Is Savannah Really that Bad? (Atlanta, Hinesville: fit in, sales, apartments)

[jasondnorris]

I currently live in the DC area and I felt the urge to comment on this post. I lived in Savannah for two years (2004-2006) and I hope my comments are helpful in you making a wise decision about Savannah.
What can I say nice about Savannah? Well, it's pretty and they filmed "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" there. That's pretty much the extent of what I can say nice about Savannah. I looked at some of the other post and noticed everyone failed to mention that Savannah is below sea level. Why is that signifcant you might ask? Because when it rains in Savannah for longer than 20 minutes a good number of the streets that you'll be using to get around Savannah will flood. Also if your electricity goes out (which apparently happens if the wind blows to hard in Savannah) expect the lights to be out at least an hour. Savannah Electric has the slowest response time to power outages. Oh, and the summers are brutally hot. Now to the bad news about Savannah. The econony is VERY, VERY, VERY, VERY limited in Savannah. I have a degree and the best I could find was a job at one of the hospitals. I saw some guy say he turned down a job in 60's in Savannah. Let me tell you those jobs are few and far between. Savannah has a tourist based economy. I can't think of ONE fortune 500 company that is headquartered there. The economy is extremely limited so have realistic expectations about the jobs. As far as housing, I think the housing is a little overpriced for that market. I'm in the DC area and I think it's over priced here to. The difference is the economy here is 50 times better than the economy in Savannah. Now I'll touch briefly on race and crime: Savannah has some of the most narrow minded people (white and black) that I've ever seen. Savannah has a high crime rate and there are alot of crimes commited by everyone. ( i was a financial counselor in the ER. i saw people who commited the crimes and the victims and it was a pretty even split.) The problem with Savannah and race is the perception that only blacks commit crime there. Believe that if you want to. The person that mentioned the jail population should also mention most cities in the US have a high percentage of black men in jail. Now some would argue the causes for that: I'm just saying that most cities with large black populations have a high number of black men in jails. Would I suggest you move to Savannah? I don't know you and I don't know what you're looking for. If you want to move south, my hometown of Jacksonville, FL has a lot more to offer than Savannah. Not to say Jacksonville doesn't have it's share of problems, but it's a growing city and the overall standard of living is better than in Savannah.

Hope this helps.

[Vampgrrl]

Jacksonville is so dull though, like Atlanta.

Business cities, new cities like the above are so dull.
Cannot figure out why exactly.

[sdeeter]

Jason:

You are incorrect. Savannah isn't BELOW sea level. Without Levees, like in N.O., the city would be under water. Granted, the drainage, esp. in the Ardsley Park area, is poor. But it's not below sea level.

Scott

[NolatoTybee]

I am wondering if anyone knows how many murders there have been in Savannah this year (2007). I have been checking the crime stats and have seen many armed robberies as well as assaults. I presently live in New Orleans and had thought about moving to Savannah but decided on Tybee insrtead because I am trying to escape the crime in Nola. But I love Savannah, she is so beautiful and when I land on Tybee I still plan on spending some time in Savannah, so I am trying to keep informed and I can proceed with caution, which is all one can really do these days.

But from what I am reading in the crime reports and stats it sounds quite mild compared to New Orleans, so I dont think it will bother me too much. But the crime played a very big factor in my decision to choose Tybee over Savannah.

And New Orleans is the one below sea level, I dont think Savannah is.

[ellie]

I usually see the crime stats in the Savannah paper. Do you read it regularly?

Wilmington Island is nice but it's pretty vanilla white bread culturally speaking. You wouldn't know you were on an island unless someone told you. Now if you could afford to live on the Wilmington River, you might think you were someplace, but in general, it's suburbia.

If you have problems finding a place on Tybee to live long term, you might consider Parkside. I lived there for awhile and liked it. You're going to see the same white neighborhood near a black neighborhood kind of thing that you might see in N.O., but I'm guessing you aren't a racist. You'll know the ropes and be able to see the trouble spots as easily as anyone in town, I imagine.

Good luck.

[bgnzsavnh]

http://www.topozone.com/viewmaps.asp...h&statefips=13
Downtown Savannah elevation is 42 ft. flooding in parts of the city occur in lower elevations that are drained by canals. The heavy rains have to occur during a high tide. When the tide goes out the developed low-areas drain.

[jasondnorris]

I stand corrected sdeeter. I was given incorrect information regarding the sea level in Savannah. What I do know for sure is that it floods ALOT there and I wouldn't suggest anyone move there. I'd tell people to visit Savannah till they're blue in the face. It is a beautiful place. (at least the downtown area is) But as far as living there, I wouldn't suggest it. Someplaces are good places to visit and others are good places to live. Savannah is a good place to visit. The only reason I wouldn't suggest St. Augustine is the economy isn't a vibrant as Jacksonville's economy. St. Augustine is great. We took alot of trips there when I was a kid and I'm taking my daughter there next month. I'd tell some to live in St. Augustine before I'd tell them to do Savannah though.

[Lulu_IWG]

I've been reading about the crime also. But, I took the liberty of looking up the statistics myself. It is above average but that is probably from the inner city areas. It seems like there are quite a high amount of registered sex offenders in the city though and that is something that I'm concerned about. But it doesn't seem much different than where I live as far as the crime rate is. But I live in a nice suberb about 20 minutes from Rochester so it is quite safe here. So, I looked around at the stats from the surrounding suberbs of Savannah, such as Richmond Hill and the Islands, they seem to have a significant lower crime rate and reg. sex offenders. This is what I've found so far by asking questions like where is the safest neighborhoods along with good schools and stuff like that. Try posting a more positive sounding question....I bet you'll get better answers. I think I've been getting some really informative feedback, feel free to take a look at my posting. Anyway, good luck on your searches!

[mycomfortcorner]

Originally Posted by Pittle

Blueoktober,

Thank you for relating your stories here. I've been silent on this thread up until now because there are some here who want to push Savannah as this ideal, perfect place. It's far from it.

The crime as you stated in your above post EXISTS. It EXISTS, people. You can turn a blind eye to it (or live in another state and not see it daily like those of us WHO DO LIVE IN SAVANNAH). It's real and it's ugly and it's not getting better.

I work in the historic district. I deal with tourists and locals alike, every day - all day. The number one question I get asked is about Savannah's crime rate and how can they avoid "the areas" that are "bad". It's hard to convince people it's safe around the district when it isn't. Two co-workers were robbed at gunpoint in broad daylight coming into work at approximately Bull Street and Oglethorpe.

And I don't mind bringing up race. In Savannah the crime is mostly committed by young black men. Check out a Chatham County jail. My employer has a county deputy on duty during work hours and I've become friends with several of them. Their jail is 8 black inmates to every 2 whites. The education system here sucks and plays a big role in the cycle of poverty. Lack of education sends these guys out to the streets to rob you and I of what we worked hard to earn. And the police don't go into some of these neighborhoods! That speaks volumes.

The exterior beauty of Savannah is awesome - no denying that. Her interior isn't as pretty. Those that post here and sugar-coat the crime and race issues are disconnected because they choose to be. In their outdated eyes, Savannah is the gentile place of two eras ago. Wrong. It's one of the most crime-ridden cities in this country. Think before you move here; especially with children who will be attending school.

And to end, I want to mention Orleans Square. That place is almost dead silent every day. And has been since Jennifer Ross was murdered there just over 2 years ago. Four local college kids (white) were crossing the square to return to their car and three local black guys decided to rob them. One of them shot Miss Ross when she refused to give up her purse. He later said he shot her because "the ***** bucked".

Welcome to Savannah.

I'm black and my husband is white. We will be moving to Savannah in 2 weeks, with our 9 years-old son. Your story has discouraged me a great deal, but thanks for posting it.

[JoeP]

The city proper has only around 130,000ish people and the metro is only maybe double that.

300,000 people doesn't make for a region with a lot of opportunity.

The historic nature of the city I would think prohibits or at least limits growth and I would think that many jobs are tourism related or related to the port, which is a significant port, but most any city of that population will have limited numbers of professional jobs and certainly limited "new economy" jobs.