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@WRnative I just checked out Chagrin Falls real estate, and it's very lovely. Very pricey but some homes are within budget and right up my alley. Good suggestion! Looks like it's pretty cold there though.
Nevertheless, I mean to say that this is precisely what I'm looking for.
@WRnative I just checked out Chagrin Falls real estate, and it's very lovely. Very pricey but some homes are within budget and right up my alley. Good suggestion! Looks like it's pretty cold there though.
Nevertheless, I mean to say that this is precisely what I'm looking for.
Use this website to compare weather in different MSAs. E.g., there isn't much difference, especially in the summer, between cloudiness in Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati, a bum rap often applied against Cleveland compared to these other two cities. And a major reason that Cleveland is cloudier is its presence in the Lake Erie micro climate. That climate does bring more snow in the winter in the form of lake effect snow, but it also moderates autumns and creates one of the most glorious seasons in Ohio, and it lengthens the growing season. As lake effect rain also occurs, the presence of Lake Erie also lessens the need for landscape watering in the summer. And shortages of water are never an issue for communities that draw their water from Lake Erie.
You can check out individual months in the right column.
It's also foreign to many persons who haven't experienced a winter season, but Cleveland actually has winter festivals. There also is a decided indoor activity season, such as at the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Cleveland Orchestra (especially holiday season concerts), and at PlayhouseSquare and other theaters. Many Clevelanders (Olympic gold medalist Red Gerard began his snowboard journey on a Greater Cleveland slope) greatly enjoy outdoor winter activities, as Cleveland has small downhill skiing and tubing slopes, many cross country skiing and sledding areas, and outdoor ice skating opportunities. And the holiday season is greatly enhanced by some snow!
This festival kicks off the summer in Chagrin Falls, and summer ends on Labor Day weekend 15 miles away in Burton, OH, at the Great Geauga County Fair, one of the state's best county fairs, certainly enhanced by Geauga County's large Amish population. Also marking the end of summer is the excellent Cleveland National Air Show, 26 miles away at Burke Lakefront Airport.
Chagrin Falls is 12 miles from the Alpine Valley ski area; 17 miles from Holden Arboretum, one of the best in the U.S., with natural areas that are designated a U.S. National Natural Landmark; 29 miles from Mentor Headlands State Beach, with a massive freshwater surf beach that is the largest natural sand beach in Ohio; and 15 miles from University Circle, one of the nation's great cultural areas.
Chagrin Falls is 23 miles from Cleveland's three pro sports venues in downtown Cleveland, with rail rapid stations connected to downtown located nearby; 10 miles from northern Ohio's upscale shopping mecca of Beachwood Place and Legacy Village; and 10 miles from Aurora Farms Premium Outlets, Cleveland's outlet shopping center. Virtually every big box retail chain has an outlet within 25 miles of Chagrin Falls, many in Mentor, Ohio's sixth largest commercial center.
As for winter, many parts of the U.S. deal with winter weather. Few are as prepared for it as northeast Ohio, and few outside of mountainous resort areas have as many fun winter activities as northeast Ohio, especially Chagrin Falls, due to its hilly topography, excellent metropark natural areas, and the presence of Cuyahoga Valley National Park, 18 miles from Chagrin Falls. Greater Cleveland's hilly topography and deep river gorges, combined with an abundance of anthocyanin-producing trees, such as sugar maples and not as common further south, offers almost New England-like fall colors.
As I've explained, all things considered, Chagrin Falls is a very unique community beyond its great physical charm. BTW, the schools also are excellent.
@WRnative I suppose living in such an environment does eventually lead to an enhanced tolerance. Being from New York, I can relate--although I'd rather head to more moderate climates.
I also like how the districts are lined in suburban communities within Ohio: with the urban districts being clearly democratic and the suburban/rural districts being conservative. It's a proper reflection of the ideologies espoused in both types of communities. I like that while Chagrin Falls is close Cleveland--a democratic stronghold--it is in a conservative federal and state district; giving it the appropriate representation in state and federal congress. Basically, I enjoy being close to the amenities of the city, while living in a quiet community, and having the approriate political representation. Jack of all trades. Also gives me hope if I try to run for office myself someday.
You have a knack for finding these charming suburban communities. Since you know the state and its communities far better than I, do you think I could impose you find a similar community to Chagrin Falls near Columbus? As I said, considering my prospective work in politics, it's always better for professional and convenience purposes to be close to the Capitol.
Thanks again for all your help. It's greatly appreciated.
@WRnative I suppose living in such an environment does eventually lead to an enhanced tolerance. Being from New York, I can relate--although I'd rather head to more moderate climates.
I also like how the districts are lined in suburban communities within Ohio: with the urban districts being clearly democratic and the suburban/rural districts being conservative. It's a proper reflection of the ideologies espoused in both types of communities. I like that while Chagrin Falls is close Cleveland--a democratic stronghold--it is in a conservative federal and state district; giving it the appropriate representation in state and federal congress. Basically, I enjoy being close to the amenities of the city, while living in a quiet community, and having the approriate political representation. Jack of all trades. Also gives me hope if I try to run for office myself someday.
You have a knack for finding these charming suburban communities. Since you know the state and its communities far better than I, do you think I could impose you find a similar community to Chagrin Falls near Columbus? As I said, considering my prospective work in politics, it's always better for professional and convenience purposes to be close to the Capitol.
Thanks again for all your help. It's greatly appreciated.
Columbus doesn't have the same level of cultural and pro sports amenities as Cleveland.
As noted in an earlier post, Columbus is superb for someone interested in Ohio politics.
Grandview Hts. is a favorite Columbus suburb of mine due to restaurants, older construction neighborhoods, proximity to downtown and Ohio State. However, most of the high end retail in Columbus is in the Easton (14 miles but often heavy traffic) and Polaris (18 miles) areas, a good jaunt from Grandview Hts.
Grandview Hts. is not cheap, and probably not too conservative in its politics.
I haven't seen any small suburb in Ohio with the physical charm of Chagrin Falls, greatly because of CF's topography, but that doesn't mean that there aren't any similar communities.
Worthington has a charming downtown, but I know nothing of its political leanings. Like Chagrin Falls, Worthington has an historic vibe.
I just got back from Pittsburgh and wish I could make time to go to Cincy and CLE for a few days, having already lived in Columbus but barely having been anywhere in OH outside it.
I've seen a few articles about the possibility of Cincy merging with Dayton (55 miles away) to form one officially recognized CSA...that would be about 3 million right? I'm not seeing what CBus's answer to that would be, especially with Cincy already having corporate clout, MLB/NFL, the streetcar, an interesting location, world renowned urban hoods, and it's just an objectively beautiful looking city. Like Pittsburgh, it seems to be increasingly used for film and television.
Columbus got the HQ2 nod, but which cities in Ohio actually met the Amazon RFP? I'm sure Columbus will get right on that transit upgrade if they landed HQ2, like they've been talking about since the 80's.
To me, this is Cleveland for now, but if those developments for Cincy fall in to place they could rise to the top. In my view, Columbus has NHL is this contest...and that's it. OSU would put them over CLE for education I suppose but not Cincy.
We just moved from SF to the eastern suburbs of CLE. We were going to travel the midwest looking for an affordable and cultured place to settle down and invest in. Started in Minneapolis, then Indianapolis, Grand Rapids, Detroit, CLE and we ended our trip. Our next stops were going to be PIT, then COL and on down to Cincy and Louisville. Still really interested in COL, hear so many great things about its growth and it being a college town is great.
However, CLE is a diamond in the rough. So much upside. The location, the culture, the neighborhoods, the park system, the people, the institutions... It has a ton of potential. But it's also not hard to tell that this city has had a rough ride. All of my family is baffled that we moved to "Cleveland? Didn't their river catch on fire?" Eh, Californians...
I'm really hoping the next decade is good to CLE. Again, just so much potential.
@WRnative Yeah I'm familiar with Grandview Heights. Also familiar with Worthington. I've been doing research for a while now, specifically in central Ohio. So far I've broken down worthy contenders into a tier system, based on my factors that fancy my preferences, as follows:
Feels a bit strange ranking such affluent areas in a lower tier, but these are based on a multitude of factors. By the way, apologies if my prodding is becoming annoying. You are a very prompt and thorough respondent, and I figured I'd take advantage as much as I could for research purposes.
@WRnative Yeah I'm familiar with Grandview Heights. Also familiar with Worthington. I've been doing research for a while now, specifically in central Ohio. So far I've broken down worthy contenders into a tier system, based on my factors that fancy my preferences, as follows:
Feels a bit strange ranking such affluent areas in a lower tier, but these are based on a multitude of factors. By the way, apologies if my prodding is becoming annoying. You are a very prompt and thorough respondent, and I figured I'd take advantage as much as I could for research purposes.
When you get a chance, providing a detailed analysis of your ranking considerations for each community may be beneficial to you, as it may elicit constructive criticism, as well as to others exploring a relocation to Columbus.
When you get a chance, providing a detailed analysis of your ranking considerations for each community may be beneficial to you, as it may elicit constructive criticism, as well as to others exploring a relocation to Columbus.
Ok well for now I'll detail my most notable considerations when viewing a place. I'll be as frank as I possibly could, as I don't physically use a check list when researching an area, more like an internal check list.
In order of importance;
-Real estate quality & pricing diversity
-Excellent school district(s)
-Wage growth & income for educators/administrators
-Municipal tax rates (lower preferred, if not obvious)
-Other municipal law/policy considerations such as gun laws or HOA's regulations
-Local parks and recreational outdoors potential
-Proximity to Capitol, OSU, and any organizations associated with covering/participating in Ohio politics
-Economic vitality & vibrancy
-Voter turnout during elections; from local to state to federal (indicates an involved community dedicated to prosperity and preservation)
-Conservative constituency
First thing I essentially look for is the real estate in an area and see if it offers the type of homes/properties I aspire to live in. Variety is always good, both in property offerings and pricing. Powell and Marysville, for example, have a variety of homes offering vast amenities/spaces ranging from 150k-600k.
Once I see the real estate suits my taste and fits my budget, I check for the local school district(s): check their proficiency results, graduation rates, and both professional (administrators) and general feedback (community). This is important to me on two very crucial fronts; both as a would-be parent planning to send my kiddos to attend, and as a teacher myself not wanting to get bogged down in an under-performing and underfunded work environment.
Along with scoping out the school district(s), I check out the average income for a teacher and/or administrator of varying education levels and years of experience. By the time I am ready to make the move, I will have a Master's degree. Something that immediately struck me by Powell and Dublin is that entry level teachers with a Master's already make close to 55k, depending on which year they're up to. That's already higher than the median income of Ohio state. Plenty of income growth potential from then on out, which is very encouraging.
Taxes are pretty important to me. I enjoy having as much disposable income as possible (not including money saved or invested). The lower the better, provided the local area isn't shabby looking (poorly kept roads and sidewalks, poor upkeep in park areas, etc). I've already noted that my biggest reservation about Ohio in general is the absurdly high property taxes. So additional high taxes to add to that would really bum me out, on a personal and ideological level.
As a NYC resident, I am really not a fan of local jurisdictions imposing specific regulations that undermine the second amendment (a very polite understatement on my part). I spend most of my recreational shooting time in Nassau and Suffolk County (just outside the city) and I'm constantly jealous of the considerably higher freedom my buddies have there regarding their firearms use, availability, and flexibility. It's left a very lasting impression on me, and so it is an important factor to consider for any future relocations. Shooting for sport is probably my most cherished recreational activity.
I check to see if there's a Homeowner's Association or something similar with an area, whether privately or communally led. I'm mostly fine with them, so long as they don't impose any draconian or intrusive policies or regulations on us. For example, specifying how many pets a resident could have. I'm a "live and let live" kind of neighbor.
It's always a plus when an area has great parks or other outdoorsy areas to lounge about in. A place to walk the dog, take family and friends for a picnic, play some non-competitive sports--that kinda jazz.
Economically speaking, I enjoy a mix of "mom 'n pop" small business stores and retail chains. Ideally an area would mostly be comprised of small businesses, with a Wal-Mart or a similar store (like Kroger) being within a short drive. I don't mind paying slightly higher prices to patronize small businesses contributing to the economic vitality of a community. Within reason, of course--this is not an unconditional claim. Bringing up my NYC background, seeing people pay $9 for coffee from a local business, no matter how charming, is ridiculous.
The rest has to do with politics. It really is my passion, forte, and field of study and so that's why it keeps coming up and why it's so important to any considerations I make in my relocation efforts. So as I've mentioned before, I prefer to be close to a state's Capitol for professional & networking opportunities. The political climate of the area I decide to settle and put down roots is pretty important, considering my aspirations. Speaking on principles, I'd only want to potentially represent a district/community whose values align with my own--so I know I could be a natural leader and advocate for them. I wouldn't want to come off as a carpetbagger.
I'll bet I forgot something, but I feel this is sufficient enough to describe the general thought process I go through when considering areas. Like I said before, I'm open to any suburbs of the three C's who fit these wishes, but I'll admit the bias in favor of Columbus is high.
Last edited by MillennialMaverick; 02-15-2018 at 11:55 PM..
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