Stop dumping on Tampa! - Tampa Bay - Florida (FL) -Tampa - St. Petersburg - Clearwater - Page 3 - City-Data Forum

si33 · 02-08-2008, 08:13 PM

i believe the op of this thread hit the nail on the head....there is absolutely no perfect place.....and i for one get a bit annoyed reading all the negative posts about such places...and here in san jose,its no different,....someone always finds something to gripe about....
i myself have lived in several states growing up and each place ive lived has had something to teach me....the good and not so great....
here in san jose,where i was born...ive watched alot of things change,some not for the best....but all in all there are things i'll miss when i move away for good....yes its extremely expensive....yea,..perhaps the local beaches arent to my liking(waters COLD..,LOTS of seaweed)...but, alot of people adore them...no reason why i need to spoil it for them...
yea traffic can be an absolute nightmare...some people love the craziness...
when you sit and concentrate on all the negatives about where you live...you fail to remember that someone else wishes they could be there

now..while i do not live in the tampa area..yet....and have only visited several times...i definately plan on moving into the area...partially because of
the climate..but also because its much less expensive than here...and the pace gives you a little more breathing room....
and while some people insist that people who "visit" the area just dont see or are ignorant to all these "bad "things about the city...i beg to differ.. yes,..ive seen the strip clubs,..the homeless population,the sometimes not so cordial drivers..ive made wrong turns into some of the not so great neighborhoods..
but in all my experiances,ive found plenty of friendly and/or helpfull people,terrific beaches to visit..a decient vibe around ebor city,or the st. pete area at night..,nice neighborhoods and a city which has alot of potential...and WILL suffer growing pains along the way...every single place ive lived has..or is experiancing them...
yes its great to see people sharing the not so great things with the rest of us curious about them..looking at the good AND bad is always good..but i think that sometimes they forget that everyone else share similar views about similar issues...and while i have mine about each of the places ive lived,... i'll always have positive things to share with someone interested...cuz even here,where you will spend 500+k on the simplist house,a minimum of a thousand (for a one bedroom) rent,may have a 1 1/2hour drive to and from work...let alone work 80+ hours to afford that 500k home..
there are lots of places for recreational activities,want snow??..3 hours away,like fog?..san frans 45mins away..so is pebble beach...and while it might reach 100 on a hot 4th of july,...it feels like its 15 degrees cooler...i know there are people who love that.....or might miss that sometimes...

si33 · 02-08-2008, 08:19 PM

by the way....when i do relocate..i was curious to know what the average electric bill runs for a one bedroom apmt..in the tampa or lakeland area..i forgot to inquire last time i was in the area looking at apartments

traveler73 · 02-09-2008, 03:39 AM

I don't hate the Bay area, but I can see how some people might. I tried living there twice, once in 2004 and again in 2006. Finally I came away with the idea that it's a nice place to visit but I wouldn't live there again. I was disappointed with how overcrowded and expensive the area has become, but that's progress I guess.

As a kid growing up in upstate NY, we would vacation in Orlando and drive over to Clearwater Beach for a few days before heading home. Things have changed so much in during the last 25 years. It's not the Florida I remember as a kid and that makes me sad.

Everett · 02-09-2008, 01:05 PM

I moved from Tampa 45 years ago. Visit every year. The 50s were definitely the paradise years. But, Florida gets into your blood--for some at least.

People keep crabbing about the schools. I graduated from H.B.Plant High School out on Dale Mabry. It is listed as one of the top 50 high schools in America.

The Florida ambiance is hard to describe and it is difficult to convince anyone who thinks about Florida as a beach that Tampa is a great place. But, you have to like diversity (I love Latins, Cubans, Italians--the food, the people), heat, water, humidity, palm trees, ocean scenery, thunder storms, and the feeling that you are on another planet compared to the rest of the US.

I have wanted to move back there for 45 years, but it is not always easy to do what you want.

Jammie · 02-09-2008, 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by traveler73

I don't hate the Bay area, but I can see how some people might. I tried living there twice, once in 2004 and again in 2006. Finally I came away with the idea that it's a nice place to visit but I wouldn't live there again. I was disappointed with how overcrowded and expensive the area has become, but that's progress I guess.

As a kid growing up in upstate NY, we would vacation in Orlando and drive over to Clearwater Beach for a few days before heading home. Things have changed so much in during the last 25 years. It's not the Florida I remember as a kid and that makes me sad.

I know what you're saying. Unfortunately, it's that way across the country. I'm not sure if things have really gone downhill this much OR if we were just too young to realize that there are negatives in the world.

Keeper · 02-09-2008, 04:59 PM

Maybe a little of both.. Tampa has a lot of good things, but as with all good comes some bad. If you focus on the bad then it is going to be really bad.
There has always been crime in Tampa but with more ppl you have more crime unfortunately. Drugs have played a major role in the crime too.

InLuvWitFlo · 02-09-2008, 05:27 PM

Like anyone else I dont like the bashing of anyplace and just like you were able to get your bashing off and state your opinions so should others after all this is a free country. People please get over it!!!

heathanoah · 02-13-2008, 02:21 PM

Well that was nice to read! I am trying to decide if I should move to St.Pete or not and honestly many of the treads on here were scaring me away! Thanks for the SUNNY outlook LOL!

cltsig · 02-13-2008, 04:24 PM

Don't let the negatives about taxes scare you either. I pay $4500 on a $400k house, roughly 1.1%. I was paying $2400 on a house I sold for $150k, which is about 1.6%. I also paid 3% income tax which I don't in FL. Actually look at the taxes and don't judge solely by what people pay here. The people doing the most groaning (me!) are those that bought after 2000 and pay 3 times what my neighbor in an identical house pays. Inequity is the problem, not so much high taxes.

Oh yeah, this time of year it's usually 75, sunny and no humidity. I'll take the summer heat over the winter cold any day! Plus, up north it's still hot and humid in the summer --- NO ESCAPE from terrible weather! Don't count those 4 weeks per year of "spring" and "fall" when the switch is flipped between cold to heat to cold.

Kenny1948 · 02-20-2008, 11:31 AM

Hate to burst anyones bubble, but I would not want to live in any of these places:
Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Shreveport LA, anywhere in Arkansas, Mississippi or Alabama.

Now here comes the good part. It's all about comparing apples and oranges. Some people like Oranges ( Florida ) and some people like Apples ( The West ).

I could really rag on Tampa if I wanted to, but I have chosen instead to move as far away as possible and never return. However I have never liked the Eastern United States--period! Have a nice day!