Meat Face Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Anybody familiar with this region? Is it cool? Anything to do there? Pretty cheap to live? Help me out. I'm just curious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MojoMan Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Looking at a job at gsk? I was there on two occasions (1987 and 2004). It had changed a great deal. Currently, demographically, the triangle itself seems to be like any modern high tech/biotech driven suburban area (like Northern San Diego County, Silicon Valley, Greater Seattle Area, etc). Consequently, it looked to me like it had the usual amenities associated with that kinda person (good restaurants, nice new housing, good schools, etc). I recall when I interviewed at Duke that the students said it was like So Cal in that it was two hours from the beach, the mountains, etc. I still think the outlying areas are Mayberry-like though (I could be wrong, PD, correct me if appropriate). You might think that's charming; you might not like it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billay Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 (edited) That's my backyard Meat. Mojo has it pretty well summed up. RTP itself is a region between Raleigh and Durham which was created by the State of NC to encourage companies to bring their businesses here. It has been a great success. Chapel Hill, Durham, Raleigh, and all of their outlying areas have eperienced rapid growth as a result. Most of this growth is within what is know as "the corridor", the area between interstates I-85 and I-40. The park is little more than a corporate suburbia, headquarters on well manicured lots. Any social activity you might be looking for would still be found in Durham, Raleigh, or Chapel Hill. Here's some more info Edit to Add: Cary, NC was voted one of the most desirable places to live in the most recent CNNMoney survey. It's a suburb of Raleigh and typical of the type of growth that is taking place in NC as a result of RTP. 30 years ago, Cary was hardly a dot on a map. Not exactly typical of "old school" NC, but there are some stats here, on the rankings page that you might find interesting. Edited July 18, 2006 by billay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliaz Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 My brother-in-law just moved down there. Its a booming area for N.C. He sold his 2000 sq foot cap cod here in Bowie, Maryland for 369k and bought the same sized home down there for $160k. The area is cheap and the crime rate is very low. The wife and I were talking about moving down there but when it comes down to it, we hate the Panthers a little too much to live around so many of their fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muck Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 I lived there very briefly in the early/mid 1990s ... very nice place. It was too long ago and I was there too briefly to really be able to comment more than that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeeR Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 From what I hear, while it's cheaper than many other similarly sized areas (or bigger), it's not so "cheap" anymore. Also traffic is a freakin nightmare as NC has done a Virginia-like (ie laughably bad) job of planning in that regard. Still, overall I hear it is a really nice area in general to live, mostly for reasons stated. I also get the impression it's not the most liberal area in the world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumpin Johnies Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 I also get the impression it's not the most liberal area in the world. That's a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeeR Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Did I say otherwise? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billay Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 traffic is a freakin nightmare as NC has done a Virginia-like (ie laughably bad) job of planning in that regard. Tis true, Interstates 85 and 40 combine through the middle of the state and if you have to commute east or west to work, it can be a headache. It's really the only way to get where you are going. They keep widening the highway and it just keeps filling up with cars. I also get the impression it's not the most liberal area in the world. There's a very strong dichotomy between most of the state which is pretty conservative (Jessie Helms)and such places like Chapel Hill, Durham and Carrboro, which are very liberal. The mayor of Carrboro is openly gay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Selly Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Tis true, Interstates 85 and 40 combine through the middle of the state and if you have to commute east or west to work, it can be a headache. It's really the only way to get where you are going. They keep widening the highway and it just keeps filling up with cars. There's a very strong dichotomy between most of the state which is pretty conservative (Jessie Helms)and such places like Chapel Hill, Durham and Carrboro, which are very liberal. The mayor of Carrboro is openly gay. I live on the eastern side of the whole mess and traffic can be fun most of the time. The whole place is spread out and there is next to no public transportation. The schools are generally pretty good, some systems have some overcrowding problems, Wake County in particular (Everone wants them to "build more schools, but don't raise my taxes"). The further away you get from the metro areas, the more conservative it gets, I'm in western Johnston County and my precinct went 84% GW in 2004 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MojoMan Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 (edited) Tis true, Interstates 85 and 40 combine through the middle of the state and if you have to commute east or west to work, it can be a headache. It's really the only way to get where you are going. They keep widening the highway and it just keeps filling up with cars. There's a very strong dichotomy between most of the state which is pretty conservative (Jessie Helms)and such places like Chapel Hill, Durham and Carrboro, which are very liberal. The mayor of Carrboro is openly gay. I thought Charlotte has a lot of fruit and nutty, alternative crap too. On the other hand, I have always been struck by how the women in Charlotte seem stuck in the 80's with their big hair (small sample-airport employees). Edited July 18, 2006 by MojoMan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billay Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 I thought Charlotte has a lot of fruit and nutty, alternative crap too. I suppose it has it's share, like any large city, but Charlotte is a NASCAR city. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yukon Cornelius Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 I also get the impression it's not the most liberal area in the world. Obviously smarter than the average southern hick area Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimC Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 (edited) From what I hear, while it's cheaper than many other similarly sized areas (or bigger), it's not so "cheap" anymore. Also traffic is a freakin nightmare as NC has done a Virginia-like (ie laughably bad) job of planning in that regard. Still, overall I hear it is a really nice area in general to live, mostly for reasons stated. I also get the impression it's not the most liberal area in the world. Watch what you say about Virginny. VDOT (Virginia Department of Transportation) has taken stupidity to a whole new level. Edited July 18, 2006 by TimC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clubfoothead Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Obviously smarter than the average southern hick area Be nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumpin Johnies Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 I suppose it has it's share, like any large city, but Charlotte is a NASCAR city. This is a good thing as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darin3 Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Tis true, Interstates 85 and 40 combine through the middle of the state and if you have to commute east or west to work, it can be a headache. It's really the only way to get where you are going. They keep widening the highway and it just keeps filling up with cars. Sounds like Austin, TX. There's actually a theory in transportation planning that addresses the widening of highways as it relates to alleviation of traffic. Interestingly, the addition of lanes hardly makes a dent in the "amount of traffic" a highway sees. Watch what you say about Virginny. VDOT (Virginia Department of Transportation) has taken stupidity to a whole new level. VDOT's a nightmare... but pales in comparison to CalTrans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 I suppose it has it's share, like any large city, but Charlotte is a NASCAR city. And the NASCAR HOF is being built there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 There's actually a theory in transportation planning that addresses the widening of highways as it relates to alleviation of traffic. Interestingly, the addition of lanes hardly makes a dent in the "amount of traffic" a highway sees. VDOT's a nightmare... but pales in comparison to CalTrans. Read Atlanta. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeeR Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Watch what you say about Virginny. VDOT (Virginia Department of Transportation) has taken stupidity to a whole new level. You couldn't possibly be preaching to the choir more if you tried, believe me. VDOT's a nightmare... but pales in comparison to CalTrans. lol. VDOT doesn't pale in comparison to ANY organization in that regard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yukon Cornelius Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 You couldn't possibly be preaching to the choir more if you tried, believe me. lol. VDOT doesn't pale in comparison to ANY organization in that regard. MNDOT has got to be the worst..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 MNDOT has got to be the worst..... Almost any DOT in that regard. For example, IDOT = Illinois Dept Of Transportation., or a yukon spelling of the correct word with a missing vowel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nogohawk Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 PennDOT is the worst ... check out the truckers ratings for the worst roads in the country. I'll see if I can find the link. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yukon Cornelius Posted July 18, 2006 Share Posted July 18, 2006 Almost any DOT in that regard. For example, IDOT = Illinois Dept Of Transportation., or a yukon spelling of the correct word with a missing vowel. NA will just go with FIB for anyone and anything in ILL.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.