Brevard, Black Mountain

Any info on these towns would be appreciated. Progressives? Cost of Living? etc. Thanks

it's near Asheville, and is probably one of the more progressive areas of the state. And it's quite lovely. It has a coffee shop, a beautiful situation in the mountains, and a nice hiking shop ("Take a Hike"), as well as a dog bakery. And there is stuff to do in Asheville. However, you will be surrounded by small towns with millions of churches. I don't know where you are from now but it could be stifling to you if you are not churchy. I was only visiting, so can't really speak to the cost of living, or the type of jobs. There is a good grocery store there, also, by the way. It's also a good place for music.

I haven't lived there in 30 years, but I get back a couple of times a year. It's the most beautiful country there is, with great people. Pretty red, though, but you pretty much have to get to a big city for that to not be true in the South. Not a lot of jobs, mostly tourism. Plenty to do if you like the forest-fishing, hiking, waterfalls,etc. Cost of living should be pretty low. Weather is great, by my standards-mild summers, plenty of snow in the winter. I'd love to live there again.

My town too. Did you go to Brevard HS? That's about as long as I've been away. We just might be former classmates! I was the beauty queen! Just kidding.

Inquiring minds want to know. I was '73.

where did you live?

I tried to send you a private message but it wasn't working on my end so send me one. I only access the computer at work. I lived on Jordon Road, but that doesn't help you get clued in I'm sure. Wow, I bet we had some classes together or something. Cool! I'll try again next week. Bye.

http://www.citizen-times.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage

http://www.visitwaterfalls.com/

Brevard was my home town. Very lovely with the Pisgah Nat'l Forest close by. Private junior college there.

Odd - as I can't stand bats.

I'm in Fl now. I've been here a year. I'm looking for a small mountain town. Can be a nice mix of politics. No mix here at all.

and i heard from my reliable source they had a candlelight vigil for peace last nice.

It's fairly progressive.

Black Mountain is very nice, smaller than Brevard. Black Mountain is located next to the small town of Montreat, home of Montreat College. Brevard is home of Brevard College, famous for their annual international music festival. Brevard is also known for being home to rare white squirrels.

In addition to the student population, both communities have a fairly large segment of well-monied retirees. Real estate prices in Black Mountain seem slightly higher than those in the surrounding areas, maybe because it is smaller. Brevard has more in the way of shopping centers, Wal-Mart, department stores, and a community hospital. Black Mountain does not have large shopping, (although they have very quaint and chic downtown, lots of small businesses) and no large medical facility. They have a great little community park, Lake Tomahawk, and a very nice golf course. They even have a community lawn bowling green. Both towns are great places for finding hiking and biking trails.

Whether or not the towns are "churchy" I'm not sure. This is church country up here, but I don't think you'd feel pressure to go. I have never encountered that. You might be more pressured to learn to mountain bike or play golf, if anything.

Note: You might want to check it out in the winter, if snow is a concern.

for all the information. I'm a native West Virginian so snow is not a problem. The coal companies have a nasty habit of chopping the tops off mountains there. No coal in NC is there?

about 1 - 1 1/2 hrs N-NW from Charlotte in the Hickory/Statesville/Wilkesboro triangle. That's a little east from Black Mountain, I'm not sure where Brevard is?

If you're looking for a small city that is more liberal, has some mountains, still close to cities but is more metropolitan than rural, you might want to check out Morganton. It's east of Black Mountain but west of Hickory off Interstate 40 if you're looking at a map. It's what I would describe as a "professional" town. The state School of the Deaf is there, also a state mental hospital. There are a lot of doctors and medical professionals, but there are also a lot of lawyers. It's also a very pretty town, not quite as mountainous as Asheville, but deep foothills. I think it's less tourista than Asheville/Black Mountain can be at some times of the year.

Cost of living is relative, it's really not that different from one end of the state to the other, not enough to really make one area stand out more than the other. Just remember that anywhere the tourists are, you're gonna pay more. I think you said you were in Fla? If so, then you know. I'm was born here in NC, grew up in Fla (Tampa), and have lived here in NC for 20 years now, it's not that different in that way, just mountains not beaches.

Really, a lot depends on other factors you might want or need...I'm prejudiced, but there are a lot of great places to live here in NC...despite our "official" red status, we're not as red as we might seem! (mostly)

One thing you should be aware of, if you move up here from Fla...personal property tax. When you earn money, you pay tax on it. When you buy something, you pay tax on it. (I know, you're with me so far, just like everywhere else, right?) Well, they have a twist here, they call it personal property taxes...it means, AFTER you buy something, if it's a big dollar item, you pay taxes on it EVERY YEAR thereafter, just because you own it. This blew my mind...I grew up in Fla, no personal property tax. I'd never heard of it. This is probably not new to you - but it was a real shocker to me!!

I'll add Morganton to my list.