Relocating: Greenville, SC or Charlotte, NC

[indignantgirl]

Thing is, the Charlotte option isn't exactly that because my husband would be working an hour east of Charlotte and doesn't want to commute all the way to Charlotte.  So we'd probably be about 20 minutes to the east of Charlotte.

Now, the pros for the Charlotte area is there seems to be a lot of homeschooling and crunchy mama resources, plus it's closer to the ocean.  The major cons are we wouldn't be in the city proper and the point of our relocation is for me to be able to be in the thick of things and have more of a sense of community and be around more like-minded people. 

Side note: I've been struggling with PPD for a year, and now that I'm really feeling some progress happening, I realize that living in super-conservative (the redneck style) southern Oklahoma is wearing me thin.  It's a lonely thing to feel like you don't fit in where you live.  With DH's company there are transfer options but nowhere "great".  These two areas are as good as it gets, which is better than where I am now.

So, back to the pro/con thing, Greenville would allow us to live IN the city, as close to downtown/walkable locations as we can find a house for sale because DH's commute wouldn't be so far to his job.  We'd be able to take advantage of the parks and libraries and health food stores and all that, with little (or if we're lucky, NO) drive.  There seems to be a decent network of crunchy moms as well, though maybe not as many as Charlotte.  Another pro is that DH has actually BEEN to Greenville a couple of times for work and really loved it there.  The con is further from the ocean (that's part of the reason we're excited to move to the area, close enough for ocean day trips), and less "big" and more conservative than the Charlotte area.

Now, what I'd love if people who know the area can add anything to the pro/con lists, or correct any false info I might have. 

A bit more about me:  I'm as crunchy as they get (unassisted birthing, unschooling, super liberal, etc) and an atheist to boot.  While I know that neither location is super crunchy, I'd just like a place relaxed enough that I can feel comfortable there.

[stardogs]

I lived near Greenville and now about 90 mins from Charlotte. I only lived in the Greenville area for about 3 years and have been in the Triad now for 2 years, and I'm not a mom, but I'll offer some observations in case they help.

Greenville does have some good crunchy people from my experiences, there's a Whole Foods, a pretty vibrant down town, etc. but it is MUCH smaller than CLT in terms of amenities and community networking. CLT has all the benefits of the bigger cities, but living in the suburbs miiight make it pretty similar to Greenville tbh. Both towns are fairly liberal for the south but surrounded by much more conservative areas.

The Greenville area does have a LOT of transplants from the Midwest and elsewhere, so much so that I rarely ran into "natives". lol That does tend to make it pretty different from the rest of SC. I can't speak for CLT since I just visit there (mostly for IKEA lol).

I honestly don't think CLT is close enough to the ocean for day trips - I live in the Triad (so northeast of CLT) and it's still a 4.5h drive to beaches.

[indignantgirl]

Stardogs, your point about living in the suburbs of CLT making it more similar to Greenville is exactly what I was wondering.  If I'm not going to really get the city experience of CLT because of living so far in the suburbs, then it might be worth the downtown access to live in Greenville proper.  Plus that does take DH down from a 40 mile commute to about 10-15 miles.

Sounds like it would be more like weekend trips to the ocean from either place then, rather than day trips (I had been thinking more like 3 hours from the beach instead of 4-5).  

This has helped a bunch!  Anyone have more to add? 

[nyssaneala]

I live in Charlotte, and we love it, but I'm not sure it's exactly what you are looking for. When you say you plan on living east of Charlotte, where do you mean? There is not much in that direction. Concord is northeast of CLT, and is a fun, little place which is more of it's own city than a suburb of Charlotte. Matthews is also a nice area that has a lot of homeschoolers (and there is a strong homeschooling community in Union County), but that is not exactly east.

Looking at a map may be deceiving, because Charlotte is not close to the ocean! It takes about 3 to 3 1/2 hours to get to Charleston, 4 to Hilton Head, and 5-6 to Outer Banks. Greenville is just as close to the coast as we are, especially the Charleston area.

[indignantgirl]

Originally Posted by nyssaneala 

I live in Charlotte, and we love it, but I'm not sure it's exactly what you are looking for. When you say you plan on living east of Charlotte, where do you mean? There is not much in that direction. Concord is northeast of CLT, and is a fun, little place which is more of it's own city than a suburb of Charlotte. Matthews is also a nice area that has a lot of homeschoolers (and there is a strong homeschooling community in Union County), but that is not exactly east.

Looking at a map may be deceiving, because Charlotte is not close to the ocean! It takes about 3 to 3 1/2 hours to get to Charleston, 4 to Hilton Head, and 5-6 to Outer Banks. Greenville is just as close to the coast as we are, especially the Charleston area.

Well, DH's job would be in Norwood, which is quite a drive to Charlotte proper.  He doesn't want to drive more than 30-40 minutes each way on his commute, which would put us 20 miles or so east of Charlotte, in the direction of Norwood.  I did get the impression from the map that not much is in the area.  I'd hoped I'd be close enough to Charlotte to have some local stuff going on, and be closer to Charlotte and all that is available there.  But a 20 minute drive for me to get there doesn't sound that great, especially with no local stuff.

Honestly, just the couple of responses are leading me to believe that Greenville would be a much better match, so that DH can be close to his job there and we can be right in the thick of things.  I'm so incredibly lonely where I am (the area, not my actual home in the country, which I love), and with my predisposition to depression, being so secluded is a big, biiiig problem. 

[nyssaneala]

Norwood is really in the middle of nowhere (although decent hiking at nearby Uwharrie!).

We moved to Charlotte last year and absolutely love it, I don't usually turn people away from the city. But the area that you are thinking about is very rural and conservative. To give you some perspective on distances, I live in Huntersville, and it probably takes us 1 1/2 hours to get to the Uwharrie National Park near Norwood, because it is all one-lane roads. Once you get away from the 485 beltway on that side of Charlotte, there are no other major highways.

I have a friend that lives in Greenville who absolutely loves it. It was actually our second choice when my hubby was looking for a job last year.

Are you able to visit both places before you decide?

[indignantgirl]

We probably won't be able to visit both; his job will pay a certain amount of our expenses when he goes out to interview with the new boss for the transfer but that will have to be after we've decided which place to go. 

I'm certain I don't want rural, though.  But for some reason, I guess because Charlotte is so big, I thought there'd be tons of sprawl in all directions.  If there's nothing in that direction (I guess because there's nothing to sprawl toward) then there's no reason for us to move there (looking on google maps, the area I was thinking of is still almost an hour dive, I guess because of all the small country highways).  I figure that if DH is going to have to drive an hour I'd rather have him work in Greer and us live in Asheville.  Not that he is willing to drive an hour.

DH has been to Greenville twice and really, really loved it there.  He thought it had a really great relaxed feel for a city, similar to Norman (here in OK, which we both love), and he loved that there were HFS and vegan-friendly restaurants.  He even enjoyed the scenery when driving out of town toward the mountains.  Maybe Greenville is the place for us.  And it's not too far for weekend trips to the mountains and the ocean, right?  I really like options. ;)
 

[nyssaneala]

It's definitely not too far for weekend trips to the ocean and beach! I think Greenville is closer to the mountains and Asheville than Charlotte. For us, it's 2 to 2/12 hours to Asheville; we go often for both day trips and overnight stays...love the mountains! I think Greenville to Asheville is less than 1 1/2 hours drive.
 

[beanma]

I think Greenville is going to be a better fit for you. Would your DH's job be in Greenville? I think he'd be happier too not to have to do that commute you're talking about. Greenville definitely has some crunch going on. Weekend (or the common week in the summer) trips to the beach are easily doable. Asheville (super crunchy) is even closer. 

[edwards0324]

I live in Greenville county and have for 6 years. We have a great AP moms group and plenty of others I know of. It is the bible belt so be prepared for "what church do you attend? you can come to mine!" but I have learned over the years not to feel so judged. Most of the people who open with this are genuinely trying to be nice :) I'm semi-crunchy and getting ready to start homeschooling my eldest. I would much rather live here than Charlotte. It's nice to visit though. Ikea. Container Store. Cheesecake Factory! I'm here if you have any questions. I also have a great realtor if you need any assistance with that. Best of luck in your decision!!

[MamaCraft]

I've lived in Greenville most of my life.  It is a fun city.  Some of the great attributes include: the swamp rabbit trail (a hiking/biking trail that extends across the county), lots of lakes, good parks, Trader Joes/Whole Foods, a fun Children's Museum, good library programs, etc.  There are good midwives and local birthcenters.  The hospital now has staff midwifes and waterbirth.  The Kroc center is a really neat place affiliated with Salvation Army.  Downtown is really vibrant and charming.

[hamptonsmomma]

MamaCraft- do you know anyone who has used the midwife birth center at the hospital? I know this thread is old and somewhat unrelated but saw you had mentioned it.  I am currently trying to find a new care provider at 22 weeks after a terrible experience with a homebirth midwife, and I am strongly considering GMC but haven't been able to find out much about it! 

OP- I was born in Greenville and have lived here most of my life (I lived in Charleston briefly and then Columbia briefly).  It is a great area, and if I weren't from here I would love it even more.  I don't know what y'all decided to do, but I hope you found a choice that was happy for all!