I know that this a little away from the norm of these postings, but here's my question: I am 25, my wife ( a senior nursing student ) and I have a little boy, I am a computer programmer. We are considering relocating to tampa next year. Can anyone out there give me some advise with regards to Tampa or the Florida area as a whole?

Not sure what you are asking, or where you are coming from (?Glenview?), but here are a few thoughts. It does stay hot in the summer longer than elsewhere but it often isn't as hot as further north -- can be 88 here when it's 100 in WashDC. The schools are uneven -- we have some very good ones but you may find some of the public schools less academically rigorous than elsewhere, depending on where you are coming from. There's a great deal to do, year round, and I think you and your family will really enjoy that. Once you get used to being able to go outside and "play" year-round, it'll be hard to get back to anything else. And if you are worried about hurricanes, just live further inland, on higher ground. A lot of people don't realize that north of Tampa can be hilly "horse country" so it's not all palm trees and pastel houses! I hope that's a start.

PS: If a loon named "AMS" checks in on this thread, expect a diatribe about how Florida is unsafe because of asbestos and immigrant criminals. Ignore it.

My parents moved us to Tampa when I was 10 and I spent all of my teenage and college years there. I am now in Ohio at graduate school and I can't wait to get back to Tampa. The weather is not to cold in the winter and it is not as hot as the midwest in the summer. My sister and her family still live in tampa and she would not dream of raising her children anywhere else. It is nice to get the kids ready to go without having to bundle up for the snow. She lives in a great area with a lot of young couples just starting out. My advice is to move there immediately if you have the chance!!

Just another take on the weather here. Prior to Tampa we lived in Savannah 4 years and Dallas for 17 and this is far and away the hottest. The temps may only be 91 or 92 but the humidity is so high it feels much hotter--and we thought we knew humidity from Savannah, where it really didn't bother us!!

It's more troubling to some, obviously. I run to stay in shape and from May until the first part of October there's a fair share of daily misery out there!! Now this time of year is about as perfect at it can get but you have a very very long hot season to get to this.

I shouldn't address the school system as our kids were out of school by the time we left Dallas. Lara's comments though are comments I've heard before here--schools are "uneven". And..so many of the schools in the suburbs north of here use portable classrooms-- a situation which I would not be at all happy with. There's been rapid growth and this has been the solution far too often!

On the positive side, the beaches are wonderful and there are tons of recreational opportunities all around.

I have lived in the Clearwater area for almost 25 years and love it. Sure, the summer's are long and hot, but that is why we have air conditioning and the Gulf of Mexico.

The school system here is "okay"; both of my kids did well. They are overcrowded and most schools use "portables".

What I love most is that you can be on vacation year round. We can ride to the beach for sunsets, visit the attractions that the tourists visit, and not have to deal with excessive cold weather and SNOW. It's been "cold" the past week (60 daytime and 40 night).
But the sun is shining, and I know it will be in the 70's by the weekend.

Hope this helps.

wow, thanks everyone, you've been a great help. If anyone else has advise, please share. I am particularly concerned with crime and which suburbs may be better than others.

Uh oh. Crime, huh? You could always read any of AMS's postings for the lowdown.

But seriously, if you are asking specific questions about suburbs, you are probably ready to do what we did when preparing to move: go to the area for a look-see. Read the Tampa Times or other local newspaper for a couple of days, look at real estate ads -- nice correlation with housing prices and relative "quietness" although crime happens everywhere but less often than the media or AMS would have you believe. Go out with a realtor -- never mind whether you're "wasting" her/his time -- they are in business to help you and will make their money eventually. And realtors know their area.

I'm Jon Bush's mom. Does anyone recommend a particular suburb around Tampa as being better than most? How do you feel about Brandon, Palm Harbor, Dunedin? The most important thing here is that Jon's son have a comparatively safe place to grow up, realizing that there are problems everywhere!

in response to the above message.... Ain't moms wonderful!
Thanks everyone. My wife and I appreciate it.

I visited Tampa last year, and what struck me about the suburbs was the concern about traffic. This caught my attention because I'm from L.A. and the newspaper commentary was always, "Let's not become like Los Angeles!" There is a lot of growth in the suburbs, new developments, golf courses, etc. They don't have a good public transportation system. And thanks to the bay, they have very few arteries to take commuters to work in Tampa and St. Pete. This is part of the problem with attendance at Tampa Bay Devil Rays baseball games. People can't get to the games in downtown St. Pete. They really need to invest in a rapid transit system like BART in San Francisco. Before they really do have a traffic problem like L.A.