Anyone from FBI transferring to Huntsville new "second HQ"? (Reston: best cities, how much)

[DonaldD]

Huntsville, AL has been deemed as the "future" second Headquarters for the FBI. 400 employees have already been transferred here and a total of 1400 will move this year. 4000 FBI employees/contractor will eventually move here as infrastructure is completed over the next few years.

Just curious if anyone in the FBI is transferring to Huntsville from D.C.?

About 12 years ago, I almost took a job in the D.C. area but instead took a job with MDA in Huntsville. I am so grateful I made this decision. It does not offer as much as a big city like D.C. but it does offer a lot for a small city.https://www.huntsvillescoop.com/thingstodo.html

Huntsville has the second largest research park and the fourth largest biotech park in the nation, along with NASA, Missile Defense Agency, Army Space and Rocket Command, Army Contracting Command, Army Test Helicopter Command and now we are the alternate site for the FBI, soon to grow to 4,000 personnel. We also have Facebook data center, two Toyota plants, Remington and Polaris plant here. It is a job mecca and great place to raise the family. Unemployment here is around 2.1 percent. Most importantly, traffic, taxes and cost of living is low. Huntsville schools are the best in Alabama with an average of 23.5 ACT test for students. We have the second lowest property tax in the nation with an average 4 bedroom 3 bath 2500 sqft brick house costing around $275 K.

[Bigfoot424]

The federal agency I just retired from has its mothership there for the section I worked for. I liked working in Huntsville and I don't exactly agree with the "traffic' comment. Getting out of my hotel and onto Redstone was always an adventure. Maybe the road construction has improved making it easier. We thought we were going to be moved to Huntsville from VA but as for now that's on the back burner. In reality I think it would have been a bad move considering the work we do and who we do it with. Huntsville just doesn't have the ability to mimic what we have here in VA. But I did enjoy working there and I was surprised at how pretty some of the country was around the area.

[NOVA_guy]

I had to go to a conference in Huntsville last summer. It’s a very nice area, it kind of feels like its own city, it doesn’t really feel like you’re in Alabama.

[Ffxdata]

We looked at a move to Huntsville a few years back. I was impressed by the city (and how much house we would be able to buy there vs here). I expected crap schools and racism, but it’s actually a pretty progressive city that has good schools and a very educated population because of industry. There’s no way on earth I’d move there right now though with the state politics situation. They really aren’t doing themselves any favors trying to appeal to young educated families.

[ToyVW55]

I've gained a few employees who got transferred to Huntsville but wanted out. They were mainly of the younger demographic. No real complaints and it was certainly deemed "nice enough" in the surrounding area but didn't afford the social, cultural things to do that this area offers.

[The Dissenter]

I ended up leaving NoVA in 2010 because my family had been a part of one of these federal reorganizations. I totally get why many would not cotton having to leave this area to go anywhere else, let alone an unknown spot like Huntsville (or in my case Louisville.)

I’ve heard nothing but positives about Huntsville and think it is quietly one of the best cities in the South. That said, the limits of being in a state like Alabama (or again in my case Kentucky) will be obvious and will always hold the city back.

[DonaldD]

Originally Posted by Bigfoot424

The federal agency I just retired from has its mothership there for the section I worked for. I liked working in Huntsville and I don't exactly agree with the "traffic' comment. Getting out of my hotel and onto Redstone was always an adventure. Maybe the road construction has improved making it easier. We thought we were going to be moved to Huntsville from VA but as for now that's on the back burner. In reality I think it would have been a bad move considering the work we do and who we do it with. Huntsville just doesn't have the ability to mimic what we have here in VA. But I did enjoy working there and I was surprised at how pretty some of the country was around the area.

They fixed the Redstone gate 9. Traffic has really improved getting on Restone. The rest of the city has virtual a little traffic.

[Bigfoot424]

Originally Posted by DonaldD

They fixed the Redstone gate 9. Traffic has really improved getting on Restone. The rest of the city has virtual a little traffic.

That's good to hear. Just getting out of the hotel was a near death experience every morning.