Learn me: Greenville, SC

I have been to Greenville once or twice to visit some friends, but now I might have an opportunity to move to the area for work and I'm curious what the GRM crowd thinks of this area.  I would be working just outside of town to the south east and likely living in that region to keep the commute reasonable.  Of course I'm interested in what car culture is like in the region and moving south might extend that season some as well.  Not sure if rallycross exists within a reasonable distance, but interested in other motorsports activities too.  Staying active outdoors is important and it looks like the mountains to the north might be the place to go.  Maybe the roads closer to the mountains would be fun too?  I get the feeling this town is growing with transplants from other parts of the country which might be welcoming to someone new in town. 

What do you know about the area? Likes? Dislikes?

My sister bought a house this past weekend in Flat Rock, NC just north a piece.  She visited a lot and really likes the area.  I believe the Costco is in Greenville- we already asked her.

Lived in Charleston sc. loved Greenville and the upstate more. Only due to access to the hills and mountains and the recreation styles I enjoy. But that's all I got. 

Greenville SC is #1 on my list of places to live that aren't my current home.  BMW Performance Center is in Greer, so only a few miles north of Greenville on I-85.  We used to stay downtown when we taught the SAE Applied Vehicle Dynamics seminar there, but traffic is miserable because infrastructure has not kept up with population growth.  Now we stay in Greer and venture downtown only one night out of the 3 we are in town.

Pretty much can race something somewhere year round. Can traverse the whole state in 4 hrs from about anywhere.

Michelin?

Greenville is wonderful, definitely on my short list and the weekend road trip options are fantastic. Wilmington, NC, Pigeon Forge, Chattanooga, Atlanta, Charleston. The biggest downside is flying out of town, even if driving to Charlotte, you'll likely have a connecting flight if traveling anywhere that isn't on the east coast, meaning flying from Greenville through Atlanta and having 2 connecting flights often the more common route. 

Greenville is an awesome city that has absolutely blown up in the last 4 years.  I lived and worked in Anderson, SC (30 miles west on I-85) for about 2 years and seriously consider moving back at least once a week.  We couldn't quite afford Greenville when we moved down there in January of 2021 when the market was still on fire but wish we could have made it work. Greenville is chalked full of transplants and was one of the fastest growing cities during the pandemic.

Downtown is awesome with all of the restaurants and the Reedy River Park.  I'm pretty sure it's illegal to serve bad food down there because there wasn't a restaurant we tried that we didn't love.

GSP airport is an absolute gem. Friendliest TSA I've ever encountered besides Milwaukee. There is a total of like 8 gates and there's a Chick Fil A and Dunkin Donuts in the Terminal what more do you need?  I despise large airports like Ohare so I don't mind flying out of MKE or GSP and taking a layover somewhere unlike Captdownshift.

Clemson has an autocross club that wasn't open to the public during Covid and I never had free time with my job to try and check it out anyways.  CMP is 2.5 hours away, Charlotte is an hour plus Charlotte traffic, 1/8 mile drag racing is big and of course roundy-round racing is a big deal down there.

This is pretty scatter-brained and rambley but I loved Upstate SC, miss it everyday and wish I had never sold my house with a 2.8% interest rate.

Many years ago I was in Greenville and stopped by a place for lunch. It was unlike anything we had in Pittsburgh at the time, you could just walk down the line and tell the person how to make your burrito! They had fresh guacamole, great tortilla chips, and and it was reasonable. Fast forward a few years and Moe's finally made it up here, but I'll always remember my first time. 

Ive lived here for 20+ years and Ive seen it grow pretty substantially in that time.  It still has a small city-ish feel but with bigger city amenities.  Some lower teir sports teams which are very reasonably priced to see.  Great restaurants and downtown scene.  The theater scene is as good as atlanta and better than Charlotte.  We get shows that no one else in the state gets. Beach three hours away, mountains less than an hour.  Plus, there is the Clemson Sports Car Club autocrossers (How I got started in cars) and the Highlands Sports Car Club up towards Asheville.  Three race tracks within two hours, and six within 5 hours.  A couple of indoor karting places as well.   Property values have gone up pretty substantially in the past five - six year but still very below average for the rest of the country.  

Greenville is great.  Downtown is crowded and expensive. Housing went nuts during the latest housing orgy.  Lots to do and in the surrounding area.  Traffic can be a beatch. I live in Spartanburg 20 minutes to the east.  

In reply to spitfirebill :

As with anyplace, there's roads that you don't go on at rush hour unless you can't help it. But compared to Columbia or Charleston, the traffic here isn't super terrible.  Less than an hour commute from downtown to Simpsonville. 

I highly recommend SC over PA. 

Thanks for the feedback!

I was able to visit and explore a bit to get a lay of the land.  I headed south to Laurens and Clinton to drive by some homes for sale, and while the prices are nice I think its a bit too far away from all the things that can be had closer to Greenville.  One of the reasons I'm interested in moving is to gain more choices for things to do, restaurants, shopping etc.  There seem to be a good number of parks and people getting outdoors with a healthy lifestyle.  The 60 degree days in February are nice, but I'm a bit worried about the dead of summer.  To me its trading off a winter where I spend more time inside vs. a summer where I want to stay in and enjoy A/C. Everything comes with its pros and cons.

I have a buddy who lives there and quite likes it; he also loves the roads nearby.

I've been meaning to visit but haven't made it out that way quite yet, so can't speak to it personally.

In reply to Nitroracer (Forum Supporter) :

Trading winters for summers is exactly it.  We spent lots of time inside during the depths of the sc summer. We spend lots of time inside during the Minnesota winter.  
 

I equate the two as the same. 

Just my thoughts: which do you dislike more? Cold weather and being stuck inside during winter vs 90 degrees and sweating if you are outside during summer. If you are not sure then you may want to consider 2 homes. If like many  that is not a possibility, your decision just got a lot harder. For me it is simple: I hate winter, I can tolerate sweating much better.

Last summer has me thinking being stuck inside because of too much sun was more depressing. However, there's no chance of the roads being impassable in that kind of weather.

Everybody talks about how hot it is in the summer...  I got over 100 degrees like 5 or 6 times in 2023.  Compare that to the 5 or 6 times it got over 95 degrees in Pittsburgh in a summer.

I don't see much difference once it's over 90 degrees.  Hot is hot.  To me no difference once it's over 90.

That 40 degree and raining thing it does all winter in PA can die in a fire.

The average temperature in July is only 5 degrees higher in Greenville than Pittsburgh fyi.

I know I'm using Pittsburgh as a comparison, cause that's where I grew up.  Moving to SC was one of the best choices I ever made.

G-Vegas is awesome. You'll just go to the mountains in the dead of summer. (Saluda NC, Pisgah, Davidson....) if you like arts, food, or outdoor recreation it's fantastic. I may know of a great house on Paris Mountain going up for sale soon. It's an old gear head, and may come with a 914 or a formula ford included...

In reply to wvumtnbkr :

I meant summer in central TX where last year it was over 100 for 45 days in a row, 80 days total.

j_tso said:

In reply to wvumtnbkr :

I meant summer in central TX where last year it was over 100 for 45 days in a row, 80 days total.

Ooph.  No thank you!  That does not sound conducive to being outside at all!  

i had a really brief stay in Greenville (Pelham Rd specifically, by the interstate) for a few months in 2004 during a college internship at a place further down in Simpsonville, but that area always left an impression on me.  i had a little apartment off of Pelham Rd and would drive into downtown sometimes to get something delicious or drive up Altamont Rd on Paris Mountain for some awesome sunset views after a long day.  the traffic on I-85 always seemed packed and under perpetual construction but years later when i moved to Atlanta i realized it really wasn't worse than any other metro area.  the people were friendly, i made some good friends, and it was so cool to be able to jam up to the mountains in short order to drive some fun roads if i got sick of being in town.  there is definitely an abundance of motorsports in that area and some places to go indoor karting which i severely miss and wish i had access to now.

i definitely remember the intense heat, and massive thunderstorms that would follow in the summer.  as a broke-ass kid with my honda accord i nearly boiled my back flesh trying to change my oil in the apartment parking lot one time (only made that mistake once) in July.  but, i've lived in the south for like 15 years now and looking back, it wasn't any worse than Atlanta or Augusta where I am now.  and the big thing is, you can escape it easily - just drive north and spend the weekend at high altitude.  you just need to adjust your active outside hours so you can bail on that 2-7pm heat in the debt of summer.

turn the clock a decade+ later around 2014-16 and i was back in Greenville from time to time to attend trade shows at the convention center by the downtown airport every 4-5 months.  i found that i'm not as big a fan of that area up 291 but otherwise, i liked the city even more then, than i did before - i largely found the burbs around the perimeter of the city to be pretty nice places to be.  downtown has gotten super cool as everyone else noted.  we hit up Grill Marks downtown and i had a burger that blew my mind, and that whole area down there is great to walk around and enjoy the day.

my one complaint really just centers around 85.  sometimes traffic is absolutely sailing, sometimes its bound up pretty bad, all the way to ATL or Charlotte and some sections are pretty rough (or at least they were).  that said, 185/385 around the perimeter is smooth as ice and usually flying.

I've spent pretty much my whole life just over the border in NC. Greenville is a lovely town, probably the only city in the region I would really want to live in - definitely better than Charlotte I think. It has lots of great parks, good food, a nice art museum, it's decently easy to find parking near downtown, etc. Being a mountain boy, it's a little too hot and flat for me, but that's just personal preference. There's usually about a 6-10 degree difference from Greenville to Hendersonville.

In terms of driving roads, head pretty much anywhere north or northwest of the city and you're spoiled for choice. Some favorites:

178 heading up towards Rosman - smooth pavement and not too busy

276 - Stop at pretty place for some great views, turn off at Cascade Lake Road, then Staton Road to head towards Dupont State Park for good hiking and great waterfalls.

I have met people from Greenville who routinely drive up 176, and it's a personal favorite of mine. It follows historic Saluda Grade (the steepest rail grade in the US, but it hasn't been an active railroad for a long time). The section between Tryon and Saluda is easily accessible from either 25 or I-26, well-paved, tight, and the uphill direction has a passing lane pretty much all the way up. Just slow down in Saluda, I've heard the cops are pretty eager to enforce the 25 mph limit.