Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Asheville

Moving soon...

mrflibble — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 13:59:02 -0800

What are you paying for rent in Asheville NC? Apartments or houses.

Square feet & area (cross roads or neighborhood.

Thanks everyone!!

Post & Beam in Asheville, NC

Glendale — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:01:16 -0800

Looking for a Post & Beam construction job in Asheville, NC. Any suggestions? I have an excellent resume, great references, and pretty darn good cover letter. Unfortunately, I'll only be in Asheville from January-September 2009. I'm looking to work an entry-level position to gain experience. I've been working carpentry and remodeling for a few years now, and before that was doing high-end residential house painting.

Lying/stretching the truth about the amount of time I'll be with the company isn't an option for me. I'm looking to work with/for happy, down to earth folks that appreciate good hard work and an appreciation for detail and quality labor. Do you know any businesses (big or small) that fit this mold?

Weeklong roadtrip from DC: Should we go to Asheville, NC?

onlyconnect — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:52 -0800

Fall road trip before the baby comes: DC to . . . Asheville NC or somewhere else? Our baby girl is due in early March and we'd like to take a week long vacation before she arrives or it gets too hard for me to move around. Planes are out, so we were thinking about a road trip to view the fall colors.

About us: My husband is a vegetarian. We like to bike, though I haven't been doing as much since the pregnancy. We like relaxed, casual vacations where we can mix being active with exploring at our own pace. We like seeing local art, symphonies or other local music, good food is a must, and we like to try different activities. When we went to Maui, we biked down the volcano, did alot of snorkeling, whalewatched and boozecruised, ziplined, and really enjoyed the atmosphere and food in hippie town Paia. (I'm expecting this vacation to involve less athletic pursuits and no alcohol for me, but exciting is still good.)

I've been googling and it seems like Asheville NC might be a good mix for us in terms of food, atmosphere, and local activites. It looks like it's about an 8 hour drive (one way) from our house in the Northern Virginia suburbs. I've checked out the previous AskMes involving Asheville and I have a few questions.

1. Do you think we would like Asheville, or would you suggest someplace else assuming we have about 9 days and a budget of about $1500 to get there, explore, and come back?

2. Do you think we'll find enough veggie-friendly food in Asheville to keep us happy for this long of a stay, or would you recommend somewhere else, or any restaurants in particular? There are a few suggestions here, but I trust AskMe more.

3. Any recommendations for activities in Asheville? I've checked out the local event calendar but am also looking for activities that might not be on that calendar, such as vising the Biltmore, etc. For that matter, does anyone have any particular recommendations about what to do at the Biltmore?

4. Any recommendations about where to stay? I was wondering if a local bed and breakfast might be a better option than one of the bigger hotels; however many of the appealing ones look fairly expensive (though they include really nice breakfasts!). Has anyone stayed at a really great and not too pricey B&B in Asheville? Do you think they would accommodate vegetarian requests? And when you stay at a B&B do you need to socialize alot with the other guests? I saw some advice from another thread about a Priceline deal at the Renaissance for $70/night in 2007 -- should we try that, and anyone know if that's still offered sometimes or of any other good lodging deals?

5. Should we take our bikes or rent bikes once we get there? I don't think we'd bike every day, but maybe a couple of times. Anything we should not miss by bike?

6. If we were going to stop along the way in our drive, would Raleigh or Greensboro NC be a better overnight stay for us? Or maybe Roanoke?

7. Anything else you think we should know or do?

Thanks so much in advance for any advice!

Asheville NC - I'm looking for a unique place to live...

Glendale — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 06:11:04 -0800

Asheville NC - I'm looking for a unique place to live... When I say "unique" I mean cheap ;) I'm moving to the Asheville area with my fiance in mid January, and we'd like to live somewhere fun, but cheap. We'll only be in town for 8-10 months, so signing a year long lease isn't feasible. Are there any little "yurt-towns" near Asheville? Is there a town in the area with an abundance of cabins for rent? Running water would be nice to have, but we can do without electricity if we need to...

Basically, we're trying to live around Asheville temporarily (until we get hitched) because it sounds like such a great place to be, and we'd like to save a bit of money while we're down there. We also both really like the idea of cabins and yurts ;)

Moving woes

ijoyner — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 08:22:57 -0800

Asheville, NC: I'm moving there close to the end of this month, what do I need to know? I mainly need to know of a good gym (with possibilities for rockclimbing), an awesome general practitioner doctor, a dentist and a good veterinarian. (All this close to downtown, please)

Also, if anyone can give me insight into securing an awesome house/apartment, please share. I'm aware that places are rented mere minutes after posting on CL/MountainX/Citizen-Times. I'm looking around the Montford, Aston Park, and W. Asheville areas. Are there any other areas I should consider that are close to downtown and 2 BR prices don't far exceed $1000?

Which monopoly service sucks less when it comes to internet? Cable and internet through the cable company (Is it Charter?) or DSL(AT&T?) and DirecTV (I have an HDTV, so if I'm gonna pay $50 a month I at least want HD). What are the prices you pay for what you get? I will not be getting a landline phone.

Lastly, (and I hope this isn't too chatty) I'm looking for outdoorsy people to hike/rockclimb/etc with. Are there mefites around there that enjoy such things or groups I can find somewhere to meet some people with similar interests? I may try to schedule a mefi meetup in April.

Lastly, if there are any "gotta check it out" places, post those too.

Much thanks

what to do, what to do?

mustcatchmooseandsquirrel — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 20:53:38 -0800

Should we move and, if so, where? Boyfriend and I live together in Lawrence, KS. After this semester, we could both be completely done with college. This prompts us to ponder what we should do with our lives. We already have tentative plans to go to France in October 2008 (plans which cannot be moved forward because it is a program that does not start earlier). Right now, we are considering the following options for the months of January through September:

1. Staying in Lawrence, being done with school, lounging around, and working to save money for France.

Pros: No moving, no changing addresses, no finding new job for Boyfriend.
Cons: Bored of Lawrence, student loans kicking in, finding a new job for me since my current job is a cushy on-campus job that goes away when I graduate.

2. Staying in Lawrence, taking an extra semester, working, same as now.

Pros: No moving, no changing addresses, no finding new jobs, no student loans starting, fun classes.
Cons: Bored of Lawrence, disinterest toward prospect of more schooling.

3. Moving to Portland or Asheville or Chicago or [other] and finding a job/internship through idealist.com or something.

Pros: New! Fun! Exciting! No more Kansas!
Cons: Moving costs so much money and is complicated (especially for only nine months), jobs might not be forthcoming, savings would be depleted.

4. WWOOFing somewhere.

Pros: Fun! New! Exciting! No more Kansas! No need to find new apartment, no need to find new real job.
Cons: No address, no income, more difficult in the winter.

5. Something else that we have not thought of.

So, is it worth it to move for just nine months? (Conversely, is it worth it to stay in a place that you want to leave for nine months?) Tell us what to do and we'll do it. We've never been to Portland or Asheville but they seem like our style. Which other cities to consider? Which might be the easiest to move to if we move? Should we do something zany like move to Iceland?

To sum up -- what should we do with our lives (for the next nine months) and how should we do it?

Charlotte, NC to Asheville, NC

jvilter — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 08:42:52 -0800

What's it like driving between Charlotte, NC and Asheville, NC? A friend and her daughter are planning to fly into Charlotte, NC and renting a car to drive to a conference (at the Blue Ridge Assembly Conference Center) which is near Asheville, NC. They could fly directly into Asheville and be picked up there, but it's quite a bit more expensive and as they've never been to that part of the country before, think the drive will give them an opportunity to see a bit more of it. What is the driving itself like (windy roads, mountainous?) and what interesting things are there to see along the way? Any great local places to eat? Bonus points for anyone having been to the BRA conference center before and commenting on it.

Hotel in Asheville NC?

eileen — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 07:35:15 -0800

Good hotel recommendations in Asheville NC? A friend and I will be in Asheville for one night, and would like to stay within walking distance of stuff.... "Stuff" being defined as: a place to walk for dinner, maybe drinks afterwards, an independent coffeeshop in the morning, and other potentially cool things we could find just walking around. Basically we want to be in the ideal location to experience Asheville in only about 24 hours.

I've read a couple past threads about what to do once there, but nothing about where to stay. We probably don't want to do a hostel, but might if it has nice (clean!) private rooms and a good location. I'm thinking a realistic budget is under $150? We'll be there the night of July 4, if that matters. Thanks for any suggestions!

Seeking sustainability

greggish — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:14:23 -0800

As a "peak aware" twenty something with parents within range of retirement, I've been persuading my family over the last five years to plan for a future with dramatically reduced energy supply. I want us to start a long-term transition to green -- and more importantly, I want us to live in a community that's green or at least capable of making a similar transition. (We currently live in hot pink Miami.) I don't just mean I want to feel good about recycling, but I don't quite mean an intentional community like Earthaven, which would be a step too far for my family. How can I find a community that has the elements necessary for localized, self-sufficient living? Search advice and specific endorsements are both welcome. This question is an extension of last week's, in which I asked advice on planning a trip to Asheville, NC to scope it out as a possible relocation destination. From my experience, Asheville has both a green sensibility and plenty of appeal for my parents as a place to retire. But the response from MeFites was discouraging: most insisted that Asheville is overdeveloped, far from viable agriculture, and nourished largely by wealth that comes from outside of the community. People seemed to agree that we shouldn't look there for sustainability.

So help me out: what are the elements of a community that is better prepared to adapt to a "post-peak" energy scenario? I can name the basics: a place where food can be grown within 10 miles; where the important things in life are all within walking distance; where the community itself is robust and accustomed to deliberative democratic civic engagement. Does such a place exist? How do I look for it? Is it possible to find a suitable nook within a larger, less suitable area?

Some more info about us (copied from the last question): My parents are in their 50s/early 60s, father's a lawyer and mom is a school teacher, and my siblings (2) and I are in our late teens to mid twenties. We are well-off, though shy of wealthy. We'd like to make the move with our aunt and uncle (late 40s, with two kids, 9 and 17) who are all sold on the idea, though less well-off. They'd like to be near a good school for their young son. Both sets of parents would want a good synagogue nearby.

Asheville apparently has a dead job market - which wouldn't be an issue for my parents but would be for my brother and sister and cousins. But outside of a big city, aren't all job markets tough?

There are other questions begging to be unpacked in here: like, when one is planning such a relocation in preparation for post-peak, is it better to look for a good chunk of land to build a new energy independent home and plan out some modest food production, or is it better to live right within a community where everything is in walking distance? That's probably next week's question.

Going to green Carolina to build a green home for our would-be green family

greggish — Mon, 28 May 2007 14:03:25 -0800

For three years, I've been encouraging my family to think about relocating from our home in Miami to a community that is less dependent upon automobiles and other oil-enabled ways of life. I sold them on Asheville, North Carolina, and on the idea of building a green (or close to it) home. We're going up there in three weeks to look around and get a better feel, and I want this plan to be well-considered! Help me think through the important elements of a successful home-relocation scouting trip, to Asheville specifically or just in general, as well as the larger questions involved. Asheville might be the only place in the country I could have sold my family on - for their considerations, there's lots of Jews there, appealing climate, and it has a great reputation for retirement. For my considerations (peak-oil-aware, climate change-aware), it's far from the seaboard, appears to have community-sustained agriculture and some elements of a culture of sustainability.

The first part of this question is: how can I help plan this trip to give us the best sense of the place? Aside from finding a real estate broker, what makes a new-home-scouting-outing effective? We're aware that Asheville is no longer a snug town and that property values have gone way up as others have had our very same idea - so we're not just going to look at the city itself, but to get a sense of the surrounding environs.

Some more info about us: My parents are in their 50s/early 60s, father's a lawyer and mom is a school teacher, and my siblings (2) and I are in our late teens to mid twenties. We are well-off, though shy of wealthy. We'd like to make the move with our aunt and uncle (late 40s, with two kids, 9 and 17) who are all sold on the idea, though less well-off. They'd like to be near a good school for their young son. Both sets of parents would want a good synagogue nearby. As I write all this down, the shape of our checklist comes into focus... I guess I know what the obvious needs are, but since I've never planned this sort of major move before, I'm surely missing some crucial but less obvious variables that should be considered. Help me identify them!

As for what we're looking for: we'd like to find 5 to 10 acres that we can build several housing units on, so that we're living together but not on top of each other. We're looking for more land, less house, so that we can build from scratch. I expect that the building of the home we'd like would take five years or more, and we might look for more temporary housing in the meantime. I'm also increasingly aware that this might just be re-dressing our former suburban lifestyle in an illusory cloak of sustainability, so I'm also encouraging the family to keep an eye out for sustainable urban infrastructure as an alternative to the "country living" dream.

My parents appear to be willing to buy property if they find the right deal, although there probably wouldn't be any actual moving happening within the next four years. Still I'm psyched that they're taking this seriously and willing to plan so far in advance - but I'm also nervous because I'm taking such a large role in shaping their retirement and the whole family's future.

So this question has two parts: one, what should we be thinking about in general as we go to look for a new home in this preliminary stage, and two, do you know anything about Asheville and the surrounding environment that might be helpful for us to keep in mind?
Okay, a third part to the question: any advice for me, as I take such an active hand in shaping my family's future (and feel rather nervous at that prospect)?

Weird ice cream place in North Carolina?

unknowncommand — Fri, 16 Feb 2007 22:09:50 -0800

I'm trying to remember the name of an ice cream shop in Asheville, NC, or thereabouts. I was there in 2002, I believe. They used a big machine that loudly pulverized your ice cream flavor and toppings together, and then extruded it like soft serve. Is this place still around? I got the feeling that it was kind of like a franchise, and that the machines could be found elsewhere. Best ice cream I've ever had.

Job search in 6 months, how to prepare?

jacobjacobs — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 11:38:38 -0800

I'm moving in the summer of 2007 to a new city. I'm a web designer/developer, how can I get a head start on my job search? (likely to Asheville NC, if that helps) The destination has a good handful of web companies but not an abundance. I have the experience, education and portfolio to get an ok job... if it is available.

Job-sites (eg, dice.com, simplyhired.com) do not list much and adoption of craigslist in this small city isn't widespread. But since I won't be applying until 2Q 2007, the actual job search is only testing the water.

Tips on how to increase my chances? Or, should I just apply to every job in sight when the time comes? I hear networking is big on the internets but I know no one in that area atm... Or, should I just work on beefing my portfolio/skills?

Asheville Bound

geekyguy — Thu, 29 Jun 2006 09:18:02 -0800

TravelFilter: ~~My wife & I~~ A user and his wife are traveling to Asheville ~~next Tuesday~~ on July 4th for 3 days and I' they'd love to ask for suggestions on places to go/things to do (other than Biltmore). via MeTa

Where should we go for our September '06 honeymoon?

geeky — Tue, 20 Sep 2005 11:26:10 -0800

HoneymoonFilter: Where should we go for our September '06 honeymoon? We're looking for a reasonably priced place to get away for our 3 or 4 night honeymoon - we want relaxing, but not boring.

A few limiting factors:

- Being that September is hurricane season, no cruises or beaches, and especially no Florida.
- Preferrably no planes. It adds to the cost, and he's afraid of flying. We live in Virginia and are willing to drive a few hours.
- Neither of us are particularly athletic, so while places with golf, tennis, and skiing are nice, they don't really appeal to us unless there are other things to do as well.

I'm somewhat fixated on The Biltmore in Asheville, NC, but I want to make sure I don't overlook any other potentially good honeymoon locations. Recommendations from places you have been would be helpful - bonus points if they cater to honeymooners. And if you have stayed at or near the Biltmore, please share your experiences too!

Driving Music

Who_Am_I — Fri, 10 Dec 2004 08:11:11 -0800

Tomorrow I have to drive from Asheville to Richmond, which is about six or seven hours in the car by myself. I need some good driving music. What do you use/recommend? I tend to think that the best driving music is something I can sing along to, which mostly means no electronica/jazz/classical etc. (although I am a fan of all three). I tend to load up on classic rock like Zeppelin and The Who, but I also dig Rusted Root and DMB live sets.

Also, I have The Lord of the Rings on CD but I can only listen to so much of it before I want real music. I'm not really interested in other books on tape/CD.