Moving to Dayton

March 18, 2005 9:38 AM

I just found out yesterday that I will be moving to Dayton, OH. Lots of info is needed.

Now the previous thread discussed how it is, but I am not interested in that. I am interested in where to live? My wife will be working mainly in Kettering. Some questions have arisen.

What are the good areas to live in, or more specifically what are the one's to avoid? What's the job market like in the area, especially with a focus on technology?

Thanks in advance.

posted by thebwit to Travel & Transportation (9 answers total)

Honda, Proctor and Gamble, and GE all have major operations to the south in Cincinatti. I'm betting someone may be looking for something. I have a friend who lives in West Chester and considers himself in striking distance of both Dayton and 'natti.

Good luck, I dealt with the vagaries of a spouse's match day last year. I'm still getting used to Memphis.
posted by jmgorman at 9:57 AM on March 18, 2005

I was born and raised in Dayton, Ohio (but now live in Brooklyn). As far as the nicer areas, I'd recommend Kettering, West Carrolton, Centerville, most parts of Miamisburg, and if you can tolerate a 30 minute commute, Huber Heights or Beavercreek. All are extremely suburban, sadly, but very convenient and safe.

As far as the "bad" areas, I would stay out of downtown in general. It has its "nice" parts but typically it's not worth the bother. There are also areas that are very, erm, Appalachian, such as Moraine. Fortunately you will know these areas as soon as you see them, as Dayton's rednecks make no attempt to hide their redneckery.

Good luck and have fun.
posted by incomple at 9:57 AM on March 18, 2005

P&G has facilities all over, a large one in Mason, which would be a less painful commute than to downtown Cincinnati. GE's the same way - lots of facilities. You can easily live somewhere between Dayton and Cincinnati, but if you're seriously considering that, I'd err closer to Cincinnati - that's the worse commute.

Wright Patterson Air Force Base is in Dayton, and hires a significant number of civilians, especially for tech related things. There is also a whole host of companies that do nothing but support WP - Booze Allen has an office, and so do a lot of other defense consulting firms. They're always hiring programmers. Lots of health care stuff. Everybody needs some level of techie - is there something more specific you're interested in?
posted by dpx.mfx at 10:10 AM on March 18, 2005

Oakwood is an upscale (and expensive) area. I like Yellow Springs, a college town with a bohemian feel. I was brought up in Vandalia, which is another safe-and-suburban area north of town.
posted by bac at 10:15 AM on March 18, 2005

I attended Antioch, which is in Yellow Springs, for a few years. It's a liberal island, and would be much more appealing to me than Dayton proper.

Trivia -- I heard when I was there that the 60-mile radius (or something) around Dayton had more colleges than anywhere in the states. Could be wrong, but there are a lot of schools.
posted by o2b at 10:54 AM on March 18, 2005

My parents live in Lebanon, which is smack dab between Cinci and Dayton. 40 Miles each way. It's still a good part rural, which I like, but close enough to the city. I found myself doing more in Cinci than in Dayton even though there was an equal distance between the two cities. Warren County I believe is one of the fastest growing counties in the country.
posted by TuxHeDoh at 11:57 AM on March 18, 2005

I'm currently in Dayton, specifically in the Centerville/Washington Township area. Like others have said, very suburban, but very nice and safe - additionally, there's a good investment in the local community with nice parks, libraries and a rec center. I'm gonna disagree with incomple, I don't think West Carrolton or Miamisburg are that great a place to live - the property crime rates are significantly higher than the other places mentioned.

As far as jobs, I can't believe no one's mentioned LexisNexis - the corporate headquarters is located just 10mi south of Dayton in Miami Township, and they employ 3000 people in this area alone. They're a huge employer of tech related jobs, and a pretty good company to work for in general.

I moved to Dayton from Cincinnati two years ago and I like it a lot better than I thought I would - there's some really nice things here or within a short drive. Also, be sure to check out the Dorothy Lane Market when you get here, its a Dayton institution that rivals most any other gourmet supermarket out there.

If you have any specific questions (or are interested in Lexis), feel free to shot me an email. I'm thrilled there's going to be more Dayton mefites!
posted by dicaxpuella at 12:49 PM on March 18, 2005

I lived in Dayton from jr high through high school, specifically Huber Heights, and I would advise against residing there. (Unless you really really like brick homes, as it proudly proclaims to be "America's Largest Community of Brick Homes") Huber Heights is the most boring, banal, suburban hell I have ever experienced. No good parks, the poorly equipped library was in a strip mall, and in fact the whole town was pretty much houses and strip malls. Granted, my view may be a bit biased by spending my angsty teenage years there, but my parents still live there and my visits home in the subsequent years haven't improved my perception of the place much. I'd be more inclined to recommend Beavercreek or Centerville, which are still certainly suburban but more tolerable in my opinion.
posted by shinji_ikari at 1:59 PM on March 18, 2005

Good luck, I dealt with the vagaries of a spouse's match day last year. I'm still getting used to Memphis.

I didn't even mention match day. Good job on pick that up.

Thanks for the advice so far. Hope more comes in.
posted by thebwit at 2:22 PM on March 18, 2005