Originally Posted By: Nick R
Some reading I've been doing says that living in the city limits isn't necessarily the best place, hope mills is a better place. Obviously this is going to have my brother and sister both in high school, and we are looking for a nice neighborhood to live. Any input will be greatly appreciated.
There are some nice areas around town. The Jack Britt school district is the most sought-after in the county. That's southwest of Fayetteville. I wouldn't call it Hope Mills either...much of it is in the unincorporated Cumberland County. Don't overlook Harnett County (to the north) and the Southern Pines/Pinehurst area (to the west). Where in town will your dad be working? Southern Pines is 20 miles away, but the commute is the same at 55 mph than it is for a person 10 miles away at half that speed. PM me if you prefer. I've lived in the area for 11 years.
The part I like LEAST about living here? I have to say, it's the grass. No, seriously. I love cutting grass, and the grass here is simply poor. It's usually Centipedegrass, and that's okay great if you don't like mowing. Even with our in-ground irrigation, I go three weeks without mowing. I'd much rather have a lush fescue yard that I have to cut once a week.
The part I like BEST about living here? We're very connected to our church downtown (Hay Street United Methodist Church) and through that, I've found out the secret to Fayetteville: it's the largest "small town" you'll ever come across. And by that, I mean that there's a very strong and well-connected "native" population here that most people don't realize or recognize. If you can get connected with a group of people who are local to the community and who care about the community, you'll find that it's a rather pleasant place to live. The secret to Fayetteville is that it's all who you hang out with. There's SUCH a diverse population here, that your opinion of the area will very likely be influenced by those with whom you commune.
Another great thing about the area is its location. We're going to the beach this weekend for the day. We can...it's just 2 hours down the road. We went to the mountains last fall, because we can...it's just 4 hours west. Raleigh is an hour-and-a-half north and Atlanta and DC are within 6 hours. There is a ton of golfing around here if you are into that, and water sports are popular as well, but you do have to drive up a county or two north to get to the big lakes. Surfing is popular at the coast, at Wrightsville Beach or Holden Beach. The state zoo is about an hour away. Lots to see in and around town as well.
I'm sure you'll like it, if you come here with an open mind, which you appear to have. There are a lot of closed minds about Fayetteville, much of that based on a town that it used to be. The dirty history that the town has makes its comeback today much more remarkable.
Again, PM me if you have questions you don't want to ask here, and I'm happy to answer.
