Considering a move to San Antonio. Is it a good fit for me? (Austin: fit in, real estate market)

[veggiefox]

Hi. I have been considering a move for awhile now. I currently live near Fort Smith, AR and this area has just become stagnant to me. I need a change and I have some distant family in San Antonio that I may be able to stay with until I get my own place.
The thing that's holding me back from moving anywhere is I run a small independent fox sanctuary. It is for captive bred and raised (pet) foxes which have been neglected or abused. I currently have four and will also take in any others that I come across in the future. I also have dogs, geese, and chickens. I will need to have a decent amount of land, at least two or three acres, and would likely live right outside of the city so it's quieter for the animals. I know it's legal to have them in the state of Texas, but not sure how they'll fit in in the city/county.
My main job is an optician. I also have experience with quality control in food processing factories and I would be fine with either field.
I'm a 32 year old single gay female and am curious about the LGBT community in SA. I'm a vegetarian. I also am working towards becoming a writer/animator. I know California would be the best place for that but the foxes keep me from moving there or to nearby Nevada.
One more thing I'm curious about is I love the desert. How close is a desert area to SA?
Thank you in advance for any help!

[veggiefox]

*bump*
Does the lack of responses mean I should not consider San Antonio?

[majormadmax]

There have been numerous threads about the LGBT community in SA, I suggest you do some searching of the forum for thoughts on that.

As for being an optician, given the size of the city you shouldn't have a problem finding a job but understand that with a lower cost of living, salaries tend to be lower as well. That said, I am not aware of many opportunities for "writer/animators" so if that's your career goal then maybe you research that a little further as well if you do decide to head to SA.

As a carnivore I don't understand the vegetarian lifestyle but HEB sells vegetables so you should be able to survive and even thrive there.

As for the fox sanctuary thing, your need for a couple of acres of land will impact where you can afford to live but it is by no means a show-stopper. There are several animal rescues across the city, I would recommend contacting one or more of them to see what advice and suggestions they might be able to provide in regard to your keeping those animals.

Good luck with your decision, overall Texas and especially SA has a "live and let live" culture but it is also pretty much still a strongly conservative state so don't expect a huge, thriving LGBT community as you'd see in more liberal locations like LA, SF or NYC. Still, no one is really going to make an issue out of it unless you do first.

Cheers! M2

[austindoxie1972]

majormadmax brought up some excellent points. I read your post and, quite frankly, there were so many questions, I didn't know where to begin. I grew up in SA and still own a house there. I now live in Virginia, but I go back frequently. I follow the real estate market and maintain close relationships with family and friends there. Hope I can address a few issues :

I have several gay friends and there is a small community in SA. Sometimes it is too small, if you know what I mean. Not a lot of options for partners/dating. SA can be a conservative town.

You might be surprised at the cost of purchasing land. Everyone thinks Texas is cheap...and then they realize to get what they want, it might not be possible. You may also have to investigate different county codes, etc. I love the idea of connecting with other rescues.

Hmmmm...the desert. Probably West Texas is the closest. And that is about 4 hours away (if not more).

Animator? Probably not possible in this town. Austin might be better.

Final suggestion -- visit San Antonio to get a better sense of what you want/if the town meets your needs. Best of luck!!

[thisforumistrash]

Originally Posted by veggiefox

*bump*
Does the lack of responses mean I should not consider San Antonio?

Seriously?

To answer some of your questions.

The LGBT community is strong in San Antonio. San Antonio is home to the most gay households in the nation by percentage. It is very very rare to see anything in the news about hate crimes or gay bashing.

There are tons of vegetarian options, esp in the core. Here is a great list of places.

As for the desert, well, west Texas is the closest desert near San Antonio. The biggest city in west Texas being El Paso. EP is an 8 hour drive. There's also Marfa, Tx which is closer but very small, although ironically very trending/hip for some odd reason.

[majormadmax]

Originally Posted by thisforumistrash

San Antonio is home to the most gay households in the nation by percentage.

Care to share where you got that statistic? Because the 2012 U.S. Census disagrees with you...

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Is The U.S. City With The Highest Concentration Of Gay Couples

As a matter of fact, San Antonio wasn't even in the top ten.

Actually, according to this forum, it doesn't even make the top 101!

City-Data: Top 101 cities with the largest percentage of likely homosexual households (counted as self-reported same-sex unmarried-partner households) (population 5,000+)

I bet you didn't think someone would fact check that claim, did ya?

[Merovee]

These lists and rankings are always going to be confusing depending on criteria and even terminology. Even the two articles linked above seem to be gauging two different items.

Claiming SA as having the most homosexual households in the nation is not a far cry since the exact claim was published in 2011. Have things changed? Perhaps.

New statistics released by the Williams Institute at the University of California Los Angeles show that the percentage of same sex couples raising kids in San Antonio is the highest in the nation. This is the second time since 2005 that the city has achieved this ranking.

The statistics from the American Community Survey show that 34 percent of same sex couples in the city are raising children younger than 18.

QSanAntonio - S.A. still first with percentage of same sex couples raising kids

The metropolitan areas with the highest rates of same-sex households raising children are San Antonio, Jacksonville, and Raleigh. Neither of these areas ranks in the top 25 cities for same-sex couples.

The Geography of Same-Sex Couples - Nate Berg - The Atlantic Cities

We should also keep in mind where each poster lives. Someone living near Helotes might have a different view and experience of living in our city than someone living in town.

[veggiefox]

Sorry, I know that was a lot of questions. Thank you all for the responses I saw quite a few people read my post but not one person replied so it concerned me a little lol. I've heard rumors about Texas being so conservative. I just wanted to hear from people who live there.
majormadmax, I looked at the first couple pages but I'll admit I didn't actually perform a search about the LGBT community. And I have nothing against carnivores, it's just my choice. I've rescued many species of animals including ones humans traditionally eat. They bond with and love each other and have the same fear and desire to survive that we do. Just doesn't feel right to me to save the life of one chicken abandoned in a pen and then eat another. Plus the cruelty in commercial farms is unbelievable. That's the way I feel, but to each their own.
Thanks again

[austindoxie1972]

Just want to say that San Antonio is a hot spot for relocations right now. Never a day goes by that someone doesn't post, "Will SA be a good fit me?" or something similar. I speak only for myself, but the CD regulars on the San Antonio forum might be a bit fatigued.

I live in Northern Virginia, and that forum doesn't get hit with so many of these types of threads. It might be because Northern Virginia is fairly expensive, and most people have to want to go there. It's too hard to simply "show up." I'm not targeting you, because you asked a fair question and I really do wish you well.

[Chaka]

Originally Posted by majormadmax

Care to share where you got that statistic? Because the 2012 U.S. Census disagrees with you...

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Is The U.S. City With The Highest Concentration Of Gay Couples

As a matter of fact, San Antonio wasn't even in the top ten. :

The stats I've seen refer to the number of same sex households **raising children**, which fits in with the family-oriented element of this city.

OP: There is a strong and vibrant LGBT community here. There's still a lot of backward thinking out there and Texas as a whole isn't the most gay-friendly, but SA is open and depending upon where you live, very welcoming. My neighborhood is extremely gay-friendly. Not just tolerant, but welcoming.

It's also not the most vegetarian of places but there are many many vegetarians here. We have 3 fully vegetarian restaurants in town, two of which are fully vegan. Whole Foods tend to carry some veg-specific items as does Central Market (two grocery stores) and some HEBs (the major grocer here). People are really funny about vegetarianism....they think you come from outer space.

I can't comment on the job possibilities, and the fox situation requiring land means you need to look outside the city, which will be more conservative for the most part and less vegetarian-friendly, so that's a tradeoff you'd have to consider.

Good luck!