Progressive colege towns in KY? (Lexington, Louisville: home, law school, university) - Kentucky - City-Data Forum

Micah Girl · 09-13-2006, 05:01 PM

We live in expensive Massachusetts and have a fantasy of moving south to a progressive college town. We are looking to find out what it's really like to live in KY

, how expensive it is, and what the quality of life is.

Thanks for any help!

JWPhillips072283 · 09-14-2006, 05:16 PM

I have lived in the Louisville area all of my life. I love it here and think it is a great place to live. I have a more southern personality but Louisville in itself is a mixture of southern and northern traditions and personalitys. It is a very diverse city, we celebrate a lot there is almost always something to do. Lots of art festivals etc.. We have great restraunts, shopping and parks and it is SO beautiful here! You said you were looking to continue in college so you might be looking more Dowtntown for housing near U of L. I have always lived in Oldham county (30 min. from downtown) and East Jefferson County (15-20min from downtown) these areas have more shopping and are more suburb than city and I feel are safer, nicer places to live. If you have any more questions feel free to e-mail me.

KyLake · 09-14-2006, 07:16 PM

I live in Western Kentucky near Kentucky Lake so we're blessed with several college towns. Western Kentucky is in Bowling Green, Murray State University in Murray and Paducah has a community college which includes an engineering school and most recently a law school. Murray State is rated nationally very high for education gained versus money spent on education. These are small towns with a lot of southern hospitality. Also, Paducah has added a multi-million dollar Performing Arts center. I think this is a great area to live. Life is a slower pace though! Let me know if you have further questions about this area.

Micah Girl · 09-14-2006, 10:06 PM

I have actually briefly visited Bowling Green and Louisville and thought they were both nice towns. I have never been to Lexington. Louisville seemed like it had lots of traffic, though. I am drawn to college towns because of the cultural opportunities and am playing with the idea of getting a doctorate somewhere down the road. We are also raising a family and like places with lots of interesting things to do and learn for our kids.

vmatc72 · 09-25-2006, 07:45 PM

I would suggest looking at both Georgetown and Danville. Georgetown is home to Georgetown College which is not only rich in history but continues to enjoy an excellent national reputation. Danville is home to Centre College. Danville is more sophistacated and has exceptional access to the arts through Centre. I would stongly advise visiting the web sites for both Georgetown College and Centre College.

Micah Girl · 09-26-2006, 04:38 PM

I am so excited about KY as a possibility. Thanks for all the input. I am open to more ideas--the more I research KY, the more I like it.

Ellie's Dad · 10-18-2006, 01:22 PM

I went to school in Berea, which is about an hour south of Lexington...It's diverse and progressive, and the atmosphere is unbelieveable. It's also cheaper to live in than Danville or Georgetown. Check out their website, and also the town's website. I plan on retiring there myself, when my job allows me to get back there. Take care!

Micah Girl · 10-19-2006, 06:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ellie's Dad

I went to school in Berea, which is about an hour south of Lexington...It's diverse and progressive, and the atmosphere is unbelieveable. It's also cheaper to live in than Danville or Georgetown. Check out their website, and also the town's website. I plan on retiring there myself, when my job allows me to get back there. Take care!

I've looked at Berea and the school seems like an amazing place. I wish there were doctoral programs in that town. But Berea seems like a lovely town.

ymbk · 10-20-2006, 01:10 PM

It's hard to compare expenses from area to area. Dollar for dollar, yes, it's cheaper, but you have to take other factors into consideration. Our household income is about half here what it was before, so the fact that expenses are about 40% less really doesn't mean it's "cheap" to live here. I think that's the mistake a lot of people make - they visit here and see prices are "cheap" but they are calculating without adjusting.

Take a look at Lexington, especially if you want to pursue a doctorate. There are lots of family actiivties, some interesting magnet schools (including a Japanese language and math school that a friend of ours swears is the best thing that ever happened to her kids), and the college keeps it vital. it's becoming a really intersting town and might well be "the place to be" in the midwest in the next few years.

Berea is a cool, interesting town, but very small and the surrounding area is not as open minded as the town itself.

Danville is home to Centre college, but IMO it is a town with a college and not a college town. Sometimes the feeling you can get there is like being in a room with feuding in-laws. Besides, no PhD program at Centre.

Louisville is Lexington's more sophisticated big sister, and I know a lot of people who like it. Personally I've never cared for it. It seems to be either grungy or elite and not much in between.

I hear good things about Murray, but am not familiar enough with it to comment.

Micah Girl · 10-20-2006, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ymbk

It's hard to compare expenses from area to area. Dollar for dollar, yes, it's cheaper, but you have to take other factors into consideration. Our household income is about half here what it was before, so the fact that expenses are about 40% less really doesn't mean it's "cheap" to live here. I think that's the mistake a lot of people make - they visit here and see prices are "cheap" but they are calculating without adjusting.

Take a look at Lexington, especially if you want to pursue a doctorate. There are lots of family actiivties, some interesting magnet schools (including a Japanese language and math school that a friend of ours swears is the best thing that ever happened to her kids), and the college keeps it vital. it's becoming a really intersting town and might well be "the place to be" in the midwest in the next few years.

Berea is a cool, interesting town, but very small and the surrounding area is not as open minded as the town itself.

Danville is home to Centre college, but IMO it is a town with a college and not a college town. Sometimes the feeling you can get there is like being in a room with feuding in-laws. Besides, no PhD program at Centre.

Louisville is Lexington's more sophisticated big sister, and I know a lot of people who like it. Personally I've never cared for it. It seems to be either grungy or elite and not much in between.

I hear good things about Murray, but am not familiar enough with it to comment.

I've heard much positive about Lexington and really need to visit. My DH is looking for a small town feel, but we want all the advantages of a city without all the drawbacks...

Such a picky family.