Starbuck, I am in the process of finding a place to move to from Seattle WA due to debt from cancer treatment. Cincinnati is on my list (Milford and Loveland areas perhaps) but I have some hesitations. I'm pretty liberal and it is conservative there. And I hear crime can be bad in the downtown. Any chance you can share your thoughts on Cincinnati a bit? Thanks!

As to your question, have you lived in the looooong cold of NE/upstate NY before? I have cousins in both areas (I grew up on Long Island) and the amount of snow they get is phenomenal and also it is cold for a very large portion of the year. I had wanted to move there myself but that type of harsh winter would be hard to take. And the nice places are VERY expensive. What kind of range are you thinking for housing?

kaleyna,

If you click on starbuck1105's name you will see he hasn't posted on this board since last year - So, I would suggest that you start an new post, just make sure that you put Cincinnati in your title

You should get better responses by starting your own post rather than tagging onto other queries.

Starbuck might reply but other posters will respond with more information to a post entitled 'Moving to Cincinnati' rather than "Seeking the Quintessential College Town"

Best of luck :-)

I have a friend who I went to grad school with at Pratt in Brooklyn and he was a free lance graphic designer in New Hampshire for 15 years. He finally couldn't take the winters and moved to Ashville. The winters are severe in New England. Do think about it.

Hamilton, NY...Home of Colgate University. Very nice college town and not too far from Syracuse.

Hello everyone. Long time, no "see," LOL! Anyway, just a quick note to let you know that I completed my move to Portland, Maine this past weekend. It was not without its obstacles (e.g. heavy highway delays in Massachusetts, contractor did not have my place completed on time, etc.), but its good to be here. As those of you who followed this thread (and a couple of the previous ones) closely know, I pretty much came full circle with my thinking. Anyway, I'm looking forward to exploring New England and am thus far thrilled with my decision to move to Portland.

Now... if only it would stop raining!

LOL

Kaleyna,

I'm sorry that I missed your post from this past April. If you're still hanging around here on the boards, please do leave a message for me and I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have.

That said --- and at the risk of hijacking my own thread --- I'll tell you that Cincinnati is a great place to live. I don't think I fully appreciated it until the month before I left, but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it to someone else.

Cincinnati is indeed a very Conservative town. Having lived near both Cleveland and Columbus at various times, I'd say Cincy is probably the most conservative city in Ohio. A lot of non-Ohioans tend to tell me that they hear the city is run like a police-state (most likely the result of occasional national news stories featuring some of the city's more prominent far right-wing nutjobs), but this is hardly an accurate depiction of the city or its politics. Long story short... I've never felt like it is a hostile environment for Liberals (I am also a liberal), so you should be comfortable there.

As for crime, I'd say that Cincinnati is no better and no worse than other cities of its size. It really all depends on the part of town in which you live. The two areas you mentioned are both great areas, and not technically within the Cincinnati city limits anyway.

BTW... if your budget allows it, the Hyde Park neighborhood is a wonderful place to live. It is a mere five hours north of the city (on I-71) and features a number of bars and restaurants within walking distance of most areas of the neighborhood. Houses are pricey, but if you're looking to rent, there are bargains to be found.

Should you change your geographic preference, and/or want to live somewhere for about half the cost of towns like Princeton, Auburn, Alabama is a lovely little college town, quite progressive for the Deep South, and less than two hours from Atlanta.

Kaleyna, do consider Asheville. I do think you will enjoy it coming from Seattle. Liberal. Lovely. Excellent climate. In the south, but not as hot and muggy due to the elevations. Some snow, but nothing like the NE. Just a beautiful, fun small city/ big town.

I haven't read any of the replies, so I apologize in advance if this has been said:

Outside Magazine did a cover story on the best college towns. Maybe you can access it on-line.