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Hello Peeps,
I will likely be moving my family to the suburbs of South Charlotte area mid-2018 (looking at Waxhaw, Matthews maybe even SC / Fort Mill) . I currently live in Orange County, CA.
The thing that worries me the most, is getting used to the lack of businesses and road structure there. I've been there a few times for work and it just struck me the last time I was there, that if i wanted to "go grab a bite" or "go pick something up from the store". I could be in for a 10 - 15 minute drive to the nearest place.
Regarding the road structures there... It seems that if you're not in the city, there aren't "multiple ways" to get to where you want to go. If you want to go to Place A, you basically have 1 good route there. Any alternative route is well out of the way and takes a ton of time.
So being from Orange County, where we live on a grid system and if 1 street is busy, I can take another street. Also, I am used to having 5 -10 places to eat or shop within 1 mile of my house.
So for those who have transplanted from places like mine: My question is... do you get used to it? Do you get used having far fewer options when you go out?
Everything else about NC appeals to me except this one thing.
We relocated from South OC and didn't move as far out in Charlotte because we like having amenities nearby. We stayed within 51 due to the shopping options, 20 minute commute to work, and access to city amenities. Further out in Waxhaw, etc... you'll have subdivisions off a country road and have to drive down those roads to a shopping center. It reminded me more of the Inland Empire than OC so I made the decision to stay within 51. We lived here for a year though and rented and spent time in different areas.
Everybody has their preferences. Many transplants love the brand new subdivisions further out where you can get a new house that has never been lived in and the school system is smaller. There are also more transplants in some of those neighborhoods so it is more comforting to people from out of state since you meet other non-locals. I personally liked moving into an established neighborhood where my neighbors could plug me into different social networks.
What area were you mainly in when you visited for work? Uptown?
My office is in Ballantyne. So that's where I spent most of my time. Ballantyne itself wasn't all to horrible but still pretty spread out. I might have to be open to other locations a bit more established, b/c I don't think I could deal with an area quite that sparse.
Having to drive 10 minutes to get to a "place" isn't the worst thing in the world. God knows we have a Harris Teeter and Target every other block around here.
Yeah, you get used to it. I grew up in a small city in PA, and moved to...Fayetteville! or Fatevulle according to some.
It can get quite hot and humid in PA during the summer, but NC beats that. They have chiggers. Grits aren't an option. In case you don't know, grits is sometimes a two syllable word. They have both kinds of BBQ.
Grid pattern roads are for larger and busier places.
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