Need advice on moving to Richmond (Poquoson: car, parking, snake)
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I moved from Maine to Richmond in January 2017 and left Richmond to move back to Maine in November 2017. So 9 months total.
The roads in downtown Richmond are similar to the roads in rural New England; pretty crappy. The roads on the outskirts are OK, acceptable really. You'd think a place with no snow would have better roads, though. But the taxes are low and they don't have any reason to plow so the roads could be better. Plus, for some reason, all driveway entrances, from houses in the suburb to McDonalds, they all have ball joint killing gutters you have to drive over. Why? I don't know. It's not like it's Florida and flooding is a risk. But they don't have plows so breaking plows is not a risk. It really confused me to see such huge gutters every time I drove into a business. I hated that part.
Avoid the entire east side of Richmond. It's disgusting and not a place you want to wander around at night.
Culture is at a minimum in Richmond. There's not much history and the buildings are aging poorly.
The heat season is cheaper than in the north east but the homes have heat pumps, which are not comfortable in the winter and energy costs overall are very similar to due to the A/C load during the summer.
The renting laws in Virginia area geared to favor the wealthy white land owners, you'll get screwed if you don't find a good land lord.
The people of Richmond are dying to have the rest of the country remember that they exist. You'll see "RVA" stickers on cars belonging to locals. It's pretty silly.
The heat is absolutely ridiculous in the summer. It'll feel like 110 - 115 degrees for most of the summer and the humidity holds the pollution at ground level so you'll never get a breath of fresh air for 5 months.
We really didn't enjoy our stay there and moved back to the frigid north because it offers a better lifestyle and better roads in the high tax area we live in. We are from San Diego and NYC. Never returning to the south east after our stay in Richmond.
I moved from Maine to Richmond in January 2017 and left Richmond to move back to Maine in November 2017. So 9 months total.
The roads in downtown Richmond are similar to the roads in rural New England; pretty crappy. The roads on the outskirts are OK, acceptable really. You'd think a place with no snow would have better roads, though. But the taxes are low and they don't have any reason to plow so the roads could be better. Plus, for some reason, all driveway entrances, from houses in the suburb to McDonalds, they all have ball joint killing gutters you have to drive over. Why? I don't know. It's not like it's Florida and flooding is a risk. But they don't have plows so breaking plows is not a risk. It really confused me to see such huge gutters every time I drove into a business. I hated that part.
Avoid the entire east side of Richmond. It's disgusting and not a place you want to wander around at night.
Culture is at a minimum in Richmond. There's not much history and the buildings are aging poorly.
The heat season is cheaper than in the north east but the homes have heat pumps, which are not comfortable in the winter and energy costs overall are very similar to due to the A/C load during the summer.
The renting laws in Virginia area geared to favor the wealthy white land owners, you'll get screwed if you don't find a good land lord.
The people of Richmond are dying to have the rest of the country remember that they exist. You'll see "RVA" stickers on cars belonging to locals. It's pretty silly.
The heat is absolutely ridiculous in the summer. It'll feel like 110 - 115 degrees for most of the summer and the humidity holds the pollution at ground level so you'll never get a breath of fresh air for 5 months.
We really didn't enjoy our stay there and moved back to the frigid north because it offers a better lifestyle and better roads in the high tax area we live in. We are from San Diego and NYC. Never returning to the south east after our stay in Richmond.
Sorry you didn't enjoy your time here, but a few of your comments make me think that you must not have explored the whole area while you were here, and I wanted to set the record straight on a couple of points.
I've seen the large gutters that you're talking about, but not in the city - I've only seen them in Henrico and the other suburbs, and even there, only in a few certain places (typically the places with older infrastructure - not as much around newer developments). I've always chalked it up to an unwillingness to invest in public infrastructure in certain places + desire to keep taxes low in the suburbs leading to large open drainage. I don't love it either, but I'm not sure it's something that would keep me from moving to a place.
I am most surprised, though, that you say culture is at a minimum. How do you define culture? We have some pretty great museums (VMFA, Science Museum, Virginia Historical Society, not to mention all the Civil War museums closer to downtown, monuments, etc). There are great parks and public spaces (Byrd Park, Maymont, Chimborazo, Bryan Park, etc). There's a decent performing arts scene, a lot of live music, and a number of great restaurants and breweries too. Culture is actually one of the things I think Richmond does better than some other cities with similar population sizes.
And yup, the summer is rough. I haven't experienced the pollution issue firsthand (maybe that was more of an issue in your neighborhood than it is where I live?) but it does get hot and humid. I'll take our hot summers over the northeastern winters, but to each his own I suppose.
I moved from Maine to Richmond in January 2017 and left Richmond to move back to Maine in November 2017. So 9 months total.
The roads in downtown Richmond are similar to the roads in rural New England; pretty crappy. The roads on the outskirts are OK, acceptable really. You'd think a place with no snow would have better roads, though. But the taxes are low and they don't have any reason to plow so the roads could be better. Plus, for some reason, all driveway entrances, from houses in the suburb to McDonalds, they all have ball joint killing gutters you have to drive over. Why? I don't know. It's not like it's Florida and flooding is a risk. But they don't have plows so breaking plows is not a risk. It really confused me to see such huge gutters every time I drove into a business. I hated that part.
Avoid the entire east side of Richmond. It's disgusting and not a place you want to wander around at night.
Culture is at a minimum in Richmond. There's not much history and the buildings are aging poorly.
The heat season is cheaper than in the north east but the homes have heat pumps, which are not comfortable in the winter and energy costs overall are very similar to due to the A/C load during the summer.
The renting laws in Virginia area geared to favor the wealthy white land owners, you'll get screwed if you don't find a good land lord.
The people of Richmond are dying to have the rest of the country remember that they exist. You'll see "RVA" stickers on cars belonging to locals. It's pretty silly.
The heat is absolutely ridiculous in the summer. It'll feel like 110 - 115 degrees for most of the summer and the humidity holds the pollution at ground level so you'll never get a breath of fresh air for 5 months.
We really didn't enjoy our stay there and moved back to the frigid north because it offers a better lifestyle and better roads in the high tax area we live in. We are from San Diego and NYC. Never returning to the south east after our stay in Richmond.
I'm usually one of the first to point out the problems associated with city living but even I have to call bull on a good part of your post. Where did you stay that you have such a myopic view of what's around you? I don't recall Maine being on the forefront of any great social experiment but maybe there's more to it when it thaws out.
I have never seen anyone complain about the gutters on the street but most people here don't enter/exit at 55 miles an hour so its not an issue. Not much history, I won't even dignify that statement. Heat Pumps are just 1 option used locally and yes the overall milder winter means we don't require an oversized blast furnace to stay warm. If I remember correctly most up north set there thermostats low because of high heating oil prices, at least here we can afford to run the heat.
Yes summers can be hot and I have seen San Diego socked in with smog so bad that you couldn't see a mile but maybe that was just the wild fires burning everything in the hills again...
Hope your happy up north, maybe we'll see you on an episode of Maine Cabin Masters... Bless You
Wow, did you ever even leave your abode while in Richmond, your musings are bewildering.
"Culture is at a minimum in Richmond. There's NOT MUCH HISTORY and the buildings are aging poorly"....!?....
No, you never left your house did you?
BTW, you've posted on four different threads in the Richmond forum the last two days. If RVA is in your rearview mirror whats the point?
Truth be told, I didn't get out as much as I wanted to due to having children. Oh, I should point out that health insurance in Virginia is great. That's a plus.
I did see enough of the place though. I lived outside of Short Pump, here:
BTW, don't ever rent from a landlord named Lorna Boyle, aka LM Associates. Bad experience but not for this thread.
My commute was highway to Sandston, working in the tobacco industry. Yayyy. Tobacco and banks, that's what Richmond has for work. As a family we went to Maymont, the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, the Science Museum, and Bear Creek Lake State Park. As an individual I mountain biked in the James River Park system. We also shopped for homes all around Richmond and even for plots of land. I can't really say the place is overflowing with culture and history. Aging 70's history maybe.
The homes are crowded and used to be a good buy but now they're priced like anywhere else. Not a big deal but still, if you're used to 3+ acres, good luck finding a house here or even land that has enough drainage to support a septic tank. Clay is a problem around Richmond....
Why post now? Because I back in the north and glad for it! Helping others stay away is now on my list of things to do. Don't worry, I'll get bored with this in like 2 days.
Sorry you didn't enjoy your time here, but a few of your comments make me think that you must not have explored the whole area while you were here, and I wanted to set the record straight on a couple of points.
I've seen the large gutters that you're talking about, but not in the city - I've only seen them in Henrico and the other suburbs, and even there, only in a few certain places (typically the places with older infrastructure - not as much around newer developments). I've always chalked it up to an unwillingness to invest in public infrastructure in certain places + desire to keep taxes low in the suburbs leading to large open drainage. I don't love it either, but I'm not sure it's something that would keep me from moving to a place.
I am most surprised, though, that you say culture is at a minimum. How do you define culture? We have some pretty great museums (VMFA, Science Museum, Virginia Historical Society, not to mention all the Civil War museums closer to downtown, monuments, etc). There are great parks and public spaces (Byrd Park, Maymont, Chimborazo, Bryan Park, etc). There's a decent performing arts scene, a lot of live music, and a number of great restaurants and breweries too. Culture is actually one of the things I think Richmond does better than some other cities with similar population sizes.
And yup, the summer is rough. I haven't experienced the pollution issue firsthand (maybe that was more of an issue in your neighborhood than it is where I live?) but it does get hot and humid. I'll take our hot summers over the northeastern winters, but to each his own I suppose.
The gutters were horrible in Short Pump. Like, I don't know how people drive sedans over them and up the steep driveways and not feel like they made a mistake.
I guess I wouldn't define "culture" as people defending the right to own slaves....btw, other cities have museums and parks; it's hardly something to tout.
I'm usually one of the first to point out the problems associated with city living but even I have to call bull on a good part of your post. Where did you stay that you have such a myopic view of what's around you? I don't recall Maine being on the forefront of any great social experiment but maybe there's more to it when it thaws out.
I have never seen anyone complain about the gutters on the street but most people here don't enter/exit at 55 miles an hour so its not an issue. Not much history, I won't even dignify that statement. Heat Pumps are just 1 option used locally and yes the overall milder winter means we don't require an oversized blast furnace to stay warm. If I remember correctly most up north set there thermostats low because of high heating oil prices, at least here we can afford to run the heat.
Yes summers can be hot and I have seen San Diego socked in with smog so bad that you couldn't see a mile but maybe that was just the wild fires burning everything in the hills again...
Hope your happy up north, maybe we'll see you on an episode of Maine Cabin Masters... Bless You
I would never tell anyone to move to Maine if they can't afford to live on or within 10 miles of the coast and also have an insulated garage. It's definitely a desolate place 5 months out of the year if you're not near Portland.
We had an HVAC guy do some service at our rental. He said that most 4,000+ sq ft homes spend $400 a month in electric for A/C and heat. The place we were in was 4,000 sq ft but we managed to spend about $300/month on electric because it was just us 2 adults and very small people. In Maine we have 4,000 sq. ft and the energy bill is $350/month average. Yes, we use oil and the price is reasonable right now. The heat is more comfortable up north because it comes from baseboards and not forced air.
San Diego's dry air usually produces clear skies. That was my experience anyways. Didn't have much fire near me when I was there.
Oh, I didn't like the constant "god bless" when I was in Richmond. So glad to not have to hear that up north.
Truth be told, I didn't get out as much as I wanted to due to having children. Oh, I should point out that health insurance in Virginia is great. That's a plus.
I did see enough of the place though. I lived outside of Short Pump, here:
BTW, don't ever rent from a landlord named Lorna Boyle, aka LM Associates. Bad experience but not for this thread.
My commute was highway to Sandston, working in the tobacco industry. Yayyy. Tobacco and banks, that's what Richmond has for work. As a family we went to Maymont, the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, the Science Museum, and Bear Creek Lake State Park. As an individual I mountain biked in the James River Park system. We also shopped for homes all around Richmond and even for plots of land. I can't really say the place is overflowing with culture and history. Aging 70's history maybe.
The homes are crowded and used to be a good buy but now they're priced like anywhere else. Not a big deal but still, if you're used to 3+ acres, good luck finding a house here or even land that has enough drainage to support a septic tank. Clay is a problem around Richmond....
Why post now? Because I back in the north and glad for it! Helping others stay away is now on my list of things to do. Don't worry, I'll get bored with this in like 2 days.
It's alright, Poquoson7, you don't need to feel sorry for me and I don't mind you trolling my posts. It was an experience that I had to get through first hand and we both learned to just appreciate what we already have. That's a very valuable thing, so I feel fortunate.
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