OT: Birmingham

[AlSwearengen]

Alright, some of you may remember that we were planning on checking out Huntsville as a possible place to relocate to. We checked out Huntsville last weekend (or as much of it as we could in a day). We didn't really get any warm fuzzies about the place in the short time we were there, but we are going to go back to see more of it.

This leads me to Birmingham. We are somewhat familiar with B'ham as we have friends that live there and they seem to like it. What do I need to know about the place? I have done some mountain biking at Oak Mountain and that is heaven compared to anything around H'burg. What can ya'll tell me?

 

[bhamdog54]

Birmingham is a really incredible city that is growing so much, so quickly. Regions Park downtown is an incredible place to watch some Double AA baseball, and the Barons lead the league in attendance. There is also railroad park which is a really youthful area with festivals and events that has been completely renovated.

Then there are the breweries. Good people brewing company, and Avondale are really incredible and are the coolest places to hang out and drink some awesome beer.

The schools in the Birmingham area are all incredible and public. You have mountain brook, Vestavia, oak mountain, home wood, Spain park and my alma mater Hoover High School. Also with all of these schools they have great football programs and are all in really great neighborhoods of Birmingham.

Birmingham is known for some of the best food in the south, and have a multitude of options. If you want Mexican/Street Fare try Rojo in Homewood, if you want french food or what is considered the best burger in the state go to Chez Fon Fon, for BBQ you can't go wrong with Jim'N'Nicks or Dreamland but the true town favorite is Saw's. There are plenty of other incredible restaurants but the thing Bham is most noted for is their Greek food. They have a Greek festival every year that takes over the town and is nationally recognized.

There are tons of shops on 280 or the galleria in Hoover but the cream of the crop is the Summitt with tons of great food and shops.

Also if you are interested in entertainment, there is the Birmingham Broadway series, and tons of awesome concerts that come to the BJCC.

Birmingham is a beautiful place with tons of parks and botanical gardens, and also tons of things growing in the city. Now is a great time to move to Birmingham, and I know this was long winded but I hope it was somewhat helpful.

 

[BirminghamDAWG]

Birmingham is a really incredible city that is growing so much, so quickly. Regions Park downtown is an incredible place to watch some Double AA baseball, and the Barons lead the league in attendance. There is also railroad park which is a really youthful area with festivals and events that has been completely renovated.

Then there are the breweries. Good people brewing company, and Avondale are really incredible and are the coolest places to hang out and drink some awesome beer.

The schools in the Birmingham area are all incredible and public. You have mountain brook, Vestavia, oak mountain, home wood, Spain park and my alma mater Hoover High School. Also with all of these schools they have great football programs and are all in really great neighborhoods of Birmingham.

Birmingham is known for some of the best food in the south, and have a multitude of options. If you want Mexican/Street Fare try Rojo in Homewood, if you want french food or what is considered the best burger in the state go to Chez Fon Fon, for BBQ you can't go wrong with Jim'N'Nicks or Dreamland but the true town favorite is Saw's. There are plenty of other incredible restaurants but the thing Bham is most noted for is their Greek food. They have a Greek festival every year that takes over the town and is nationally recognized.

There are tons of shops on 280 or the galleria in Hoover but the cream of the crop is the Summitt with tons of great food and shops.

Also if you are interested in entertainment, there is the Birmingham Broadway series, and tons of awesome concerts that come to the BJCC.

Birmingham is a beautiful place with tons of parks and botanical gardens, and also tons of things growing in the city. Now is a great time to move to Birmingham, and I know this was long winded but I hope it was somewhat helpful.

I agree with all of this. There seems to be a sense of community around Birmingham and there are some exciting things going on especially downtown. (Barons, Railroad Park, BJCC, as well as housing developments - condos and such) I grew up around Jackson and it seems like Birmingham is just a little bit further along in it's resurgence. I have thoroughly enjoyed my 2 yrs here after college.

For the most part, the people are great but you do have to deal with the Bammers and Barners. Football is king so even if we sweep a series or win a basketball game against them, nobody really notices. I have noticed more and more bulldogs in the area.

If you have any more specific questions, let me know and I'll try to help you out.

 

[Hammer Down]

Alright, some of you may remember that we were planning on checking out Huntsville as a possible place to relocate to. We checked out Huntsville last weekend (or as much of it as we could in a day). We didn't really get any warm fuzzies about the place in the short time we were there, but we are going to go back to see more of it.

This leads me to Birmingham. We are somewhat familiar with B'ham as we have friends that live there and they seem to like it. What do I need to know about the place? I have done some mountain biking at Oak Mountain and that is heaven compared to anything around H'burg. What can ya'll tell me?

I live in the Oak Mountain area and love it. I can't imagine a better place to raise kids. If you are young and want to go out all the time, there's plenty of that too. Check out Southside or Homewood. Depends on what you like. Basically it's got everything I could imagine anyone could want.

Huntsville and Birmingham are very different. They both have their perks. B'ham is bigger, but older, has better scenery, and less douchebaggery than HSV. More culture in essence. HSV is going to have more of a yuppy factor, if that makes sense.

MSU is also developing in B'ham in a big way. Especially in Oak Mountain/Hoover/Pelham/Helena.

 

[WebbFreeman]

My first job out of school was in Huntsville. My daughter was born there. There are many State grads in Huntsville. It sounds like you have a job that requires you to live in Alabama, but can choose a city. There are probably many more State grads in Huntsville, but nobody seems to have a passion for that city. The Birmingham folks that replied show great passion. I left Huntsville and never looked back. I don't know what IT is, but Huntsville don't seem to have it. I agree about no warm fuzzies. I am sure the large contingent of Huntsville Dawgs will disagree. I would probably go to Birmingham.

 

[Hammer Down]

My first job out of school was in Huntsville. My daughter was born there. There are many State grads in Huntsville. It sounds like you have a job that requires you to live in Alabama, but can choose a city. There are probably many more State grads in Huntsville, but nobody seems to have a passion for that city. The Birmingham folks that replied show great passion. I left Huntsville and never looked back. I don't know what IT is, but Huntsville don't seem to have it. I agree about no warm fuzzies. I am sure the large contingent of Huntsville Dawgs will disagree. I would probably go to Birmingham.

You sound almost like a replica of myself. I have never been able to put my finger on IT either. You summed it up perfectly.

 

[00Dawg]

Per capita, yes. Total, no.
Meanwhile, the Birmingham alumni chapter will be volunteering at Children's Hospital this Thursday, hosting a table at Boiling and Bragging this Saturday, and doing it again at the Bell Center Tailgate on the 23rd. If any Bham Dawgs want to help out, we'll be happy to have you.

 

[AlSwearengen]

We are just looking for a place with more to offer than Hattiesburg, without getting too far from Hattiesburg. We were checking into H'ville b/c of it's proximity to the tenn. mountains, nashville, atlanta, etc., etc. Not to bash H'ville, but we just didn't get the feeling that the place had very much character. The neighborhoods that we looked at (which were suggested by two different realtors and a friend) all had a strange cookie cutter feel to them. We plan to go back and spend a little more time there to make sure, but Birmingham just has a better feel to me for some reason.

The reason we want to leave H'burg is that before Katrina, it was a nice small town with not much in it. Now, it is turning into a bigger **** hole everyday and still doesn't have anything to offer. Grocery shopping is walmart or if you want to get upscale, you can go to the corner market which isn't that great either.

 

[WebbFreeman]

In that case check out Tupelo or New Albany. New Albany is booming. I would say Desoto county, but we are about full.

 

[kired]

Since you're looking up that way, have you thought about Chatanooga? Maybe another hour further away than Huntsville. I've just stopped when driving through but have thought it'd be a nice place to live if I ever wanted to leave Tupelo. Nice location - kinda close to Birmingham, Atlanta, and Nashville.

 

[Dawg1976]

If you like bigger cities, B'ham not too bad. I used to go over all the time when my brother lived there. He lived in the Riverchase area. Traffic not too bad and the city has decent variety as mentioned by others. I'm more of a small town guy so not for me.

 

[AlSwearengen]

Since you're looking up that way, have you thought about Chatanooga? Maybe another hour further away than Huntsville. I've just stopped when driving through but have thought it'd be a nice place to live if I ever wanted to leave Tupelo. Nice location - kinda close to Birmingham, Atlanta, and Nashville.

Chatanooga seems to be highly recommended, but it might be just a little too far from H'burg. I need an easy drive to get back to H'burg. If B'ham isn't a place that is in danger of turning into a **** hole, it would be perfectly located.

 

[seshomoru]

Had family in Homewood fora few years

The loved it, and I loved visiting. You get a small community feel with local restaurants, parks, churches, etc. and you are right next to bigger city access for hospitals, a zoo, minor league pro sports, and so on.

 

[landscpdog]

I've lived in both and am currently in Huntsville now. If you did not check out the neighborhoods around downtown, you were definitely in a cookie cutter neighborhood and there are plenty to go around the farther you get from the core.

 

[Hammer Down]

Chatanooga seems to be highly recommended, but it might be just a little too far from H'burg. I need an easy drive to get back to H'burg. If B'ham isn't a place that is in danger of turning into a **** hole, it would be perfectly located.

Great thing about B'ham, is it already turned into a **** hole, back in the 70s and 80s, and now it's on the cusp of coming back even better. Remember this, B'ham has crappy areas, but they are quarantined fairly well. All the area around it is very nice.

 

[Hammer Down]

I've lived in both and am currently in Huntsville now. If you did not check out the neighborhoods around downtown, you were definitely in a cookie cutter neighborhood and there are plenty to go around the farther you get from the core.

I will echo this. Take a look around the 5 Points/Monte Sano area of Huntsville before you completely rule it out. Best part of the town by a long shot.

 

[johnson86-1]

Chatanooga seems to be highly recommended, but it might be just a little too far from H'burg. I need an easy drive to get back to H'burg. If B'ham isn't a place that is in danger of turning into a **** hole, it would be perfectly located.

As a poster below said, Birmingham has already turned into a **** hole. A lot of the 'neighborhoods' mentioned above are actually municipalities I believe. Birmingham is basically hemmed in with them, and they have lasted a long time without Birmingham problems bleeding out into them like Memphis has into its surrounding areas. And like they mentioned, Birmingham is actually going through a revitalization right now. Still some potential problems ahead (is the county through with its bankruptcy issues?), but I would say it is situated as well as if not better than any city int he Southeast.

 

[patdog]

Sister lives in Homewood. And you're right, it is a very nice area and yet you're only 10 minutes max away from downtown.

 

[Wicked Pissah]

I lived in homewood and loved it. I actually miss bham sometimes. I also lived in cahaba heights. Bham has a lot of good restaurants and a good music scene.

Someone mentioned chatty. Id move their in a heartbeat. Awesome town. Awesome surroundings and location. You are in a tax free state and close to atl airport.

 

[Talty]

I've only been in Birmingham for a few months, but it's much farther along than Jackson. Way more to do too.

The posters above hit on a lot of the main highlights. There's great food and a good amount to do no matter what your age or situation. I think you can really enjoy Birmingham as a single person or as a father of five kids. You really can't go wrong with many of the suggested places to live, though I'm preferential to Homewood, Downtown/Southside and Highland Park. Hoover is a bit out there from downtown, but very well established and a great place to raise a family.

I've also noticed a good amount of people wearing MSU hats and shirts walking around the city. I know that's totally unscientific, but definitely seems to be a presence here.

 

[Hammer Down]

I've only been in Birmingham for a few months, but it's much farther along than Jackson. Way more to do too.

The posters above hit on a lot of the main highlights. There's great food and a good amount to do no matter what your age or situation. I think you can really enjoy Birmingham as a single person or as a father of five kids. You really can't go wrong with many of the suggested places to live, though I'm preferential to Homewood, Downtown/Southside and Highland Park. Hoover is a bit out there from downtown, but very well established and a great place to raise a family.

I've also noticed a good amount of people wearing MSU hats and shirts walking around the city. I know that's totally unscientific, but definitely seems to be a presence here.

Don't worry, Talty. As soon as you get hitched and have kids, you'll move out here with all of us uncultured suburban types.

In all seriousness....yes, for singles and even newly married, I would recommend those places you list. Actually, Homewood is a great place to raise a family if you like that lifestyle. It's not exactly for me, I like more room to move. And Vestavia is right there too. But remember, Mountain Brook and Vestavia are the two highest rent districts (as a whole) in the state of Alabama.

 

[dawgstudent]

I've also noticed a good amount of people wearing MSU hats and shirts walking around the city. I know that's totally unscientific, but definitely seems to be a presence here.

So in other words you hate Birmingham?

 

[DawgatAuburn]

ZING!

 

[HD6]

The downtown area is cute.

 

[beachbumdawg]

I'm moving back to Birmingham. I moved from Birmingham (Gardendale area for 6 years) last year back to MS, but I am relocating back to Birmingham again. I think this go around I am going to be looking south of town:
Hoover area schools - Lake Cyrus/Ross Bridge Area - Possibly Spain Park area as i think it is the better school academically in the district
Oak Mtn Schools - Cahaba Valley Road area
Chelsea Schools - Cahaba Valley Road south to Chelsea
and Possibly Pelham area - Ballantrae area