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Cameron Village is an area of "downtown" Raleigh (if we define downtown as being within the confines of the I-440 Beltline highway, or within urban streets of the downtown core).
It started in the '50's as one of the nation's first suburban streetscape malls. It is surrounded by residential and a very small amount of office space. The residential ranges from postwar "apartments" turned condo, to early/mid-20th century bungalows, to modern mid-rise apartments (< 2 years old), to the larger "family homes" of old Cameron Park (1920-1940).
If it matters, the two zip codes that apply are 27607 and 27605. On a map, it's roughly the area between the Raleigh Little Theater to the west, Hillsborough St to the south, Wade Ave to the north, and St Mary's St Broughton High School to the east.
It is certainly progressive/liberal in its political center.
I'm not saying that Dallas isn't great — didn't mean to imply that at all, but I think Texas is very similar to North Carolina in many ways. Many of the urban centers in North Carolina are fairly progressive politically (which is what I think when I hear the word "progressive" — not sure if that's what you meant or not), some areas are exceptionally so (Chapel Hill, Durham, Asheville). But it's a red state. Texas elected officials at the state level are very red and NC elected officials at the state level are very red, too. I know there are some progressives in Texas and the pendulum swings there, too, just like it does here, but the folks who are in power now in both states are cut from the same red cloth.
NOOOOO, there are NO progressive areas between Raleigh and the coast. Are there progressive areas in the boonies of Texas? Cause that's what's between Raleigh and the coast and lots and lots of hog farms. Wilmington is pretty okay, but it's a laid back coastal city, so I don't know if it's got the vibrancy you're looking for.
My vote would be for the Triangle. Chapel Hill and Durham are the most politically progressive areas of the Triangle, not Raleigh, although it's bigger. You can easily look this info up by looking at county-wide election results for national and state elections.
Chapel Hill was recently named one of the top ten most educated places in the country. Copell was number 81. It was the first place in Texas that made the overall list. Carrboro (sister town to Chapel Hill came in at number 42 overall and Cary came in at number 85. The Woodlands, TX came in at number 97.) For bigger cities, Plano came in at number 7, but it did not crack the top 100 overall. Durham came in number 11. Raleigh came in number 14. Austin came in at number 18. More similarities between the two states. Check the link for more details.
Charlotte likes big buildings so if that's important to you, you might want to check that out. There's a lot of building going on in the Triangle, too, though. Our area most often gets compared to Austin, but it's just for the jobs, and the universities. Nothing like that Texas flava, or that amazing music scene here although ours is good, just not on a par with Austin, Nashville, LA, NYC, etc.
Charlotte has a light rail system. Chapel Hill and Durham are pushing hard for one to connect the two towns. Raleigh has been dragging its feet. Chapel Hill has a completely free public bus system that's very popular and goes all around Chapel Hill and Carrboro. Durham and Raleigh have free connector buses in their downtowns.
I don't think Cameron Village is as modern or progressive as some areas, but it's worth a look and see if it appeals to you. It's a very nice area.
Oh, and tons and tons of transplants in the Triangle area. I'm sure it's about the same number as anywhere in Texas. It's consistently on all those lists from Forbes, et al, about best places to live along with Austin and Dallas, etc. Texas and NC have both been seeing huge numbers of transplants in recent decades. I blame it on air conditioning and lack of unions.
It's hot here, too, unless you go to the mountains. The coast is often slightly cooler than the middle of the state, but still hot. It's not Texas hot for long (we'll hit the 100s a couple of times a summer, not weeks at a time). Outside of the mountains, I'd expect temps in the summer to be in the 90s and then if you get a day in the high 80s it feels great. Mostly I'd expect about 90-95 and high humidity.
As for modern architecture, the DPAC in Durham is really nice and there's a lot of building going on elsewhere in Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, too. The American Tobacco Campus adjacent to the DPAC is a fantastic repurposing of the old American Tobacco factory. All the cities in NC are much smaller than Dallas, though, so even Charlotte doesn't have the skyscrapers that Dallas has.
North Carolina is not a very prideful place. There's no "Don't Mess With North Carolina" vibe. By contrast there's a possibly apocryphal state legend of one dignitary referring to North Carolina as "a vale of humility between two mountains of conceit " (Virginia and South Carolina).
PoppyDog...and everyone else! Thanks so much for your input!
I can now hear the strong Carolinian Pride coming through! Thank You...Thank You! I was getting worried!
The wife & I are a bit sad about being 2 hours from the coast (not that 2 hours is a long drive for us... LOL) but we are being honest with ourselves about the type of "local vibe" that will make us happy! Thanks to all of you, we will narrow our focus to the Triangle area! This is a wonderful resource and we will continue reading new and updated posts!!
Come on up and check it out in person and see what you think. Wilmington is worth looking at if you're jonesing for the ocean. I think it's a pretty nice place, but not sure if it's what you're looking for or not. It's got a pretty mellow vibe, but downtown Wilmington has some nice history and a fun riverwalk. It's worth taking a look at.
Frankly there's just not much at all between Raleigh and Wilmington.
Greenville seems like it would be close to the ocean, but when you map it out, it's just not really.
To OP--you still have not answered the previous question about whether you have actually ever been to NC before? How can you know this is the place for you if you haven't seen it?
I also agree with posting on the Coastal NC forumif you "need" to be near the beach. Raleigh is not considered "near the beach".
I strongly suggest taking a vacation to the NC coast and checking out some places first-hand--you can only learn so much on the Internet.
Another thing--you haven't said anything about work (whether you'll need a job, etc)? That is a huge factor i where to relocate, in any state.
Remember, the more detailed info you can provide, the more people can help. Saying "where should we move to?" is not considered a lot of detail
By retirement, in our family, I mean disability income unfortunately. Is $1200-$1800 a month enough income for an older couple to rent/live comfortably in the Raleigh area? Would Wilmington be better?
By retirement, in our family, I mean disability income unfortunately. Is $1200-$1800 a month enough income for an older couple to rent/live comfortably in the Raleigh area? Would Wilmington be better?
Is the $1,200 to $1,800 per month just for rent, or for rent and living expenses?
There is no town I would live in between the greater RTP and the coast including the Sand Hills.
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