Why I don't like Mississippi (Union, Golden: plantation, move, wealthy)

[Beach Ball]

Originally Posted by MrBeluksee

The coast of MS is wonderful, and you will probably love it here! You must understand, where I come from, you could practically eat off the streets, it is cleaner than most places...so I am somewhat jaded...and more particular than most. I'm sure you will find it acceptable here...I do...I just overlook the things I find objectionable, as I would anywhere...no place is perfect.

Thank you for that positive comment. I was beginning to question my sanity moving. Do you (or any others) feel that the Gulf Coast region is further along with respect to education, culture, i.e. than the rest of Mississippi?

[mississippimagnolia]

Thank you for that positive comment. I was beginning to question my sanity moving. Do you (or any others) feel that the Gulf Coast region is further along with respect to education, culture, i.e. than the rest of Mississippi?

I would consider private schools.

[jhadorn]

Originally Posted by Beach Ball

Thank you for that positive comment. I was beginning to question my sanity moving. Do you (or any others) feel that the Gulf Coast region is further along with respect to education, culture, i.e. than the rest of Mississippi?

My wife and I are in the process of relocating to Ocean Springs, and have explorered the area. One thing I can tell you is that since Hurricane Katrina, many of the homes, businesses, and sights that made up the charm and culture of the area are gone. It appears to be headed in a different direction now, with money being the determining factor in what is being built to replace the old homes that used to be along the coast. They are being replaced by New Orleans style architecture and condos, from what we can tell.

The Gulf Coast, being a metro area of about 400,000 people, has more entertainment options than most of Mississippi, Jackson excluded. The coast seems to have more activities for younger people than most of Mississippi as well, such as skateboarding, big name rock concerts, etc.

Not sure about education as the schools aren't a factor for us. We'll have an empty nest.

[Beach Ball]

Originally Posted by mississippimagnolia

I would consider private schools.

Any recommendations? Looking at elementary Catholic and then hs Catholic. I have seen schools in Bay St. Louis, D'Iberville, Long Beach, Gulfport, Ocean Springs and Biloxi. BSL and the coastal towns seem to be charming online. I wondered if it was safer as far as hurricanes go in the Gulfport Lyman area or D'Iberville, especially if you need insurance renters or homeowners. Any input is appreciated.

[Beach Ball]

Originally Posted by jhadorn

My wife and I are in the process of relocating to Ocean Springs, and have explorered the area. One thing I can tell you is that since Hurricane Katrina, many of the homes, businesses, and sights that made up the charm and culture of the area are gone. It appears to be headed in a different direction now, with money being the determining factor in what is being built to replace the old homes that used to be along the coast. They are being replaced by New Orleans style architecture and condos, from what we can tell.

The Gulf Coast, being a metro area of about 400,000 people, has more entertainment options than most of Mississippi, Jackson excluded. The coast seems to have more activities for younger people than most of Mississippi as well, such as skateboarding, big name rock concerts, etc.

Not sure about education as the schools aren't a factor for us. We'll have an empty nest.

What did you think of the area? Beautiful? Charming? Or is it as bad as some of these posts read?

[brickpatio]

Beach Ball, I would suggest that you not take some of these postings too literally. These forums are a magnet for opinions of all varieties. For charm, downtown Ocean Springs is gorgeous. The main street has several blocks of trendy restaurants and shops. Huge Live Oaks drape over the streets lined with quaint cottages. A charming beach is just blocks away. The newer neighborhoods and subdivisions dotted around Ocean Springs are comfortable middle class and some upper middle class areas.

Gulfport has some of the wealthier neighborhoods and some of the lower income areas on the Coast. It's a bit of a mix. North of I-10 is entirely suburban. The nicest neighborhood is called Florence Gardens. If that's too expensive, next is a neighborhood called Tradition which is next to the Catholic high school. D'Iberville in the city proper south of I10 is a working class area.

Pass Christian is lined with historic mansions. There are a couple of streets inland that run parallel to the beach with nice homes and beyond that it's not heavily developed. Along the entire coast, for the most part the homes north of the railroad tracks, i.e. about 2 streets inland from the beach, were not destroyed in Katrina.

Bay St. Louis is extremely charming with a beautiful setting. They lost many homes along the beach and the bay, but right around the high school are some contemporary subdivisions. Neighboring Diamondhead, which lies mostly north of I10 has a higher elevation. This is very nice golf course community of about 8,000 people. Long Beach is very quiet and nice. Most of the homes inland from the beach are middle class and working class. Overall very safe, quiet, and pleasant.

Biloxi has casinos, condos, and a huge military base. There are some nice new neighborhoods just south of the Back Bay of Biloxi where Gulfport and Biloxi meet.

Regarding the rest of MS, there are many wealthy and charming communities across the state, from the Coast to Hattiesburg to Jackson, Oxford, Tupelo, Desoto County and in between. The state is overwhelmingly a mixture of woodlands, gently rolling hills, farms, small rivers and lakes.

[jhadorn]

Originally Posted by Beach Ball

What did you think of the area? Beautiful? Charming? Or is it as bad as some of these posts read?

I think Brickpatio got it right. We chose Ocean Springs because of the downtown area, and overall feel of the place. It just seemed to be the nicest area, it's close to Biloxi, and has easy access to I-10.

We think the coast is nice, even though it was hit hard by Katrina, it's no dump. Not as bad as some say, IMO.

[Beach Ball]

Brickpatio - very, informative. This will enable us to have a little background when searching the communities and this is helpful to say the least. I have one question, "how do you know so much about not just one region, but the entire state?"

Thank you again.

[Beach Ball]

Jhadorn - thanks. When you get settled in and know the area perhaps you can recommend some good "downhome" restaurants. Also, you may be able to provide insight regarding the homeowners and renters insurance.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by MrBeluksee

Coming from WI I find it equally shocking. Its one of the things I hate about MS...very dirty and unkempt. I think its a cultural thing; from our part of the world, there are a lot of Poles, Germans, Norwegians and Swedish immigrants. They reign from countries that are typically clean, neat and orderly. Also, it may have to do with the fact that MS is mostly rural, or just plain laziness. MN and WI are more populated, so our laws are more enforced and stringent. For example, in MS they park in both directions on the streets, so sometimes you have to wonder if you are going down a one way or not. That would never fly in Minneapolis or Milwaukee. Also, they don't really know what driveways are used for either. Here on the coast, however, litter laws are becoming much more stringent, and the problem is reported on the news regularly. Due to the high tourist traffic here, I hope, for everyone's sake, it improves and the new laws are strictly enforced.

Mind if I chime in?

I think part of it has to do with politics and partly what people are used to. My father is also from Wisconsin(Milwaukee specifically) and now we live in Georgia(suburbs of Atlanta). He notices a big difference. He noticed it big time in early January during a snowstorm. The city of Atlanta pretty much shut down because no one could handle the snow. The "let it melt" mentality, I think it comes from not wanting to spend the money. My father thought, "why not just prepare enough money in the budget for snow removal for a week, or call in salt trucks from Ohio to come in for a day". I don't think this is just a Mississippi thing. This happens in many parts of the South. Politics are different in the South than in the upper Midwest. Mississippi, in particular, I feel that the politics there is mainly due to its own history. You have a traditionalist political culture where paternalism, and "good old boy" politics are common. You historically had a situation where the majority of political power rested in the hands of the land owners. It is interesting to note that in 1860, around 3 percent of the population literally owned 55 percent of the population. Slaves were considered property, therefore counted as "wealth". Most of the land was owned by about tiny part of the population. Most White people were too poor to own much land, and slaves couldn't own any. This leaves the lion's share of wealth and political activity concentrated in a tiny portion of the population.

In the suburb I live in, I see alot of litter in many places. I have even seen used diapers in the street near my apartment complex. I don't have a car, so I walk to church alot. I have found alot of beer bottles lying on the ground. I asked someone about it, who is into GIS. His answer was this: "It comes from a 'no one is going to tell me I can't litter' mentality, probably fostered from a 'rebel' mentality". His specialty is roads and he has seen things such as bullet holes in highway signs. Some of it is hit or miss though. In some of the upper-income suburbs(Roswell, Alpharetta,East Cobb,etc) there is hardly any litter on the streets.