Greenville and surrounding area for family relocating (Knoxville, Johnson City: transplants, neighborhoods)

[family first]

Folks, curious about the town of Greenville and how it would be for a family moving there. What can you tell me about the area: High schools, medical care, people, values, the town itself? Is the town unique or commercialized? Walkable or a car is a must to go from end to end? How is the weather compared to the rest of the state? What are the negatives of this town or neighboring towns? If a nice area, what neighborhoods would be more desireable than others? Neighboorhoods to staw away from?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Are there colleges with the area?

Thank you

[Serious Conversation]

The high school in the city of Greeneville is pretty well-regarded. As is typical in east TN, city schools are generally better than the county, with teachers being better paid and city schools being better funded.

Greeneville is a typical rural small city. There has been quite a bit of recent retail development along the Andrew Johnson Highway. I wouldn’t say it’s particularly unique.

Medical care is poor. Greeneville used to have two hospitals - Takoma and Laughlin. Takoma has basically been decommissioned as an acute care facility. Laughlin has seen a decline in available services - certain cardiovascular procedures, for example, are now being bounced to Johnson City. Anything remotely complicated gets sent to Johnson City, or in reality, Knoxville. Send me a direct message if you want more details.

Weather is typical for east TN - slightly elevated tornado risk. You’ll need a car. Stay within the city limits - rural poverty, crime, and drug abuse can be issues.

What is leading to you look at Greeneville? The biggest complaint I have with the area is relative isolation and a terrible local economy. It’s also a very insular, “townie” type of place. I think it’s on a slight upswing, but the economy and location hurt it.

[AppalachianAngler]

Originally Posted by family first

Folks, curious about the town of Greenville and how it would be for a family moving there. What can you tell me about the area: High schools, medical care, people, values, the town itself? Is the town unique or commercialized? Walkable or a car is a must to go from end to end? How is the weather compared to the rest of the state? What are the negatives of this town or neighboring towns? If a nice area, what neighborhoods would be more desireable than others? Neighboorhoods to staw away from?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Are there colleges with the area?

Thank you

Greeneville High School is a great high school and always receives high marks. Like almost any high school, your child(ren) may need some adjusting if they are new to the town/area to make friends because there are not that many transplants.

Medical care is poor. You have the basics at Greeneville Community Hospital East (formerly known as Laughlin).

The people are mostly locals that have been there for generations. It is culturally similar to other towns in Southern Appalachia with roughly the same population. Some folks are friendly but others are more stand-offish to outsiders.

The downtown is beautiful and unique. It is in pretty good shape considering towns with similar demographics. The rest of the commercial & retail part of town is on 11-E ("the bypass") and looks pretty much like other towns with your Dollar Tree strip malls, etc. The retail development on the bypass near Tusculum towards Johnson City is fairly new, growing and nice. Throughout most everywhere in town, you get good mountain views--some of the best in the area.

You will want a car. There are some walkable areas but it is not practical for all of your needs. The neighborhoods near the post office downtown can be somewhat sketchy but are overall fine. The more rural the more worrisome IMO. The rest of the subdivisions are pretty standard East TN middle class. I guess River Plantation is considered to be one of the more high-end neighborhoods, although it is all relative for the area.

Tusculum College is in Tusculum, TN, which is basically just the campus area in Greeneville. It is the oldest college in TN and beautiful. ETSU is 30 minutes away. UT (Knoxville) is about an hour. There are other smaller private schools close in nearby NC an VA.

There are plenty of outdoor opportunities with the Appalachian Trail running through the county.

It is a great little town if you are okay with an abundant amount of outdoor recreation activities but lack of nightlife, nice restaurants, lack of social life, etc.