Interested in what you think about your State

[Number9Dream]

Let me preface this by saying that I understand our opinions are subjective. I know some think that PA is a great place to live. I no longer feel that way. If I live long enough to retire, I'm moving out of PA. I hate Winter more every year. We pay astronomical property taxes for Taj Mahal schools. Housing developments and warehouses are covering every piece of open land with macadam. PennDOT is the worst run organization in the free world. ETC.
If you have a few minutes, please tell me a little about your state / area, regarding the climate, taxes, urban sprawl, music / concerts, friendliness to newcomers, etc. Please tell me some pros and cons.
I'm beginning to visit & explore interesting areas in the Southeast and Southwest, but you can't learn very much on a short vacation. So, I thought of turning to the DU - the community of people who have been a font of information for me.

[CottonBear]

1. If you don't like Penn DOT then you'll hate the GA DOT.

You'll find a beautiful state that the GA DOT is attempting to pave over. There is virtually no public transportation in most of the state. Only the larger cities have bus service. Amtrak service is very limited. The GOP is in power and we have two idiot GOP senators and a GOP good old boy governor named Sonny.

That said, I live in a blue city in a red sea. I like where I live and it is not too far of a drive to Atlanta, the mountains or the coast. You can live in a rural area, the suburbs or in a city.

GA is the largest state east of the Mississippi River.

We have a state income tax. Property taxes are reasonable. There are ad valorem taxes on cars.

Perdue blew the 500 million dollar budget surplus when he came into office and now Peach Care (health insurance for poor kids) is being funded by an emergency federal grant.

There's lots of music, art, culture and history here in Georgia as well as beautiful parks and natural areas.

Urban sprawl and the loss of farmland is a problem, especially in the northern part of the state.i
Oh yeah, you can't buy beer or liquor on Sundays. In some places, you can purchase drinks in restaurants on Sundays. Many communities are dry or only allow the sale (and not serving) of beer and wine.

You'll learn to buy "Sunday beer" on Saturday night. ;)

You'll have to like living with a LOT of Republicans if you're not in one of the larger cities.

[Number9Dream]

2. Thank you CottonBear

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I love the water, so I'd prefer someplace near the coast (Savannah / Tybee, Brunswick, or near a good-sized lake). Is Savannah one of the blue areas you mentioned?

[CottonBear]

3. Savannah is a nice blue area. My friend (and my former congressman), John Barrow,

is now the congressman from Savannah. He used to live here in Athens but the GOP redistricted him out of his hometown so he moved to Savannah to run again. My new congressman is Paul Broun (R-GA), a local Athens area doctor,whose father, Paul Broun Sr. was a Democratic state senator from Athens for over 30 years. Broun is conservative but not a total wing nut like Senators Brownback or Frist (also doctors.)

Savannah is a truly great city. Atlanta is also blue as is Athens. The Georgia coast is lovely. Jekyll Island is a state owned resort island and natural preserve that is affordable for the average family. Cumberland Island (wilderness area) is a national treasure. Augusta (on the Savannah River) is a very interesting and historic river town. You can take your boat from there and cruise down to Savannah and dock at River Street!

There are large lakes along the GA-SC border (the dammed Savannah River). These include Hartwell, Russell and Clarke's Hill (aka Lake Strom Thurmond :( ). Inland lakes include Lake Sinclair (Milledgeville) and Lake Oconee (Eatonton-Reynolds Plantation area). There are other lakes to the west and southwest but I'm not as familiar with those areas.


The North Georgia mountains are spectacular. South Georgia has the Okefenokee Swamp. Macon is a very historic river city. The GA MUsic Hall of Fame is there.

I hope this info is helpful.

CB

[Papagoose]

4. So far, so good...

I moved to Polk County, GA (just outside of Cedartown) from Philadelphia, PA in June and have very few regrets. I live in NW Georgia, so no beach for me, but my family and I prefer the mountains, so this work related move worked very well for us.

What I love:
The day I moved in, everyone in my neighborhood (only 6 houses) came out to greet my family.
It is dark at night.
It is quiet at night (one you get used to nature sounds).
I wake up Sunday morning to birds chirping, not buses, trucks, horns, etc...
I sit on my back porch every evening and watch the deer nibble the grass in my back yard.
A bear walked through my neighborhood and nobody called the police to kill it.
When I eat in a restaurant or shop in a store, the employees are genuinely friendly.
My property takes are very low.
My house is twice the size of what I had in PA, for just a little over half the price!
I'm within an hour of all the shopping, recreation, culture, entertainment that I could ever desire.

What I don't like:
Red state politics - I see Republicans. Everywhere!
Pushy Evangelical coworkers/neighbors.
Traffic when I go to/from work and shopping.
Heat...I will be sorely missing snow this winter.
Urban sprawl. (Though I am regretfully part of the problem on this point)

[Number9Dream]

5. Welcome to DU, & thanks for replying

Papagoose,
Welcome to the DU, and thanks for replying. Hearing from somebody from Philly, makes it even easier to relate. I'm in the Lehigh Valley where Dems & Repukes are about 50/50. It's great to hear that your new neighbors were so friendly. Regarding Winter: I've shoveled enough snow & sleet to last two lifetimes... wouldn't miss it one bit. That's just me.

[Iris]

6. My parents recently moved to Athens when my mom retired.

It's a popular place for retirees, presumably because the University of Georgia is there and university towns are appealing places to retire.

One thing about GA is most retirees are exempt from state taxes at a certain age. That was a factor for my parents. My dad wanted to find a state with no state taxes, but this was just as good for them.

[Number9Dream]

8. Wasn't aware of state tax exemption / Thanks

Thanks for replying. The tax exemption you mentioned is exactly the type of positive features I'm interested in, but was unaware of. I'll try to find out what age it kicks in.

[RebelOne]

9. Since when are retirees exempt from state taxes?

I am 68, live in Georgia and pay state taxes. Or do you mean only property taxes? I live in a mobile home park, so don't pay property taxes. But I still have to pay a yearly ad valorum tax on my mobile home.

[BooScout]

10. No one is exempt from state taxes in Georgia....

...unless they are below the poverty level.

Some local municipalities allow exemptions for property taxes for older individuals however. It's pretty much on a county by county and city by city basis however. For instance if you live in the city of Decatur in the county of Dekalb, you become exempt from Dekalb Property taxes at age 70 (I think that's the age), however your Decatur City Property Taxes (which is a significant chunk btw, does not exempt you until age 80.

[bunkerbuster1]

7. Gwinnett is not great

contrary to what the giant towers greeting you on I-85 have to say.

However, it is becoming a majority-minority county, and I suspect it will become a blue stronghold.

Move here and, who knows, you might help us turn this thing around.

[BooScout]

11. From my perspective....

...and I no longer live in Georgia since I moved to Wales, UK a couple of years ago.......Georgia is a nice state to live in.

I think you have to take the politics with a grain of salt. Until just a few years ago the Democrats controlled the State Legislature and the Governor's Office and had done so since the Civil War. It's my opinion that the swing to the Republicans is due to several factors......1. Corporate transplants moving in to many areas of the metro Atlanta area in the past few years that vote with a more conservative leaning......2. The gradual swing of Georgia's Democratic Party to the left over the past few years...........3. Democratic Candidates for Governor being totally inept & having a history not conductive to getting elected on a statewide basis. 4. Zell Miller becoming a complete lunatic and confusing the hell out of many not so savvy voters. 5. Rural counties becoming increasingly fed up with them evil Liberals in Atlanta trying to run the state & 6. Downright nasty, evil and despicable campaign tactics used by the Republican Party in many elections in recent years (what that did to Max Cleland was criminal IMHO.

There's a few other factors as to why the politics in Georgia have shifted to the Republican Party in the past few years, but the ones I gave are pretty much accurate IMHO.....that said.......politics is cyclical and I don't give up hope that Georgia Politics will swing back to the Blue Zone in coming years.

Politics aside when considering Georgia as a new home. ......I can tell you that Georgia is hotter than Hell in the summer months........and by summer I pretty much mean from May thru September. For the most part of those months you will spend much of your time dashing from your Air conditioned car, to your a/c'd home to your a/c'd office, shopping mall, etc. And whilst your dashing from a/c point to a/c point you will be slapping at mosquitoes as well.

If you live anywhere near Atlanta, you will also have to deal with Air Pollution Alerts in the warmer months in addition to the heat and humidity. There are many days where it is just not safe to spend any time outside and it can be hard to breath even for the most fit and acclimated individuals.

Now from late September to late April it's rather nice. There is no place prettier in the spring than Atlanta with all the dogwoods, azaleas, and blooming flora & fauna....but if you suffer from allergies.........make sure you get your shots because the pollen in Atlanta in the spring will turn your car pea soup green.

Fall is beautiful anywhere in Georgia........from the salt marshes of the coast turning a beautiful gold to the mountains of north Georgia and the hardwoods turning a blaze of color.......it's is breathtakingly beautiful. Football in the South takes over, you will smell woodsmoke in the cool, crisp air.......with warm days and chilly nights and it is perfect.

Winter's are fairly mild except for the occasional ice storm (which wreaks havoc with power lines) or the rare snowfall (once or twice a winter). You can get some pretty cold snaps with temps hovering in the low teens but they never last long and before you know it you'll get a day with bright sunshine and warmer temps that make you thankful your parents moved from Michigan many years ago, lol.

When I lived in Georgia, I primarily lived in the Atlanta area........which has become too big for it's britches if you ask me. It's too crowded, the infrastructure is straining to keep up, crime is front and center, pollution is a big problem and some metro counties are adamant about ignoring public transportation (I think it's all ready too late to even begin to fix it). BUT........I love Atlanta......it's cosmopolitan.....has some great restaurants, entertainment, sports, shopping and has many wonderful & friendly people living there. I think more than anything, the people of Georgia are what make it special.....warm, friendly and inviting.

The North Georgia Mountains are beautiful, but in recent years more and more people have been moving in, over developing and causing 10 mile long traffic jams on Autumn Weekends to view the leaves and get to the lakes. Still there are many wild areas left and development has not creeped in everywhere.

The coast is spectacular. Not the same as the gulf coast but lovely all the same. Savannah is a grand Old Town and they have restored many parts of the downtown area in a most agreeable manner. The coastal islands are quaint and not as over developed as Florida (a good thing). St Simons retains much of it's small town charm, but it's priced just about everyone out of the market to live there unless you are a millionaire.....still it's nice for a holiday.

I miss Georgia a lot, but I do love living where I am now. The Welsh people remind me very much of home with their friendliness and openness. Where ever you wind up, I wish you good luck.

[Number9Dream]

12. Thanks BooScout

Thank you for the detailed reply, and correcting the tax exemption notions. I wish you good luck as well. Is your user name from "To Kill A Mockingbird"?

[BooScout]

13. Yep n/t