atlanta, memphis | Imamother

amother

Mon, Sep 15 2008, 9:31 am

I started a thread on where should I live and someone mentioned atlanta and memphis. Does anyone have info on them and which specific community there?

What types of schools are there and type of student body?
Approx. how much is tuition and do they give breaks?
I'm not asking about a mikveh because we're only interested in an established community.
What's the kosher meat availability? Cholov Yisroel is not a problem, because we don't only eat c"y.
Are there kosher restaurants or take-outs?
How many shuls are there and what kinds? What kind of people? We daven nisuch sefard and my husband always ends up in a shul with the same type of crowd as we are, but the rabbi is usually chassidish.
Is it a friendly community?
What is the living situation, price of houses, apt, etc.?
Is it safe to walk around at night?
What is average median income? What do most people do for a living?
Are most of the people from there originally or elsewhere?
Is there any reason not to move there?
Are there crazy politics in the community?
Do the people get along, jews with other jews and the jews with the non jews?
What's the weather like?
Are there camps available in the summertime?
Are there parks and places to go to on Sundays?
Is there an eruv?
Is there anti-semitism?
How are the doctors there?
Does the state offer any sort of insurance?
About how much is health insurance there?

I got most of these questions from Tamiri and Dillie (thank you) from the thread, questions to ask before you see a community.

I thought of 2 more questions LOL

What's the job availability there? My husband can do anything, but he didn't go to college.
Do you NEED a car?

MMEC123

Thu, Sep 18 2008, 6:20 pm

Ok, I will try to answer as many of these questions as I can about Atlanta...

What types of schools are there and type of student body?
For elementary there is the frum school (which is basically a day school, boys & girls but separate classes), there is a brand new modern orthodox day school and there is a day school that the official derech is MO but really almost none of the kids there are frum. The first school I mentioned is where most frum people send there kids. There is a big mix- yeshivish to slightly more modern and a few people who are still becoming or are not yet frum. The MO school has a very strong MO crowd and does not go beyond 2nd or 3rd grade yet. Oh and I believe that a montessori elementary school was opened recently and it also only goes to about 2nd or 3rd grade. It is Lubavitch run so I would guess there is a wide range of students there as well.

Approx. how much is tuition and do they give breaks?
Depends on the school, which one do you want to know?

I'm not asking about a mikveh because we're only interested in an established community
Well, for what it's worth. The main mikvah is beautiful. There is one in the "main" neighborhood, one in the lubavitch neighborhood and they just began building one in the third neighborhood in Atlanta.

What's the kosher meat availability? Cholov Yisroel is not a problem, because we don't only eat c"y.
The two big supermarkets in the main neighborhood have kosher butcher departments plus there is another kosher butcher shop. Definitely at least one of the two smaller neighborhoods have kosher meat departments in their supermarkets but they prob. both do. When I say kosher I mean glatt kosher by the way. They don't necessarily have all the cuts and variety you can get in NY but definitely there is plenty to live on. Oh, and there's a Super Walmart near the neighborhoods that has kosher chicken for amazing prices.

Are there kosher restaurants or take-outs?
Yes and yes. Not that many, but enough. There is amazing chinese take-out and the kosher butcher shop has take-out. There's a bagel shop, a milchig/vegetarian restaurant, a nice fleishig restaurant and an Israeli style restaurant. That's all that's coming to mind right now. There's also an ice cream store under the vaad hakashrus of the city (non-CY).

How many shuls are there and what kinds? What kind of people? We daven nisuch sefard and my husband always ends up in a shul with the same type of crowd as we are, but the rabbi is usually chassidish.
In the "main" neighborhood there are 4 shuls- the big (ashkenaz) shul with a wide range of people and a few different minyanim, a Young Israel (MO), a separdi shul (mix of iranians, israelis, etc.) and an iranian shul though I think their current rav is lubavitch eventhough the members are all iranian. The second neighborhood has a lubavitch shul with a mixed crowd but a decent number of lubavitchers. There is another minyan there, I believe it is an Ashkenazi minyan. The third neighborhood has one shul (ashkenaz) that is mostly a kiruv shul. There really aren't chassidim in Atlanta beside lubavitch.

Is it a friendly community?
Definitely.

What is the living situation, price of houses, apt, etc.?
Definitely lower than NY. (Main neighborhood) You can find a 3 br 2 bath house let's say for the low 300's. You can get a nice 2 br, 2 ba apt for around $1100 in one of the complexes, I don't know about the other. If you want to look into apts the complexes are Post Briarcliff and Calibre Woods both on Lavista Road. I don't really know the housing market in the other two neighborhoods and I'm pretty sure there aren't really apartments in either.

Is it safe to walk around at night?
Basically. People do. The frum neighborhoods are in nice, quiet, suburban areas.

What is average median income? What do most people do for a living?
Average income I don't know. People do anything. Most people are professionals- drs., lawyers, business, computers, etc. Of course there are teachers and mashgichim and butchers and bakers and mechanics and everything else in between.

Are most of the people from there originally or elsewhere?
A mix. Many people are "transplants" (from NY, baltimore, and many other places) but there are lots of true Southerners as well as children of transplants who have moved back.

Is there any reason not to move there?
I personally don't think so Wink

. Realistically, I guess if you like a big place with many choices for friends, food and schools, it may be a hard adjustment.

Are there crazy politics in the community?
Crazy? I don't think so. Frankly, I'm not one to be involved in politics but as communities go, I think it's relatively calm and friendly and quiet.

Do the people get along, jews with other jews and the jews with the non jews?
Yes.

What's the weather like?
Hot in the summer (but not unbearable) and not terribly cold in the winter. It almost never snows there. I have on many occasions heard its weather compared to that of Yerushalayim.

Are there camps available in the summertime?
Yes.

Are there parks and places to go to on Sundays?
There are a number of beautiful parks. There are some touristy things. I don't know what kind of things you are looking for.

Is there an eruv?
Yes, all three neighborhoods have.

Is there anti-semitism?
Anywhere has but it's not outright. Once or twice, here and there you may hear of an incident (nothing violent- something like spraying swatstikas) but not often.

How are the doctors there?
There are good and bad, just like anywhere. There is a major medical school (Emory) and it's many hospitals that are considered very good.

Does the state offer any sort of insurance?
About how much is health insurance there?
Sorry, don't know anything about the health insurance.

What's the job availability there? My husband can do anything, but he didn't go to college.
There are jobs. I mean nowadays it's a rough market everywhere but I'm sure he can find something.

Do you NEED a car?
My initial reaction is yes. I mean there is a decent (not like NY, but not terrible) public transportation system. You won't see cabs driving by every other minute though. I would say it would be hard with no cars but a family could manage with just one.

amother

Thu, Sep 18 2008, 10:46 pm

I've lived in both places, so I'll try to help.

What types of schools are there and type of student body?

You've already had a complete answer for Atlanta. Memphis has the Margolin Hebrew Academy and I heard that there's a new high school starting up but don't know the details. MHA has a mix of kids from very modern to yeshivish. Typically, though I'd say it definitely trends MO. It is a decent school overall, with some truly exceptional educators, but as with all small schools, there can be good classes and not so good classes. Boys and girls are separate after some point (5th? not sure - didn't have kids at the time so wasn't that aware of school stuff). Interestingly, we used to host boys who boarded in Memphis for shabbos, and there were always Atlanta boys there (also New Orleans, Nashville, Birmingham, etc.).

Approx. how much is tuition and do they give breaks?

I think tuition in Memphis is comparable to schools in Atlanta and definitely breaks are available.

I'm not asking about a mikveh because we're only interested in an established community.
What's the kosher meat availability? Cholov Yisroel is not a problem, because we don't only eat c"y.

The major grocery chains carry a large selection of fresh meat under the vaad. One of them has a bakery under supervision (I love going back for a visit just to get croissants!). You can get deli (including salads, rotisserie chicken, and the like) at the groceries. They are as well stocked, actually, probably better stocked, as my local kosher grocery where I live now.

Are there kosher restaurants or take-outs?

Take out from the groceries. The nursing home also does take out (very convenient for yom tov - including Pesach). Restaurants come and go. Usually there's some kind of restaurant, although I don't think at this time there is.

How many shuls are there and what kinds? What kind of people? We daven nisuch sefard and my husband always ends up in a shul with the same type of crowd as we are, but the rabbi is usually chassidish.

Two big MO shuls - Anshei Sphard (nusach Sephard)and Baron Hirsch (nusach Ashkenaz). Lovely buildings, nice congregations, YU type crowd for the most part. Then there's the Young Israel. YI tends to get the more yeshivish crowd (yes, there IS a black hat set in Memphis). I tend to think of Ner Yisrael types at the YI (although there are certainly more MO there as well. And some black hat at Anshei Sphard and Baron Hirsch).

Rabbi Nasan Greenblatt (who is a world-known posek particularly in questions involving gittin) also has a minyan at his house.

Is it a friendly community?

YES!! YES!! YES!! I would give anything to be able to move back. The people are really lovely. I'll be totally honest - I thought Atlanta was a very tough place to break into socially, but Memphis was extremely warm and welcoming.

What is the living situation, price of houses, apt, etc.?

There is a range of houses - from beautiful mansions to very modest ranches. The price of housing is very inexpensive in Memphis generally, and you'll get much much more for your money in Memphis than in Atlanta. There are apartments in Memphis, but they are fairly far from the shuls. There are usually some rental houses available that are closer, and since they are so inexpensive anyhow, most people who rent, just go ahead and rent a house.

When we lived in Atlanta we had a dump of a two room apartment in Toco Hills. Literally a dump. We moved to Memphis and for less money rented a 1500 sq. ft. 3 bedroom house that was quite nice.

Is it safe to walk around at night?

Memphis is comparable to Atlanta, possibly a bit safer than Toco Hills. The frum area is in a nice part of town - suburban type area.

What is average median income? What do most people do for a living?

I don't know median income. There are a lot of professionals, and it is true that Memphis is kind of a rich community (BH, because it means more money for the institutions!). However, there are people who are in chinuch or who are in blue collar trades as well.

Are most of the people from there originally or elsewhere?

I think it is a mix. Majority from there, but certainly there are transplants as well.

Is there any reason not to move there?

Not in my book. I love the community in Memphis.

Are there crazy politics in the community?

I never get involved in that kind of thing, so I really couldn't say. Nothing that I noticed. That's also true for Atlanta, btw.

Do the people get along, jews with other jews and the jews with the non jews?

Oh absolutely - both in Atlanta and in Memphis.

What's the weather like?

lol HOT and HUMID. Both cities. But spring comes early and some years I never seemed to get around to getting my winter coat out of storage. Atlanta gets maybe a half inch of snow a year on average. Memphis maybe an inch or two. Not very different.

Are there camps available in the summertime?

I know that there are camps that people in both cities send their kids to, but I don't know all the details. There's also day camps in town.

Are there parks and places to go to on Sundays?

Yes. There's a lot to do. Honestly, Atlanta has more attractions (Coke museum, major league sports, aquarium). There's also plenty in Memphis as well, though.

Is there an eruv?

Yes in Memphis, yes in Toco Hills, and I think Sandy Springs has an eruv also now if I'm not mistaken.

Is there anti-semitism?

Isn't there everywhere? Nothing overt that I've personally experienced in either place.

How are the doctors there?

You've heard about Atlanta. Memphis is similar. It has two major hospital systems (and several smaller ones), the University of Tennessee Medical School is there, and is a major medical center (including the famous St. Jude Children's Research Hospital).

Does the state offer any sort of insurance?

Yes, but I don't know the details. Google "Tenncare".

About how much is health insurance there?

Depends on a lot of factors - age, current health, etc..

I got most of these questions from Tamiri and Dillie (thank you) from the thread, questions to ask before you see a community.

I thought of 2 more questions Laughing
What's the job availability there?

It's not as booming of a job market as Atlanta, but it's not as depressed as, for example, Detroit or Cleveland.

My husband can do anything, but he didn't go to college.
Do you NEED a car?

Yes. In both cities.

BTW - no income tax in TN. :-)

On the other hand, assuming you'll let your kids go to college GA has the Hope scholarships.

Salaries are higher in Atlanta, but the cost of living is so much higher than in Memphis, that you can still live better in Memphis, even with less money.