Move to Knoxville very likely-questions I have? (Memphis, Maryville: transplants, to rent)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My husband and I are natives of Phoenix and have been wanting to move out of here for a few years as we are tired of the big city, smog, crime and heat!! We have been to Nashville 4 or 5 times and love it there. My husband flew out there a couple of weeks ago to interview for a job there and it ends up they would like him in their Knoxville office. We have not been to Knoxville but have heard really good things about it. I just have a few questions I was hoping some could answer for me. Disclaimer.....I am looking for respectful advice not criticisms about the way my husband and I live our lives. I would never reply to a post of someone who has opposite views of me to bash their way of living and I ask that you do the same for me. If you have honest advice/information, I completely welcome it.
1) We are a homeschooling family with 6 children. It seems that homeschooling is very popular in Tn. Anyone homeschool and are there homeschool groups in Knoxville?
2) We attend a family integrated Christian church here where we take our kids into worship with us, does anyone know of any churches like that there?
3) we will initially be renting to get a feel for the area. We will want somewhere SAFE, a 4 bedroom house, rural, we don't care about being in a neighborhood, only a 20-30 minute commute to downtown Knoxville and between $1000-$1200. Is that feasible? Which is the best way to look North, East or West? Online I was looking at Strawberry Plains, Clinton, Solway. Anywhere else or are those not good areas?
4) It seems that there have been a lot of previous posts about the air pollution being really high there. I just can't imagine it being any worse than here in Phoenix where we are a huge metropolitan area. I don't want to leave one smoggy city for another.
5) What is the most reasonable airline that flies into Knoxville? Do most people fly into Knoxville or do they fly into Nashville and drive? Are there any other airports that Southwest flies into closer to Knoxville than Nashville?
6) We choose to selectively vaccinate our children meaning I want a say in what vaccinations they receive and at what age. Does anyone know of Pediatricians that are willing to work with parents on this?
7) My favorite stores here are Costco, Trader Joe's and Sprout's as they have good organic selections especially on produce. I know you have Sam's Club there. Is there something similar to Trader Joe's that has organic produce?
My husband and I are looking to get out of Phx. and absolutely have no desire to go somewhere and turn it into what we have here. We are looking forward to embracing a slower pace of life, country feel and friendly people. I think those are my only questions right now. I said just a few, right:-)
Air pollution isn't really that bad. We were just taken off the epa list of non-conforming cities or whatever they call it. This means that it has improved a lot over tha past decade. Sadly there is no Trader Joe's, but I think 1 would do well here. There is a good organic co-op called Three Rivers Market though. As for where to live, a lot of people wanting a semi-rural lifestyle live in Blount county. It is very popular and probably an expensive area to buy or rent. It turns rural closer to town east of knoxville moreso than north, and especially not west which sprawls for 30 miles or so. There is plenty of gorgeous rural land around here though so I don't think you should have a problem with that.
There is a Trader Joe's in Nashville.
Yes there are homeschooling groups here.
Smog is not really an issue here.
You will have to make a huge adjustment with the humidity. It is totally different than Phoenix.
Flying out of Nashville may save some money, but then you have to figure out what 5 hours on the Interstate is worth (its about 2 - 2 1/2 hour drive each way).
Most churches have kids. Of course, there are always programs for kids, and there is child care available. On that note.....a couple Sundays ago, we got to listen to a baby cry, fuss, cry some more, fuss some more for about 35 minutes. You would have thought that the mother would have taken the child out at some point. Instead, she disrupted the service for a couple hundred others.
I also have to say that while you really liked Nashville, its not the same as Knoxville. It's close, but not the same. Its kind of like saying that I really like Tucson, so I want to move to Phoenix.
Strawberry Plains, Clinton and Solway are also very different. You also need to define what you mean by rural.
Not sure about the Doctor question.
Come visit, drive around the area and see for yourself. Maybe hook up with a Realtor to help you out.
Good luck with your move.
You can be in rural area, even if it simply looks rural, 10 to 15 minutes out of downtown. Even if you go west. Granted, you would go west and then turn, but it would look like a fairly rural area. And if you go north, south and east it can be very rural. I use to rent in Heiskell, which is about 15 minutes from downtown, straight up I-75, and it is extremely rural. And you don't even have to go that far.
The truth is there is a very small downtown area that is in the middle of a rural area. Granted, west can be one big suburban sprawl if you stay right on Kingston Pike, but you can turn left or right and be in a good amount of country.
Yes, WantingoutofAz, I think your price range is very doable. For some reason we get a lot of people with an enormous list of housing demands for very little rent. I think you have very realistic expectations.
Price-wise, west is the most expensive. It's the most suburban, newest homes, lots of natives but also very attractive to transplants.
North Knoxville outside of the belt is fairly inexpensive. Most expensive would probably be Powell. It's very quiet suburban. Older homes are in Fountain City, where I live. There are a good amount of charming homes here with a nice duck pond and beautiful playground that also attracts adults for its idyllic setting.
North Knoxville within the belt is less expensive than that. Mostly much older homes from 1940s and older. One area is fairly expensive, Fourth and Gill, but still doable. It's mostly made up of progressive locals and transplants, as is some of the more affordable close-by neighborhoods.
South Knoxville is even more affordable. And East Knoxville is dirt cheap.
Head south and east and you can quickly be in rural territory, too.
There truly is something for everyone in this area.
As far as churches go, I'm not sure but we have a church on every corner and one or two in-between so there is probably going to be more than a few to fit your needs.
Yes, there are several homeschool groups. You can find them by googling.
We have several farmer's markets in season. You can find one almost any day of the week. We also have two Earth Fare's, two Fresh Markets and a very good selection of organics at any grocery store I have been, too. That's on top of the co-op that Calvin suggested. Organics and locally grown is enormous here. We also have locally grown meat, eggs, dairy...It is fabulous.
It's funny, because I've been here going on six years and at first it was a bit of a struggle to find organics but in the past few years we have wanted for none of it! It's great.
Our pollution looks like haze on very hot days. It has to do with being in a valley and having a couple of major highways running through the area. If it rains or is windy it goes away, but there is only so much that can be done. It's not like a brown, ugly cloud like in LA, mind you, but you'll find it hazy on several days in the summer.
I have kids and I've always given them vaccinations on my schedule. In fact the youngest I had break up the MMR in 2000. One child I had them not administer the second pertussis, and the next three did not get any pertussis. That was in Florida and Mass. No doctor can force you to do anything to your child. I don't make a big deal of it, so the regulars may be surprised to know that I am not a fan of vaccinations. I'll leave it at that.
Oh, it looks like we will probably get a Costco within the next two years.
I don't fly, so I can't help you there.
Finally, I have no idea why you thought someone was going to make fun of you. I can be a bit pushy to other parents, sometimes. I'll admit it. Nothing irritates me more than parents that say hey, "We have horrible schools where I live, so I really don't care if Florida has bad schools. How bad can they be? So where is the best beach?" I can get a bit snide about that. I have no use for people that are worried about the beach and not their kids. But homeschooling is popular here. I would love to homeschool. I entertain the idea a lot. So is going to church. But even if you are an atheist, Knoxville people are very welcoming to everyone!
Thank you so much for all of the really great information you shared. I only asked about the vaccinations because there are pediatrician's offices here where unless you are fully vaccinating your kids on schedule you can not go there.
As for my comment about people not interjecting opinions about my questions......I once read a post where someone was asking about homeschooling but admitted the neighborhood they were interested in had good schools. Someone replied back that since they know the schools are good they should just put their kids in school so they can get the socialization they need. Since I posted about a few opinion producing questions I didn't want any comments like that.
You really put my mind at ease about finding Organic produce/food. That is great about locally grown meat and eggs too.
How is Alcoa? What is the safest part of the greater Knoxville area?
There is a Trader Joe's in Nashville.
Yes there are homeschooling groups here.
Smog is not really an issue here.
You will have to make a huge adjustment with the humidity. It is totally different than Phoenix.
Flying out of Nashville may save some money, but then you have to figure out what 5 hours on the Interstate is worth (its about 2 - 2 1/2 hour drive each way).
Most churches have kids. Of course, there are always programs for kids, and there is child care available. On that note.....a couple Sundays ago, we got to listen to a baby cry, fuss, cry some more, fuss some more for about 35 minutes. You would have thought that the mother would have taken the child out at some point. Instead, she disrupted the service for a couple hundred others.
I also have to say that while you really liked Nashville, its not the same as Knoxville. It's close, but not the same. Its kind of like saying that I really like Tucson, so I want to move to Phoenix.
Strawberry Plains, Clinton and Solway are also very different. You also need to define what you mean by rural.
Not sure about the Doctor question.
Come visit, drive around the area and see for yourself. Maybe hook up with a Realtor to help you out.
Good luck with your move.
Oh that's horrible about the screaming baby in church. We go to a church where all families bring all of their children with them but if my baby even lets out a peep we are out in the hallway.
By rural I mean more open land and not houses stacked one on top of another.
I don't think I've ever read that someone questioned homeschooling around here. No worries.
I don't doubt you for a second, regarding pediatricians. I am sure I got lucky.
Hands down, one of my favorite things about the area is the availability of organic and local food.
I know someone was on here, recently, saying they just moved to Alcoa and really liked it. I don't know much about it. I equate it with the airport, which is located there. The little bit that I have seen seemed to be more of a rundown community next to Maryville. I have to be careful, though, because I've found if you don't like something you are bound to anger somebody.
I am from Phoenix, too, and I live in Maryville now, just outside of Knoxville. I know that people talk about the air pollution in Knoxville, but I can't figure out what they are talking about. From my perspective, the air is pretty clean... at least compared to Phoenix. The haze we can see from a mountain is white, not brown like it is in Phoenix.
Knoxville (actually Alcoa) has a very pretty, uncrowded little airport. We always fly from there. There are no direct flights to/from Phoenix from Knoxville through any airline. Single layovers are often in Memphis, Houston, Atlanta, or Chicago.
Earth Fare in Knoxville is identical to Whole Foods. Fresh Market is a lot like Sprouts. Those are the only two good places I shop at for healthy food. Organic produce and healthy foods are just as easy to find here as they are in Phoenix.
There are farmer's markets, farm stands and organic food available throughout the area. Like Oliviajane I live outside of the city of Knoxville in Maryville which shares a lot with Alcoa. The towns blend at their border, to the point where it hard to sometimes tell if you are standing on the Maryville or Alcoa side without thinking about it. Alcoa has some rural spots and housing of various sizes and cost but is a fairly small town, with a lot packed into it from airport, to the aluminum plant to a lot of the local shopping. It is a company town that was developed around the aluminum plant of the same name. So far any people I have met from there or while shopping there have been just as friendly and polite as anyone else in the area (that means very friendly), so I am not sure which people Hiknapster is referring to.
Maryville is just slightly further from Knoxville and is composed or a tiny urban core, a commercial area with malls and stores along the main roads, a patchwork of suburban sections and then rapidly goes back to rural. On the other side of Alcoa and the airport would be Louisville, which feels predominantly rural or very lightly suburban and may suit your tastes as well, and depending on commuting needs, is closer to Knoxville. I've met and become friends with quite a few people who live there and found the same general friendliness and politeness. These are the three areas of Blount County I am most familiar with and I hope it helps you find places to consider when you actually get here and look around.
You'll find overall much of the area outside of Knoxville becomes more rural than areas outside of other cities. People on the whole are much more live and let live and from what I have seen there are quite a few homeschoolers in the area. From what I have gathered there even is a network for social and sport activities. I don't have school age kids so have not been in touch with the vaccination requirements that may exist or what pediatricians do or don't allow in their practices.
There are farmer's markets, farm stands and organic food available throughout the area. Like Oliviajane I live outside of the city of Knoxville in Maryville which shares a lot with Alcoa. The towns blend at their border, to the point where it hard to sometimes tell if you are standing on the Maryville or Alcoa side without thinking about it. Alcoa has some rural spots and housing of various sizes and cost but is a fairly small town, with a lot packed into it from airport, to the aluminum plant to a lot of the local shopping. It is a company town that was developed around the aluminum plant of the same name. So far any people I have met from there or while shopping there have been just as friendly and polite as anyone else in the area (that means very friendly), so I am not sure which people Hiknapster is referring to.
Maryville is just slightly further from Knoxville and is composed or a tiny urban core, a commercial area with malls and stores along the main roads, a patchwork of suburban sections and then rapidly goes back to rural. On the other side of Alcoa and the airport would be Louisville, which feels predominantly rural or very lightly suburban and may suit your tastes as well, and depending on commuting needs, is closer to Knoxville. I've met and become friends with quite a few people who live there and found the same general friendliness and politeness. These are the three areas of Blount County I am most familiar with and I hope it helps you find places to consider when you actually get here and look around.
You'll find overall much of the area outside of Knoxville becomes more rural than areas outside of other cities. People on the whole are much more live and let live and from what I have seen there are quite a few homeschoolers in the area. From what I have gathered there even is a network for social and sport activities. I don't have school age kids so have not been in touch with the vaccination requirements that may exist or what pediatricians do or don't allow in their practices.
I ignore the jabs - and this was exactly what I expected and what I was referring to - but I want to be clear that I don't think anyone is unfriendly in Alcoa and I didn't state that.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
