KCKev wrote:
So where did you end up moving to?
I live in Montgomery County MD right now, way up in suburban Germantown, but have been relentlessly researching the region for a home for my family. Still don't know where will end up as that mostly depends on where my wife ultimately lands a job. I chose Germantown because of a nice short term lease I got and because it's on the MARC commuter line and wanted to get a feel for suburban living since we will end up in the burbs somewhere since I can't afford a 700k home in the nicer urban areas.
I really like the area so far. I talk to people every day about where to live, where the good schools are, where the best commutes are, where the best city neighborhoods are etc.
Even though there is some territorial friction such as Virginia people liking Virginia better and Maryland people liking Maryland better, suburban people not caring much for DC or visa versa, I don't think it's anywhere near like it is in KC and most of the opinions people give are pretty much dead on, not just completely out of wack like you hear from people in JoCo talk about the MO suburbs or urban KCMO. It seems like most people respect other areas of the region even if it's not their area or not their cup of tea. I found the same to be true in Denver, Chicago etc when I worked in those towns for extended periods.
I like the diversity of the area. Even the suburbs are extremely diverse compared to KC. I like how the area puts a lot of effort into bike and pedestrian trails and transit which is really something nearly every city in the country except KC is doing.
I don't like the cost of housing. What people pay for houses out here is just insane. A half million dollars will not get you much in a good area, urban or suburban.
Overall, great area and we look forward to it. I enjoy living in a larger city myself and may not return to a city like KC for a while. The more I look at KC now, the more the city really seems to have problems. Blight it just out of control. Sprawl is out of control, segregation is crazy both racially and economically, transit is non-existent, the city feels like a ghost town at times when I return. The people have a fake Midwestern friendliness that I just can't stand anymore. The people here are more real, what you see is what you get. Sure sometimes it's a bit hard, but it's real and even though people are slightly harder (mostly just in public), they are much more open to different people and I have found the people are actually friendlier and more outgoing and open overall than people in KC. If you work in OP and tell somebody you are from Raytown, you are instantly out of certain groups. I don't see that here at all.
When you go to any restaurant or retail store or step on any train or bus and see a group of kids hanging out, it's always a mix of races. Million dollar homes are never more than a few blocks, if not across the street, from modest townhomes and apartments. The suburbs here are more dense than the plaza is in KC. Basically nearly all the new suburban growth in this entire area is new urbanism, medium to high density mixed use.
But I also miss the really good things about the city. Mostly the cost of living and ease of commuting. KC Is just a very cheap and easy city to live in. It still offers most of what any large city offers as far as quality of life such as pro sports, museums, etc.
DC is also nice to live in an area that has plenty of sport fans, but sports doesn't overwhelm the city. In KC, sports (college, chiefs, royals) is like the only thing anybody ever talks about, it's all over everybody's cars and clothing etc. (mostly college) I have always just found that to be tacky and the culture of that to be more rural than urban. I'm a huge sports fan, but I don't wear MU stuff to work every chance I get. KC just needs to apply a fraction of it's college sports passion to making the city a better place.
There are plenty of sports fans and even more teams to follow in the pros and college, but it's not near as annoying. It's just different.
I like it so far. I think after a few years of living out here, we might try to go west to Denver, Seattle, Portland, San Diego etc.
I also enjoy showing off KC to the people out here on a regular basis. I loving having all my photos online that I can pull up and show people. Those photos of KC blow people away. Today I showed a person from Charleston SC what KC looked like. He honestly thought KC was smaller than Charleston and that the city's primary industry was meat packing. My boss asked me if it really is that flat in Kansas even though the KC area is very similar to the DC area, just slightly less trees.
So even though there are things about KC that are really jacked up. I will always be a Kansas Citian and will always put the city in a positive light for those that are curious.
Feel free to move these posts to the KC to DC thread. Oops .
