching for ways to get involved in the community if I were to move to Jackson (some sort of outdoorsy meetup for young adults or a progressive church with a large 20-something singles scene) and still seem to be coming up short. Everything I read makes it sounds like unless I'm a student or I'm married, I'm going to have a hard time fitting in.

Have I just been overlooking options or would Jackson probably not be the city for me? Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks!

[madison2013]

It's conservative (with the exception of the Fondren area). It's not a college town like Austin. It's higher crime than Austin. It's night life is pretty non-existent and most people have escaped to Madison or Brandon areas in the suburbs.

I would advise you to travel to the area to check it out for yourself.

If you want anything more specific just PM me.

[aceeme09]

Thanks for the info, madison2013! Austin is far from a college town now and has grown into a city with a lot of young professionals who work for tech companies. The city has a lot of transplants from outside of Texas too (largely CA). That's one thing that makes me weary of Jackson, considering the fact that it seems like most people in Jackson are not single, young professionals or are not transplants from other states. I'm not sure how I would fare in the city if there are not a lot of individuals who I can connect with.

Nightlife is not necessarily a requirement for me at this stage of my life, but I would feel better if I knew that there were a lot of cultural options to meet other young professionals like myself. Also, why have so many people retreated to suburbs? Are there a lot of cultural resources in Brandon or Madison or are most people retreating to those areas just to start a family?

[madison2013]

Compared to Jackson, Austin IS a college town. And cultural??? No. People have moved to the suburbs for low taxes, good public schools and to start families. We moved to Madison to start a family and because it's crime free.

[aceeme09]

Thanks, madison2013. The info that you've provided about cultural opportunities and crime in Jackson is really helpful.

[golden eagles fan]

Madison is not crime-free.

[madison2013]

Originally Posted by golden eagles fan

Madison is not crime-free.

Compared to Jackson it is.

[golden eagles fan]

You may have less crime, but definitely not crime-free.

[madison2013]

Originally Posted by golden eagles fan

You may have less crime, but definitely not crime-free.

Compared to Jackson it is.

[zblanton1]

Originally Posted by madison2013

Compared to Jackson it is.

I have you know that the Madison Police Department keeps a record of crime on a daily basis for the city and in the last couple of weeks there have around 3-4 auto burglaries in the city of Madison. Yes, citizens of Madison do do drugs and that is recorded as well! There's crime in Madison, but it just doesn't get reported and blown out of proportion like the crime in Jackson is.