Former Native Tennessean thinking of moving back (Knoxville, Jackson: unemployment, neighborhoods)

[sliverbox]

Hi there my fellow Tennesseans,
I was born and raised in Knoxville and spent a lot of time in Nashville. I currently live in CA and have been wanting to get out for years. I have been seriously looking at Austin but seeing the cost of housing there sort of has me concerned. But- there's more jobs there in my field.

I had a few questions. First of all, have all the older neighborhoods been yuppified and overpriced yet? Secondly, how is the local economy there? Lastly, its been a few years since I was back there. Any general comments about it? Is it turning into another transplant city or can you still hear lots of Southern accents like mine?

Thanks!

[alleycat]

A few neighborhoods have been "yuppified" (I'm thinking primarily of Sylvan Park), but I think most of the improvements in the older neighborhoods is on the positive side, for both the people moving there and for the people who have lived there for years. I think the worst thing about yuppification anywhere is when people living in a certain neighborhoods are pushed out merely because the cost of living has risen in the area; that doesn't seem to be that big of a problem here at the moment.

The fact that East Nashville is once again becoming a desirable place to live is really a big plus. Yes, some of it is due to the "yuppie factor" (and having the Titans stadium built on that side of the river), but another part is due to people once once wanting to live closer in to downtown. One of the big negatives that has occurred in the past few years is what has happened to the Antioch area; we typically have to warn newcomers away from that area for now.

The economy here is okay (I'd give it a C+ grade, maybe)--relatively speaking, considering the national economy. Unemployment is the highest it's been in about 25 years, but at least it's staying in the single digits. Certain segments of the Nashville economy aren't doing so badly, while other segments are depressed. Getting a job can be hard unless you have certain skills, or have a contact within the field you work in, or happen to work in one of those industries that hasn't been affected too much by the overall economy.

The influx of new people hasn't significantly changed Nashville from being an upper southern cities (I never did think of Nashville as a deep south city such as Jackson or Birmingham). Probably the biggest change you'll notice if you haven't been here in a while is the growth in the Hispanic population.

So, overall, there have been some good things to occur in the Nashville area, and a few that aren't so good. I don't think you would notice such a major difference in the people themselves.