We visited Huntsville Alabama. US News & World Report named Huntsville the most livable city in the United States. We took a look around to see for ourselves.
I gave a complement to a security guard in Huntsville on how nice and pleasant Huntsville is. His reply "Yep, it's a nice mix of rednecks and rocket engineers that keeps everybody in check". Well said.
I was born and raised in Battle Creek MI and moved to Huntsville when I was 32, 25 years ago. I have never looked back and never wanted to leave! Love Huntsville AL
I grew up just 20 miles southwest of HSV in Decatur. In the mid 1970’s we had a lot of people come to our area from Michigan as GM built Saginaw Steering Gear plant there and brought a good many folks from Michigan. I became friends with several of them and they still remain in the area to this day.
Huntsville has it's issues like all cities. It has been home for 20 years and there are some great people here. There are some run down parts but the city has cleaned up and grown quite a bit. Overall it is a very safe city. The builders are primarily focused on luxury apartments and homes right now but there are plenty of smaller towns within a 15-30 minute commute that still have very affordable housing and the income potential for the city is good for the region. I never intended being in Huntsville after college but it became home for me.
You are right. Every town has its good and bad points. There aren't any perfect towns, they're only as good or bad as the people living there. Hello from Fresno California!
It depends what part of the city is safe when i was 3 years old i still remember living in an apartment complex filled with crack heads and the apartments got shot up atlese 1 time a month i went back recently and it looked better than i remember.
I have lived in Huntsville my entire life and our downtown has really started booming in the past few years. There are beautiful homes all over the city. There's so much to offer here.
Huntsville native here. Got priced out of my own hometown. Can't afford the rent prices. Had to move to rural alabama and I commute an hour to work. Huntsville is great.... if you can afford it.
I was born and raised in huntsville. Great place to live if you like the city style life with that southern feel. There was still so much they missed. There are even some haunted houses here and much much more that doesn't get mentioned.
@@thexannyphantom5532 I'm saying that "Southern Feel" mentioned above is not so much anymore with the addition of yuppies, yankees, EMO's, hipsters and millennials, in fact they have almost completely ruined the South, like introducing an invasive fish species to a natural lake halfway around the world, it harms the local eco system.
Huntsville was a great place to grow up. It's not far from the Tennessee River. We spent many summer weekends going to the river to water ski and go fishing.
We moved to the Big Cove area just SE of Huntsville about 8 months ago and absolutely LOVE it. I commute to the tech area of W Huntsville for work, but the drive isn't bad at all. Lots of shopping, not crowded, and we love that it's a slower life. Nashville, Birmingham, Lake Guntersville, lots of parks to hike and nature reserves, and everyone is SO nice here. It's a great place to raise a family. Best decision we've made.
I grew up in Huntsville and recently moved away about a year ago, and the change I've seen in that year is insane. Even for how affordable it is to live there, it was even cheaper only a couple years ago.
The year that you missed was just as bad. Over the past two years, I've seen the cost to rent a 3 bed ~1500 sq ft house (in the central Huntsville area) go from $1100 to $1400 and then to $1700. Part of it is inflation but an equally big part is the appreciation of houses in Huntsville. And don't get me started on Memorial Parkway. That road was not designed to handle the growth of Huntsville over the last 5 years. A 15 minute drive turns into 30 minutes with the rush hour traffic. It's a normal thing for cities I guess, but shouldn't be this bad for a city of this size.
@@frederickschulze8014 they are working on all of the roads as we speak there was already a plan in place to rehabilitate memorial & there is a ton of affordable housing. It takes time but you can’t deny the growth.
@@FAVORITELEAGUE Glad to hear and hope it happens faster than some of the other construction in this town... (looking at route 255 and the madison pike bridge that have been going on for 3 years). The housing isn't bad compared to big cities, but you don't get the Alabama cost of living that you used to
NEW SUB! Thanks for doing my city! I was born and raised here and Huntsville really is a great place to live and raise a family. ❤️ Northwest Huntsville is supposed to be a "not so great part" of Huntsville according to most people, but I grew up in this area of Huntsville and still love it. I can still leave my door unlocked if I want and no one messes with my car or amazon packages. Lol. God bless you and yours! ❤️
I grew up in the same area as you. My neighborhood wasn't to bad for the most part. Only reason I moved was my family aka had too many kids outgrew our living space.
Even north side is big area. Go to corner of sparkman dr and 231 you'll see garbage and shopping carts from the homeless. Take a trip down Martin lake rd. Laundry mat down there still got bullet holes in the front window. At night in that area all you hear are gunshots.
@@BruceLee-xn3nn Yeah, I live off of Winchester Rd. The worst area I can recall on the north would be those Westlake Apartments off of Sparkman Dr. It's basically like the projects out there. 😂 I find it interesting that Huntsville outgrew Birmingham's population(city wise) and we had 25 homicides last year while Bham had about 116. That city must be a real dump.
I live in Cedar Point and love my neighborhood. The homes in Cedar Point aren't new but has character. Huntsville is boring for the most part, not a city for the night life and doesn't have much attractions, but to raise a family and retire is a great place to live.
I’m a police officer here. Moved here from bham back in 2018. Definitely a place to raise a family. Great schools. People overall are really friendly and make my job much easier. Definitely has more to offer as of now imo than Birmingham. Especially considering the difference in the crime rate
I appreciate you a lot for this I just got a welding job opportunity out there and it’s a traveling welding job but I wanted to relocate I just didn’t know how safe it was and if it was good for a family so thanks for this comment I feel better 🙏🏾❤️ I’m coming from Mississippi by the way.
There was so many other cool things you missed. Like the Trash Pandas stadium, Monte Sano, the rail road museum, the VBC, Cummings Reasearch Park, and so many other amazing things here in Huntsville! If yall have time, yall should definitely come back and see the many other great things Huntsville has to offer.
My daddy worked for Mr. Cummings (for whom the reasearch park is named) at Brown Engineering. Daddy rose to #2 in the company, when Mr. Cummings died Teledyne bought the co. , Daddy resigned and we moved away.
Huntsville is the best-kept secret in the country. We love it here. The people are nice and genuine. The food scene is diverse and there are more family-owned places than chains. Real estate prices have skyrocketed over the past two years just like everywhere else. But it is still relatively affordable, and prices are beginning to normalize. There is crime in every city. And like most, it is isolated to a few specific areas. We have lived in several parts of the US over the years and Rocket City is by far my favorite.
Just ran a across your channel and right away was impressed with your travels. I was born in Huntsville in 1951 and have remained here ever year except the years I served our country. Just a quick thank you for the coverage you gave our city. We are not perfect by a long shot, but we try. Thanks for coming. If you are ever in the area again, just stop on in. We will treat you so many different ways you are bound to like one of them!!
Great take of the old town Huntsville but wow! there is so much more to see. The University of Alabama--Huntsville is about 3 miles from the Space and Rocket Museum. There are phenomenal shopping areas, residential areas with massive homes, great apartment and condo neighborhoods; the income is great; a nice variety of employment opportunities. Monte Sano Mountain is a lovely mountain residential area. The schools are great centers for learning. Entertainment is abundant. I realize another 24 hours of video might provide more reasons why Huntsville is a great place. Yep! I was born and raised in Huntsville. ~ L
I'm worried that Huntsville is sacrificing necessary urban planning for the sake of quick growth. Our bus lines barely function and everything is basically only accessible by car outside of downtown. The new housing that is being built is also almost exclusively single family detached homes in hellscape urban sprawls that are being bought equally by real people and rental agencies. The more dense housing is entirely rent only. There are no condominiums to my knowledge. So a family's ability to generate wealth from their homes is going to be nigh impossible in the city. It's nice, but we have some serious problems here. It's no fairytale. Many of the issues with transportation and ballooning rental costs are creating a future homelessness crisis, and the city's answer is to Trail of Tears them out to the county instead of providing housing options for them.
the homelessness crisis has already started, sadly. I heard talk of the city wanting to clear out some of the tent cities, and not a peep about providing alternatr accommodations for the people living in them.
Concur that city is growing faster than I’d like. As for your other concerns, well, imagine what the other cities on the list are wrestling with. I like HSV and have no complaints.
I wrapped up 15 years in Madison, leaving 3 years ago. Huntsville and Madison have outgrown their infrastructure. Traffic is incredibly dense, every school is overcrowded, but grocers are usually stocked with whatever you need. My wife and I plan on moving back to N. AL but it's just way too crowded to justify living in that same area again.
Once they start expanding roads and forcing these businesses hand it will get better, but I wouldn’t count on that one to be proposed for another 10 years, and then tack on another 10 to get the project to completion, then another 5 for them to add the finishing touches, of course.
@@jimtohas1077 I mean, yeah. I am all for the idea of building a metro line and vastly expanding the bus system to reduce the traffic issues! Also, a metro line, over time, could be expanded into a passenger hub all throughout the southeast region, similar to grand station and the NYC metro lines. Hell, we already even have caves to stick them in!
I live in Huntsville, AL. It's wild. You have some very nice places. And then you can see some very sketchy areas not too far away. One thing I can say for myself living here is this. Huntsville is definitely booming, economically and population wise.
I live in Huntsville. You cannot appreciate the downtown in a car. I know because untill I actually explored on foot I didn't notice how very unique and nice it is. Beautiful area you drove. There are some homes that are pre civil war. Very lucky to have saved these homes from fire and destruction. I believe Huntsville made a deal with the north for preservation.
I grew up in Huntsville, got married and moved to Tupelo, MS and currently live in Chattanooga. You're sort of doing a tour of my life! 😂 But I love Huntsville and plan to move back when we retire.
You missed the Research Park area, Where space industry, missile defense industry, research industries are located. Basically the tech industry area, it is beautiful. Mid city, and the Whole shopping area of University Drive are also in that area. Technically, there is also the Madison area which connects with Huntsville but is not incorporated into Huntsville. Huntsville is HUGE! The outlying areas connected to the city are not even being counted, just because they are not incorporated, but just look the entire metro complex on a map and you start to realize, Huntsville, does not just consist of Huntsville proper. Hampton Cove, Owens cross roads, and you even missed the whole south side of Huntsville proper which goes all the way to the Tennessee River. That’s where I live. I actually prefer the South side. Lots of nature walks , and shoot, we have Alligators here in South Huntsville. (I have lived here 17 years and seen one, so far.) Huntsville is a very vibrant city, that does not let blight take hold here. Since moving here, I can’t tell you how many buildings have been torn down to make way for new development. The new development has been fantastic. The South side Hays Farm Project alone raised my home value $23,000 dollars overnight. They are pumping 3.6 million in refurbishing the area. It is beautiful. The most water in Huntsville, is right here in South Huntsville. You just have to know where to find it. The military base realignment and consolidation a.k.a. “BRAC” closed military bases all over the country and brought a whole lot of military here, about 8000 troops and their families. Redstone Arsenal, the military base here, is also not considered part of Huntsville, but Huntsville completely surrounds it. Traffic is 10 fold what it was, just a few short years ago because of BRAC, Jobs and a growing vibrant city attracting talent from all over the world to come here and they did and still do come here. The city has grown incredibly fast since we moved here in 2007 during the economic crisis! Just think about that for a minute, back then during the economic crisis, it was announced that Huntsville was THE fastest growing city in America. What you saw of Huntsville, was but a tiny portion of what there is. I think you are going to have to come visit again and take a second look. You missed a lot. We can save you some money if you stay with us. Would be glad to show you around.
This dude isn't an Alabama fan IMO also, it's hard for someone with no outside connections to drive thru a town they really know nothing about and make assumptions. Oh well.....
I'm from Huntsville and moved to Nashville, Tennessee 10 years ago. I moved back here last year. It is a good place to live, far as low crime rate and places to live. The rental rates are getting expensive, There are a tone of brand new apartments and brand new homes. So much new stuff we can't keep up. WE do have a ton of beautiful neighborhoods. The houses are gorgeous here. The value and prices are high to us, but they are very low to new families move from up North and from West. There is a TONE OF MONEY IN HUNTSVILLE. LOTS OF OLD MONEY.
I will always love Huntsville, even though I left 50 years ago. Learned to drive, fell in love several times, hung out at the old Boat Docks, and went to Whitesburg and Grissom. I hope that Monte Sano is still beautiful. Beware of the best city tag, because like one of the other comments, I live in Austin, and uncontrolled growth can quickly ruin a special place.
just recently moved my family & business to Huntsville. We absolutely love it here. We are in research park & not far from university where almost everything is or can be reached from, bridge st. is close & we just recently saw fireworks at providence on the lawn. coming from small towns, Huntsville has been the right decision for us on where we decided to leave our legacy.
I was born and bred in the next county over. I left home at 18 to join the Army and never moved back. That was 42 years ago. Although Ive been away a long time, my heart will always reside in North Alabama.
Uhh i lived in Illinois for 45+ years chicago area . And we left over a year ago now im here in Huntsville area and I can say it's the best thing I ever did ...nothing like the toilet I left theres good jobs low taxes and wayy lower crime rate here..yes anyplace can have crime but this is a cake walk compared ..this is my opinion so no negative comments please my life has improved soo much id recommended Huntsville area to Anyone!!!!!!
The run down building was J.C.Browns Store. It was a awesome place to many. Across the street was a movie theater. It has so much history in that neighborhood. Huntsville and surrounding areas are new homes building on what was once corn fields and cotton and soy beans. Was born in Huntsville Hospital and that is probably where I will die. Huntsville Hospital has grown huge and now has a lot of great physicians in every field practing medicine. Thanks for doing this video.
Please please stop moving here 😩 it’s so dang heart breaking seeing all the beautiful land being taken over by subdivisions! Our roads cannot handle the rush of people moving here! Our schools are already at the breaking point! They lowered the scores teachers need on their tests in order to teach, just so they can actually hire people to work at the schools, the quality of our city is falling due to the quantity of people moving here! I live right outside the city, used to take me maybe 35 minutes to drive into Huntsville, now it’s over an hour in the mornings.
fr its so annoying and most are because of our government(not trying to get political) my school is packed full and we have 30 kids at least in each class everything is getting ruined due to the population j
You should've really had a native Huntsvillian to show around and get a TRUE representation of ALL of Huntsville, not just a few parts. Also, I was born here 54 years ago, and I can assure you, the Huntsville I grew up in is not the Huntsville of today (yes, I wax nostalgic often).
I currently live in Huntsville and from a town 15 miles from Madison Al. It’s wonderful here and anytime I’m away I feel homesick. There’s so much history here, unbelievable creativity,scientific with lots of military families. So much to see and do. Downtown has been thriving with new restaurants and locally owned!
Lived there for 4 decades then moved to Bham. First thing I noticed was how much cleaner Huntsville is as a whole. Litter is rampant down here (can't stand litter bugs). Also felt safer there... the thought of owning a firearm for home protection never crossed my mind there. Even though I have grown to appreciate Bham I will always think of Hville as home.
Since covid rent has tripled and some are four times higher. Huntsville used to be a really great place to live until the local government thought it was a good idea to become as big as Birmingham and Montgomery. The once great town is quickly becoming just another hole. Yes, we have some very pretty areas and the historical homes are beautiful.
The mountains would have held that urban sprawl at bay only the rich yuppies and hipsters are developing the mountains like crazy now, bringing a whole new meaning to the phrase "Mountain People".
@@gamingdreams2142 right!!! Alabama is only ranked 4th in the worst states. Low income, crappy education, etc... you want it to remain that way keep voting republican.
As someone who's a Huntsville-Madison area transplant from KY I feel like that ranking totally deserved. It's the absolute best place I've ever lived and Im completely satisfied with the move. 10/10 would recommend.
I live in Huntsville Alabama and it is a wonderful place to live. I have been here my whole life and it has grown leaps and bounds in the last few years. It's a great place to raise your family in a diverse friendly town. I will be here for the rest of my days.
As a Huntsville native I can tell you that Twickenham is a neighborhood of doctors and lawyers now. Those are multi-million dollar homes. But yes still a beautiful neighborhood.
You should definitely visit maple hill cemetery for it's history next time you're in Huntsville. Huntsville is filled with all sorts of history. Absolutely love it
Now that you've done a video about downtown, the Twickenham District, Mill Village, and the Space and Rocket Center, please do a followup video about the other 95 percent of Huntsville. Speaking as someone who's lived here since the 1980s.
Seriously he just covered a small part of some of the richer neighborhoods. And that thing he said about being in walking distance of downtown and still being nice, if he had gone down church street instead he would've seen a not so nice neighborhood within walking distance of downtown
I grew up in Northeast Huntsville, left and came back for school and it's grown a lot. I enjoy the convenience of nothing being overly far away but tbh as a young adult, its fairly boring. I feel like there's nothing to do but go out to eat or shop. There are some classes and such but none are really more casually affordable. Downtown has started having more events and my fingers are crossed that they continue. Its also the only area you can get around without a car. But the construction does make it difficult to even walk around right now. Don't even try biking, my friend does and she said people have actively tried to kill her biking here. Housing is a huge problem though for sure, I make 60k/year at my new job and only could afford a house in North Huntsville out of the kindness of another human and the luck of my parents having the ability to help us out. I wanted to move over near my parents but we got priced out of homes that, before I left for college, would've been in my price range. We would've spent easily as much as our mortgage trying to rent though, so I guess at least we dodged a bullet there. Also don't even get me started on wedding venues. If you don't want to get married in the barn or outside you are kind of out of luck. They're beautiful, but the barn vibe was not for me and we had to pick a venue an hour outside Huntsville to find a not barn with a larger guest capacity that didn't cost a kidney to rent. I do like it but its definitely far from perfect. I'll be staying for the foreseeable future but I really hope some of the issues get worked out (and there are definitely more than I listed out, I only spoke about issues I personally am familiar with.) It is frustrating to having to deal with the rising prices here as someone who grew up here.
I grew up in Huntsville and spent the first 34 years of my life there. As to your tour of Twickenham, (Huntsville's original name) well, really pretty much every neighborhood you went through, none of those houses are 200 years old. A lot of them are antebellum but almost none of the original city exists. The first constitutional convention declaring Alabama a state was held in Huntsville December 14th, 1819. I don't expect you to know any of this. You did a decent job showing Huntsville as the great city it is. I've been gone almost 30 years and still miss it. Oh, and as downtown's go, Huntsville's is indeed very small.
Not sure how I came across your video, but I live in Huntsville (Madison). Have lives here two years now and my family and I absolutely love it here! Coming from small town Ohio, and previously St. Petersburg Florida, and Kansas living for awhile, this is by far our favorite place! The old history, Space and Rocket center, the Big Spring Park, the fact we can go be in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains very quickly to the beautiful Alabama beaches in a few short hours. Many big cities are so close, like Nashville, Atlanta. It’s the perfect spot! We love all the many dining and shopping options so close also. Hope you enjoyed your stay!
Huntsville! ❤️❤️❤️ “The biggest little city in Alabama!” I’m approximately 15 minutes south of Huntsville, in a rural area. Most of the people out here are RSA employees, and of course many engineers populate the area. The reason why there’s not many tall buildings in Huntsville is because the majority of north Alabama sits atop cave systems.
The reason why those three neighborhoods are very beautiful and well kept is because they are historic districts. By having a historic district designation that protects the integrity of those neighborhoods from absentee landlords and the typical urban poor.
I've been to about 120 city downtowns and the neighborhoods surrounding those downtowns over the past 10 months. Huntsville's neighborhoods are easily the most beautiful that I've seen, so far.
That is true about historical in providence Rhode island or and areas of Massachusetts it's the same idea preserving old buildings it's hard not to notice when driving or walking past.
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip our downtown is fine except for the fact that its a 30 minute drive from most everyone in the city and it also doesnt have hardly anything to do
Naples, Florida was named best place to live several years ago. Now it is so incredibly expensive it is no longer livable for most. Huntsville will be the same in a few years. The whole #1 most livable city is basically just a way to tell outside investors to come in and jack-up prices.
I really appreciate that you do your homework and give people like me an opportunity to see places and neighborhoods I wouldn't normally see. I always wondered what it would be like living in other places .
I've been here since 1967. Changes to Huntsville have been unbelievable. Your camera showed those parts of Huntsville that make it appealing. However, looking at the entire metro area, it has become a nightmare of traffic congestion, housing developments, car washes (yes, I said car washes) and horrible street conditions. As I was told recently, there are 10 to 20 people moving to Huntsville every day. That is probably why construction of 5,000 apartments is taking place as I speak.
,,those are Joe Biden's consolidation beach condo big block apartments that have become all the rage now as they try packing as many people in any given space as possible, oligarch driven with a repeat of everything every 3 miles, strip mall, car wash, Dollar General, gas stations, apartments, CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens Pharmacy, a new restaurant chain to appease millennials, then a repeat for the next 3 miles.
@@timg2727 The oligarchs who run things and decide how to build and profit to a max have decided car washes, storage rentals, apartments, condos, Dollar General, hipster restaurants and so forth will be mass produced and repeated within a sizable city every 3 miles.
@@timg2727 just like the latest craze to built all these tire stores every 3 miles, Discount Tire, Tire Discounters {probably the same company that leads you to believe there's plenty of competition out there and selection}
Oh man, I follow you here and there and wish I would have known you'd be here. I'd like to say hello. The historic homes by downtown are so nice still, because Huntsville was only one of 2 or 3 cities where the union troops didn't burn down all the homes. The troops used it as a headquarters. There's many beautiful neighborhoods in areas away from dwntwn too. If you go slightly northwest of dwntwn, you'll reach the worse and more run down neighborhoods fairly quick. Many of the large corporations are in Research Park east and west... and of course most of NASA and military buildings are on the arsenal. I hope you enjoy your stay here! P.S. I forgot to say I enjoy you're videos very much! It relaxes me at night and after long days. I enjoyed the recent Fargo, Boise videos as those are 2 cities I definitely would like to visit. The Wichita one was great too. I enjoy learning interesting facts about cities. Thanks : )
Thank you for the great comment. I actually went up northwest, but to be honest I didn't think the neighborhoods looked that bad (compared to some I've seen) so I didn't include them in the video. I've been to over a hundred city downtowns and the neighborhoods surrounding them over the past 10 months and Huntsville's, in my opinion, has every city beat.
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip You're welcome! I look forward to watching more of your videos. And yes I I agree with you that the neighborhoods I mentioned are nothing like some areas in other cities I've been to over the years. Birmingham has much worse neighborhoods than Huntsville and some of the cities I've been to in the eastern U.S. And I know you've seen alot worse than me from some of the cities you've visited. I can't walt to see your Chattanooga video. My gf and I have been going there overnight for years. It's land area is alot more compact than Huntsville's and the populations are about the same, but their downtown is much larger. If you get a chance, Rock City is worth it! I know there's quite a bit to do there, but it's like a wonderland built btwn rocks. It's around 15 min from dwntn. I hope you guys enjoy and thank you for the reply!
Average person can't afford to live in Madison or Huntsville. Not what it was. Live in N Alabama had to work over there several times. Such a pain now.
I became a permanent resident of Huntsville back in 2004. It's a wonderful place to live and raise your children. The growth here is amazing. You did miss a TON of amazing things, location and subdivisions. I would highly recommend a part 2, lol.
Personally, I'm a huge fan of the Lowe Mill. Tons of artists, some good food, lots of events going on every day it seems. If you go back, would recommend a visit.
Spent too much time in the historic districts to give an accurate portrayal of how most people live in this city. Doesn't even classify that as a middle class area. A beautiful area for sure, though. Had to laugh when you said "A run down area of Huntsville!" as I live close to there and there's much worse! Actually a nice area to live if I do say so myself. Enjoyed seeing y'all enjoy the Space Center.
Lived here my entire life....there's no other city I would want to live in. It's a great mix of both newer technology and a small, hometown feeling city. You can be in the middle of the city and drive 20 mins in any direction and be out in the country. I just wish they would stop building up all these sub divisions. The land and country charm play a huge role in making this a special place to live. It was at its peak for me in the 80s as it hadn't yet become so crowded
In the 80's it was a small town. You could safely ride your bike or walk around town as a kid. I left in 84 after living there for 20 years. It was a fun place to grow up. But, 20 years was enough. I was ready to go out and explore the rest of the world. It's still fun to visit the old hometown and see so many upgrades.
I love this!! We moved here when I was 7yrs old & it's home! My Dad worked for Nasa for almost 40yrs (until covid hit & he decided to retire....bummer). The great thing about this place is, I live in a beautiful suburb called Madison & I can get anywhere around here in about 30 to 45min. The headquarters you mentioned are not downtown though, they are spread out all over the place & I like it that way because we can keep downtown and places like that, southern & beautiful & not industrial. I hope it does grow a little more & I would love to see more concerts & things like that, I just don't want it to get so big, it becomes like Birmingham & places like that. Love Huntsvegas!! ❤️
Fun fact! The Saturn V rockets on-site are kept in pristine and updated conditions because they can actually be reassembled and space-ready in a few weeks! What you refer to as "down town" is what we call The Square in the South. Underneath the courthouse and all of the surrounding buildings there's a cave system that lends some nice landscape and elevation variety for the waterfall and park below. There's an awesome historic cotton mill that's been converted into an art gallery and creative space for local artists called Lowe Mill that is maybe a mile away from the Space & Rocket Center that is one of my favorite places in Huntsville! We also have the Huntsville Havoc, a SPHL team, as well as being the home of Trash Pandas baseball. Also, if you think the historic district homes are impressive, you need to drive up Monte Sano Mountain. There's more than a few multi-million dollar homes up the hillside that are incredibly huge and are top-of-the-line.
Every place and city is livable. The real question, is what level are you prepare to live in. As a big sci-fi nerd, I really want to visit the US Space & Rocket Center some day.
If you are a literary sci-fi nerd check out Deep South Con. It's a small roving convention that will be in Huntsville this fall. It will have great programming for literature, budding authors and a science track for all things space geek.
I grew up in Huntsville, I can remember we use to take a bus and go downtown to shop, this was before they built the Mall. Also we use to have school trips to the space attraction when I went it had the one tall rocket and a gift shop that was it! My dad worked at a company called Spaco late 50’s early 60’s. Growing up in Huntsville because of the Space Center and Redstone, people from around the world came to work and live there, so going to school I had school friends from Turkey, China, India, Russia, Germany, Italy and many more, it’s a beautiful city, and no matter where you entering the city from the north, south, east or west, it’s beautiful. I moved away when I was 30, but I still have relatives and friends there so I go as often as I can, hopefully I’ll move back once I retire. Thank you for showing us this video, maybe next time take a drive up and down the Parkway, then up and down on University Drive.
I live 15 minutes from downtown Huntsville; this is by far the best place to raise a family and have a great quality of life. Moved here 17 years ago from a big city, and this is paradise if you compare the “traffic” and housing prices from other places.
Thank you for visiting our beautiful city! And for your great review and commentary! Too bad you didn't capture all the Defense Agencies in the Research Park Area or our great outdoor Mall (Bridgestreet). Downtown and the Historic District are quite beautiful, but unfortunately you missed other nice neighborhoods in the area. We are growing rapidly and the Metro Area, to include Madison, are expanding and there are some extraordinary developments (both subdivisions and businesses alike) that are gorgeous. Hopefully you'll be back to revisit us to check out all the new stuff soon!
I was born there. Wouldn't consider it the most livable. Major cities in Texas far exceed Alabama regarding economic opportunities and forward-thinking people.
Yea you said we don’t have tall buildings in Huntsville. That’s what I say when I compare it to say Birmingham. BHam is more up but Huntsville is waaaayy more spread out in n area. Anyway Huntsville is the best city in the country and quite possibly the world.👍❤️💯
I am proud to live within 40 miles of Huntsville my whole life. I go there often. The Tennessee River borders south Huntsville, and also don't forget the Huntsville Botanical Garden, Big Spring Park, and the Von Braun Civic Center.
I am from Huntsville, Al. There are Alot of elderly that own the empty Houses. There will not sale for years after There passing. Then they may get re-done.
In the 1980's the army started a program called the delta 10 program to train young soldiers into the EOD field, that program was started in Hunstville AL, I was there graduated and it was awesome.
Just moved here 2 years ago.... Birmingham surrounding is so much better. Huntsville is just 1 big hospital parking lot with a ghetto surrounding it. Madison is nicer
My husband has an offer in Huntsville and one in Birmingham. What parts of Birmingham do you like? I’ve heard some recommend warrior area and others have recommended Hoover, Pelham, Helena, Chelsea.
the attention on HSV has caused property values to explode, which means catch up to the rest of the county. My own home was worth $160k 5 years ago but today would sell for $360k
@@BruceLee-xn3nn Really? An isolated incident in 2019. Huntsville is objectively one of the safest metros in the entire country. Tell It to my equity / home value. I bought this house in December, and it's estimated appraisal is nearly +$70,000 in 6 months.
Great city for families and older adults. Not a great place for young adults. Very boring. Not a great place for diversity. Not a great place for people of color (it’s not horrible but it’s still the South). I like to call Huntsville “The North” of Alabama. Not a great place to get ahead. Salaries are extremely low for my profession. This place is my home, but I grew to hate it when I became an adult.
I've lived in the Huntsville area most of my life. I'm 40 yrs old my father was in the military thats what brought us here. There are nice areas but theres also alot of rundown areas and some areas that are not as some people would say "the safest". If you have money nice place
I gave a complement to a security guard in Huntsville on how nice and pleasant Huntsville is. His reply "Yep, it's a nice mix of rednecks and rocket engineers that keeps everybody in check". Well said.
Ha ha! That's awesome!
My home ❣️
😂😂
They ain’t wrong 😆 I work in the industrial part of Huntsville and live about 15 minutes outside of it. I love it here ❤️
Yep and some of us are both!
I was born and raised in Battle Creek MI and moved to Huntsville when I was 32, 25 years ago. I have never looked back and never wanted to leave! Love Huntsville AL
Lol I moved from Grand Rapids Mi to Huntsville I feel ya
Moved here From St. Joe MI.
@@m.lorraineroberts5537 How is Grand Rapids these days?
Awe that sound sweet to me. Hi Linda hope you are doing well with your family?
I grew up just 20 miles southwest of HSV in Decatur. In the mid 1970’s we had a lot of people come to our area from Michigan as GM built Saginaw Steering Gear plant there and brought a good many folks from Michigan. I became friends with several of them and they still remain in the area to this day.
Huntsville has it's issues like all cities. It has been home for 20 years and there are some great people here. There are some run down parts but the city has cleaned up and grown quite a bit. Overall it is a very safe city. The builders are primarily focused on luxury apartments and homes right now but there are plenty of smaller towns within a 15-30 minute commute that still have very affordable housing and the income potential for the city is good for the region. I never intended being in Huntsville after college but it became home for me.
Ranked safer than only 6% of US cities. Have to ask, how is that an "overall very safe city".
Aubrey play me some skynyrd!
You are right. Every town has its good and bad points. There aren't any perfect towns, they're only as good or bad as the people living there. Hello from Fresno California!
@@dianewilson5516
You Cali folks stay over there PLEASE!
It depends what part of the city is safe when i was 3 years old i still remember living in an apartment complex filled with crack heads and the apartments got shot up atlese 1 time a month i went back recently and it looked better than i remember.
I have lived in Huntsville my entire life and our downtown has really started booming in the past few years. There are beautiful homes all over the city. There's so much to offer here.
Huntsville native here. Got priced out of my own hometown. Can't afford the rent prices. Had to move to rural alabama and I commute an hour to work. Huntsville is great.... if you can afford it.
It's one of the cheapest places to live with the best income to cost of living ratio in the entire country.
@@tmorelli1982 Like I said. IF you can afford it.
@@WandaBand if you can't afford to live here, you can't afford to live anywhere.
Coming from Florida, Huntsville is incredibly affordable! It’s one of the most affordable nice cities in the whole country.
So why didn’t you buy instead of renting?
This is my home town. Born and raised. Never thought I would see Huntsville reach this status.
I was born and raised in huntsville. Great place to live if you like the city style life with that southern feel. There was still so much they missed. There are even some haunted houses here and much much more that doesn't get mentioned.
the whole area isn't as Southern as it use to be, the whole national accent is about the same, millennial dialect.
@@paradoxstudios6639 what are you even saying
@@thexannyphantom5532 I'm saying that "Southern Feel" mentioned above is not so much anymore with the addition of yuppies, yankees, EMO's, hipsters and millennials, in fact they have almost completely ruined the South, like introducing an invasive fish species to a natural lake halfway around the world, it harms the local eco system.
@@thexannyphantom5532 he doesn't know, just incoherently babbling all over the threads here
Huntsville was a great place to grow up. It's not far from the Tennessee River. We spent many summer weekends going to the river to water ski and go fishing.
We moved to the Big Cove area just SE of Huntsville about 8 months ago and absolutely LOVE it. I commute to the tech area of W Huntsville for work, but the drive isn't bad at all. Lots of shopping, not crowded, and we love that it's a slower life. Nashville, Birmingham, Lake Guntersville, lots of parks to hike and nature reserves, and everyone is SO nice here. It's a great place to raise a family. Best decision we've made.
I grew up in Huntsville and recently moved away about a year ago, and the change I've seen in that year is insane. Even for how affordable it is to live there, it was even cheaper only a couple years ago.
The year that you missed was just as bad. Over the past two years, I've seen the cost to rent a 3 bed ~1500 sq ft house (in the central Huntsville area) go from $1100 to $1400 and then to $1700. Part of it is inflation but an equally big part is the appreciation of houses in Huntsville. And don't get me started on Memorial Parkway. That road was not designed to handle the growth of Huntsville over the last 5 years. A 15 minute drive turns into 30 minutes with the rush hour traffic. It's a normal thing for cities I guess, but shouldn't be this bad for a city of this size.
@@frederickschulze8014 they are working on all of the roads as we speak there was already a plan in place to rehabilitate memorial & there is a ton of affordable housing. It takes time but you can’t deny the growth.
You can blame the Yankees and hipsters for that.
@@FAVORITELEAGUE Glad to hear and hope it happens faster than some of the other construction in this town... (looking at route 255 and the madison pike bridge that have been going on for 3 years). The housing isn't bad compared to big cities, but you don't get the Alabama cost of living that you used to
@@frederickschulze8014 in many other cities, that's the rate for a 1 bedroom apartment!
NEW SUB! Thanks for doing my city! I was born and raised here and Huntsville really is a great place to live and raise a family. ❤️
Northwest Huntsville is supposed to be a "not so great part" of Huntsville according to most people, but I grew up in this area of Huntsville and still love it. I can still leave my door unlocked if I want and no one messes with my car or amazon packages. Lol.
God bless you and yours! ❤️
I grew up in the same area as you. My neighborhood wasn't to bad for the most part. Only reason I moved was my family aka had too many kids outgrew our living space.
Even north side is big area. Go to corner of sparkman dr and 231 you'll see garbage and shopping carts from the homeless. Take a trip down Martin lake rd. Laundry mat down there still got bullet holes in the front window. At night in that area all you hear are gunshots.
@@andrewlide4527 I grew up in Cedar Point and wish I could buy a home in that neighborhood.
@@BruceLee-xn3nn Yeah, I live off of Winchester Rd. The worst area I can recall on the north would be those Westlake Apartments off of Sparkman Dr. It's basically like the projects out there. 😂
I find it interesting that Huntsville outgrew Birmingham's population(city wise) and we had 25 homicides last year while Bham had about 116. That city must be a real dump.
I live in Cedar Point and love my neighborhood. The homes in Cedar Point aren't new but has character. Huntsville is boring for the most part, not a city for the night life and doesn't have much attractions, but to raise a family and retire is a great place to live.
I’m a police officer here. Moved here from bham back in 2018. Definitely a place to raise a family. Great schools. People overall are really friendly and make my job much easier. Definitely has more to offer as of now imo than Birmingham. Especially considering the difference in the crime rate
I appreciate you a lot for this I just got a welding job opportunity out there and it’s a traveling welding job but I wanted to relocate I just didn’t know how safe it was and if it was good for a family so thanks for this comment I feel better 🙏🏾❤️ I’m coming from Mississippi by the way.
A member of one of the worst and most corrupt police departments in the country
Huntsville, born and raised there. Have lots of family and friends there. So many memories. ❤️
That sound so sweet. My grandma 👵 form there as well ❤hi Susan how are you doing today?
There was so many other cool things you missed. Like the Trash Pandas stadium, Monte Sano, the rail road museum, the VBC, Cummings Reasearch Park, and so many other amazing things here in Huntsville! If yall have time, yall should definitely come back and see the many other great things Huntsville has to offer.
My daddy worked for Mr. Cummings (for whom
the reasearch park is named) at Brown Engineering.
Daddy rose to #2 in the company, when
Mr. Cummings died Teledyne bought the co. ,
Daddy resigned and we moved away.
madison is where it’s at for sure
Huntsville is the best-kept secret in the country. We love it here. The people are nice and genuine. The food scene is diverse and there are more family-owned places than chains. Real estate prices have skyrocketed over the past two years just like everywhere else. But it is still relatively affordable, and prices are beginning to normalize. There is crime in every city. And like most, it is isolated to a few specific areas. We have lived in several parts of the US over the years and Rocket City is by far my favorite.
Just ran a across your channel and right away was impressed with your travels. I was born in Huntsville in 1951 and have remained here ever year except the years I served our country. Just a quick thank you for the coverage you gave our city. We are not perfect by a long shot, but we try. Thanks for coming. If you are ever in the area again, just stop on in. We will treat you so many different ways you are bound to like one of them!!
Great take of the old town Huntsville but wow! there is so much more to see. The University of Alabama--Huntsville is about 3 miles from the Space and Rocket Museum. There are phenomenal shopping areas, residential areas with massive homes, great apartment and condo neighborhoods; the income is great; a nice variety of employment opportunities. Monte Sano Mountain is a lovely mountain residential area. The schools are great centers for learning. Entertainment is abundant. I realize another 24 hours of video might provide more reasons why Huntsville is a great place. Yep! I was born and raised in Huntsville. ~ L
I'm worried that Huntsville is sacrificing necessary urban planning for the sake of quick growth. Our bus lines barely function and everything is basically only accessible by car outside of downtown. The new housing that is being built is also almost exclusively single family detached homes in hellscape urban sprawls that are being bought equally by real people and rental agencies. The more dense housing is entirely rent only. There are no condominiums to my knowledge. So a family's ability to generate wealth from their homes is going to be nigh impossible in the city. It's nice, but we have some serious problems here. It's no fairytale. Many of the issues with transportation and ballooning rental costs are creating a future homelessness crisis, and the city's answer is to Trail of Tears them out to the county instead of providing housing options for them.
Interesting. Sounds like legitimate concerns.
the homelessness crisis has already started, sadly. I heard talk of the city wanting to clear out some of the tent cities, and not a peep about providing alternatr accommodations for the people living in them.
Concur that city is growing faster than I’d like. As for your other concerns, well, imagine what the other cities on the list are wrestling with. I like HSV and have no complaints.
We had rent more than double beginning with the pandemic and things are only getting more costly.
Live here, Pretty much agree
I wrapped up 15 years in Madison, leaving 3 years ago. Huntsville and Madison have outgrown their infrastructure. Traffic is incredibly dense, every school is overcrowded, but grocers are usually stocked with whatever you need. My wife and I plan on moving back to N. AL but it's just way too crowded to justify living in that same area again.
Once they start expanding roads and forcing these businesses hand it will get better, but I wouldn’t count on that one to be proposed for another 10 years, and then tack on another 10 to get the project to completion, then another 5 for them to add the finishing touches, of course.
@@biohazard_ You can't just expand roads because they'll just fill up again, they need to find ways to reduce commuting distances.
@@jimtohas1077 I mean, yeah. I am all for the idea of building a metro line and vastly expanding the bus system to reduce the traffic issues! Also, a metro line, over time, could be expanded into a passenger hub all throughout the southeast region, similar to grand station and the NYC metro lines. Hell, we already even have caves to stick them in!
@@biohazard_ That would be so exciting! To be honest I'd take anything that could slow the sprawl from devouring all the nearby farmland
@@jimtohas1077 We really need upward housing for all the new people moving here, outwards we only have so much.
I live in Huntsville, AL. It's wild. You have some very nice places. And then you can see some very sketchy areas not too far away. One thing I can say for myself living here is this. Huntsville is definitely booming, economically and population wise.
I live in Huntsville. You cannot appreciate the downtown in a car. I know because untill I actually explored on foot I didn't notice how very unique and nice it is. Beautiful area you drove. There are some homes that are pre civil war. Very lucky to have saved these homes from fire and destruction. I believe Huntsville made a deal with the north for preservation.
My home town!!! thank you for sharing!!
I grew up in Huntsville, got married and moved to Tupelo, MS and currently live in Chattanooga. You're sort of doing a tour of my life! 😂 But I love Huntsville and plan to move back when we retire.
I got to visit Tupelo, MS back in 2006.
The hometown of Elvis Presley!
You missed the Research Park area, Where space industry, missile defense industry, research industries are located. Basically the tech industry area, it is beautiful. Mid city, and the Whole shopping area of University Drive are also in that area. Technically, there is also the Madison area which connects with Huntsville but is not incorporated into Huntsville.
Huntsville is HUGE! The outlying areas connected to the city are not even being counted, just because they are not incorporated, but just look the entire metro complex on a map and you start to realize, Huntsville, does not just consist of Huntsville proper. Hampton Cove, Owens cross roads, and you even missed the whole south side of Huntsville proper which goes all the way to the Tennessee River. That’s where I live. I actually prefer the South side. Lots of nature walks , and shoot, we have Alligators here in South Huntsville. (I have lived here 17 years and seen one, so far.)
Huntsville is a very vibrant city, that does not let blight take hold here. Since moving here, I can’t tell you how many buildings have been torn down to make way for new development. The new development has been fantastic.
The South side Hays Farm Project alone raised my home value $23,000 dollars overnight. They are pumping 3.6 million in refurbishing the area. It is beautiful. The most water in Huntsville, is right here in South Huntsville. You just have to know where to find it.
The military base realignment and consolidation a.k.a. “BRAC” closed military bases all over the country and brought a whole lot of military here, about 8000 troops and their families. Redstone Arsenal, the military base here, is also not considered part of Huntsville, but Huntsville completely surrounds it.
Traffic is 10 fold what it was, just a few short years ago because of BRAC, Jobs and a growing vibrant city attracting talent from all over the world to come here and they did and still do come here. The city has grown incredibly fast since we moved here in 2007 during the economic crisis! Just think about that for a minute, back then during the economic crisis, it was announced that Huntsville was THE fastest growing city in America.
What you saw of Huntsville, was but a tiny portion of what there is.
I think you are going to have to come visit again and take a second look.
You missed a lot. We can save you some money if you stay with us. Would be glad to show you around.
This dude isn't an Alabama fan IMO also, it's hard for someone with no outside connections to drive thru a town they really know nothing about and make assumptions. Oh well.....
I think this is a video to pull down HSV. They did miss so much.
He didn't go to any of the seedy parts of Huntsville, though. There is a ton of them, too.
i know right
He also should have checked out Big Cove
This is where I was born and raised! I now am in Birmingham, but it was an amazing place to grow up!
I'm from Huntsville and moved to Nashville, Tennessee 10 years ago. I moved back here last year. It is a good place to live, far as low crime rate and places to live. The rental rates are getting expensive, There are a tone of brand new apartments and brand new homes. So much new stuff we can't keep up. WE do have a ton of beautiful neighborhoods. The houses are gorgeous here. The value and prices are high to us, but they are very low to new families move from up North and from West. There is a TONE OF MONEY IN HUNTSVILLE. LOTS OF OLD MONEY.
I like seeing people excited to learn about our city. it makes me happy.
I will always love Huntsville, even though I left 50 years ago. Learned to drive, fell in love several times, hung out at the old Boat Docks, and went to Whitesburg and Grissom. I hope that Monte Sano is still beautiful. Beware of the best city tag, because like one of the other comments, I live in Austin, and uncontrolled growth can quickly ruin a special place.
Monte Santo is indeed still beautiful 👍
You went to Grisson? No wonder you like it here. I went to hell on earth, butler high in the 70's race riots and all
This is a great city. I have family here, for years. Great place to raise a family and great opportunities.
just recently moved my family & business to Huntsville. We absolutely love it here. We are in research park & not far from university where almost everything is or can be reached from, bridge st. is close & we just recently saw fireworks at providence on the lawn. coming from small towns, Huntsville has been the right decision for us on where we decided to leave our legacy.
Good luck 😂
Welcome to the Rocket City!!!
Shhhhh....
I was born and bred in the next county over. I left home at 18 to join the Army and never moved back. That was 42 years ago. Although Ive been away a long time, my heart will always reside in North Alabama.
Uhh i lived in Illinois for 45+ years chicago area . And we left over a year ago now im here in Huntsville area and I can say it's the best thing I ever did ...nothing like the toilet I left theres good jobs low taxes and wayy lower crime rate here..yes anyplace can have crime but this is a cake walk compared ..this is my opinion so no negative comments please my life has improved soo much id recommended Huntsville area to Anyone!!!!!!
I lived in St Joseph Michigan Before I moved here. On occasion we could see the Chicago Skyline. I have to say, I do not miss the snow.
Very, very nice!...always wanted to visit that space museum
The run down building was J.C.Browns Store. It was a awesome place to many. Across the street was a movie theater. It has so much history in that neighborhood. Huntsville and surrounding areas are new homes building on what was once corn fields and cotton and soy beans. Was born in Huntsville Hospital and that is probably where I will die. Huntsville Hospital has grown huge and now has a lot of great physicians in every field practing medicine. Thanks for doing this video.
Huntsville is certainly nice and it's a pleasure to live here. Thanks for visiting and bringing your lovely wife to brighten up the place.
I wish US News and World Report'd keep their opinions to themselves! We've got enough folks here already!
Please please stop moving here 😩 it’s so dang heart breaking seeing all the beautiful land being taken over by subdivisions! Our roads cannot handle the rush of people moving here! Our schools are already at the breaking point! They lowered the scores teachers need on their tests in order to teach, just so they can actually hire people to work at the schools, the quality of our city is falling due to the quantity of people moving here! I live right outside the city, used to take me maybe 35 minutes to drive into Huntsville, now it’s over an hour in the mornings.
When I moved here a week ago, I had no idea about how everyone was coming here.
@@KingLarbear They just keep coming here, don't they...?
@@morgan97475 that's what the locals tell me. I won't stay long, I promise
fr its so annoying and most are because of our government(not trying to get political) my school is packed full and we have 30 kids at least in each class everything is getting ruined due to the population
j
Sounds like you're referring more to Madison than Huntsville
You should've really had a native Huntsvillian to show around and get a TRUE representation of ALL of Huntsville, not just a few parts. Also, I was born here 54 years ago, and I can assure you, the Huntsville I grew up in is not the Huntsville of today (yes, I wax nostalgic often).
I currently live in Huntsville and from a town 15 miles from Madison Al. It’s wonderful here and anytime I’m away I feel homesick. There’s so much history here, unbelievable creativity,scientific with lots of military families. So much to see and do. Downtown has been thriving with new restaurants and locally owned!
Lived there for 4 decades then moved to Bham. First thing I noticed was how much cleaner Huntsville is as a whole. Litter is rampant down here (can't stand litter bugs). Also felt safer there... the thought of owning a firearm for home protection never crossed my mind there. Even though I have grown to appreciate Bham I will always think of Hville as home.
Since covid rent has tripled and some are four times higher. Huntsville used to be a really great place to live until the local government thought it was a good idea to become as big as Birmingham and Montgomery. The once great town is quickly becoming just another hole. Yes, we have some very pretty areas and the historical homes are beautiful.
I could not agree with you more. They cater more to transplants, then the people of Huntsville.
I am really starting to dislike my hometown. Its being turned into something that's going to run alot of good people away.
@@thomasbradley1848 I agreed, they building all over but nothing affordable for the common citizen in Huntsville.
The mountains would have held that urban sprawl at bay only the rich yuppies and hipsters are developing the mountains like crazy now, bringing a whole new meaning to the phrase "Mountain People".
Exectly Tommy Battle sold US out to big city left wing investors. They trying to make our town left leaning 😑
My mom just moved there as we escaped Los Angeles in the mass Exodus of 2020, I’m in Texas, she went to Huntsville. So thanks Spoda you’re great!
Thank you! :)
She moved to Naziville Whoopi.
Please don't bring the garbage left wing politics with you.
@@gamingdreams2142 they already brought back the Nazi in 1945
It's a nuclear target 🎯.
@@gamingdreams2142 right!!! Alabama is only ranked 4th in the worst states. Low income, crappy education, etc... you want it to remain that way keep voting republican.
As someone who's a Huntsville-Madison area transplant from KY I feel like that ranking totally deserved. It's the absolute best place I've ever lived and Im completely satisfied with the move. 10/10 would recommend.
Great job, guys! This is my hometown.
I live in Huntsville Alabama and it is a wonderful place to live. I have been here my whole life and it has grown leaps and bounds in the last few years. It's a great place to raise your family in a diverse friendly town. I will be here for the rest of my days.
As a Huntsville native I can tell you that Twickenham is a neighborhood of doctors and lawyers now. Those are multi-million dollar homes. But yes still a beautiful neighborhood.
I came from South Carolina to live in Huntsville Ala and graduated Frome S.R Butler Highschool class of 84 and I enjoyed every min I was there.
Hi Sean! BHS class of 83 here!
You should definitely visit maple hill cemetery for it's history next time you're in Huntsville. Huntsville is filled with all sorts of history. Absolutely love it
I live here in Huntsville! Just randomly came across your video. Thank you for showing people our awesome city!
It is awesome.
Now that you've done a video about downtown, the Twickenham District, Mill Village, and the Space and Rocket Center, please do a followup video about the other 95 percent of Huntsville. Speaking as someone who's lived here since the 1980s.
Seriously he just covered a small part of some of the richer neighborhoods. And that thing he said about being in walking distance of downtown and still being nice, if he had gone down church street instead he would've seen a not so nice neighborhood within walking distance of downtown
Lived in Huntsville about 8 yrs it is beautiful
You missed providence village in Huntsville. Its AMAZING!
There is beauty in the old homes. Thanks for showing me.
I grew up in Northeast Huntsville, left and came back for school and it's grown a lot. I enjoy the convenience of nothing being overly far away but tbh as a young adult, its fairly boring. I feel like there's nothing to do but go out to eat or shop. There are some classes and such but none are really more casually affordable. Downtown has started having more events and my fingers are crossed that they continue. Its also the only area you can get around without a car. But the construction does make it difficult to even walk around right now. Don't even try biking, my friend does and she said people have actively tried to kill her biking here.
Housing is a huge problem though for sure, I make 60k/year at my new job and only could afford a house in North Huntsville out of the kindness of another human and the luck of my parents having the ability to help us out. I wanted to move over near my parents but we got priced out of homes that, before I left for college, would've been in my price range. We would've spent easily as much as our mortgage trying to rent though, so I guess at least we dodged a bullet there.
Also don't even get me started on wedding venues. If you don't want to get married in the barn or outside you are kind of out of luck. They're beautiful, but the barn vibe was not for me and we had to pick a venue an hour outside Huntsville to find a not barn with a larger guest capacity that didn't cost a kidney to rent.
I do like it but its definitely far from perfect. I'll be staying for the foreseeable future but I really hope some of the issues get worked out (and there are definitely more than I listed out, I only spoke about issues I personally am familiar with.) It is frustrating to having to deal with the rising prices here as someone who grew up here.
we drove by huntsville on our way home from albertville , alabama. big nice town
I grew up in Huntsville and spent the first 34 years of my life there. As to your tour of Twickenham, (Huntsville's original name) well, really pretty much every neighborhood you went through, none of those houses are 200 years old. A lot of them are antebellum but almost none of the original city exists. The first constitutional convention declaring Alabama a state was held in Huntsville December 14th, 1819. I don't expect you to know any of this. You did a decent job showing Huntsville as the great city it is. I've been gone almost 30 years and still miss it. Oh, and as downtown's go, Huntsville's is indeed very small.
Not sure how I came across your video, but I live in Huntsville (Madison). Have lives here two years now and my family and I absolutely love it here! Coming from small town Ohio, and previously St. Petersburg Florida, and Kansas living for awhile, this is by far our favorite place! The old history, Space and Rocket center, the Big Spring Park, the fact we can go be in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains very quickly to the beautiful Alabama beaches in a few short hours. Many big cities are so close, like Nashville, Atlanta. It’s the perfect spot! We love all the many dining and shopping options so close also. Hope you enjoyed your stay!
Huntsville! ❤️❤️❤️ “The biggest little city in Alabama!” I’m approximately 15 minutes south of Huntsville, in a rural area. Most of the people out here are RSA employees, and of course many engineers populate the area.
The reason why there’s not many tall buildings in Huntsville is because the majority of north Alabama sits atop cave systems.
That’s awesome ❤hi how are you doing today?
Lived in hazel green for 12yrs and worked in Huntsville. Back in Ohio now . I miss Alabama.
Only diff betw Al n hell is that hell doesn't have the humidity.
The reason why those three neighborhoods are very beautiful and well kept is because they are historic districts. By having a historic district designation that protects the integrity of those neighborhoods from absentee landlords and the typical urban poor.
I've been to about 120 city downtowns and the neighborhoods surrounding those downtowns over the past 10 months. Huntsville's neighborhoods are easily the most beautiful that I've seen, so far.
That is true about historical in providence Rhode island or and areas of Massachusetts it's the same idea preserving old buildings it's hard not to notice when driving or walking past.
Just say what you mean instead of "typical urban poor".
Your bigotry isn't hidden by your phrasing.
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip our downtown is fine except for the fact that its a 30 minute drive from most everyone in the city and it also doesnt have hardly anything to do
Well just go to Southeast Huntsville then - huge nice neighborhoods that are not historic.
Naples, Florida was named best place to live several years ago. Now it is so incredibly expensive it is no longer livable for most. Huntsville will be the same in a few years. The whole #1 most livable city is basically just a way to tell outside investors to come in and jack-up prices.
I really appreciate that you do your homework and give people like me an opportunity to see places and neighborhoods I wouldn't normally see. I always wondered what it would be like living in other places .
Thank you for that, Arnie. :)
This channel is misleading people.
Bring your money here you'll leave with nothing.
@@jeffreybernard7677 let them find out 🤣
He didn’t show you the half of Huntsville. Maybe in a few years he should revisit
@@Goddessluv22 He should show where the Nazi's lived and worked.
Foreign enemy's domestic as well.
I've been here since 1967. Changes to Huntsville have been unbelievable. Your camera showed those parts of Huntsville that make it appealing. However, looking at the entire metro area, it has become a nightmare of traffic congestion, housing developments, car washes (yes, I said car washes) and horrible street conditions. As I was told recently, there are 10 to 20 people moving to Huntsville every day. That is probably why construction of 5,000 apartments is taking place as I speak.
,,those are Joe Biden's consolidation beach condo big block apartments that have become all the rage now as they try packing as many people in any given space as possible, oligarch driven with a repeat of everything every 3 miles, strip mall, car wash, Dollar General, gas stations, apartments, CVS Pharmacy, Walgreens Pharmacy, a new restaurant chain to appease millennials, then a repeat for the next 3 miles.
@@timg2727 The oligarchs who run things and decide how to build and profit to a max have decided car washes, storage rentals, apartments, condos, Dollar General, hipster restaurants and so forth will be mass produced and repeated within a sizable city every 3 miles.
@K3ll Tv Texas traffic? That’s adorable to someone in SoCal.
@@timg2727 just like the latest craze to built all these tire stores every 3 miles, Discount Tire, Tire Discounters {probably the same company that leads you to believe there's plenty of competition out there and selection}
Put up signs...."If you're from California.....move on or move back.....your Cali queerness ain't welcome"
Oh man, I follow you here and there and wish I would have known you'd be here. I'd like to say hello. The historic homes by downtown are so nice still, because Huntsville was only one of 2 or 3 cities where the union troops didn't burn down all the homes. The troops used it as a headquarters. There's many beautiful neighborhoods in areas away from dwntwn too. If you go slightly northwest of dwntwn, you'll reach the worse and more run down neighborhoods fairly quick. Many of the large corporations are in Research Park east and west... and of course most of NASA and military buildings are on the arsenal. I hope you enjoy your stay here! P.S. I forgot to say I enjoy you're videos very much! It relaxes me at night and after long days. I enjoyed the recent Fargo, Boise videos as those are 2 cities I definitely would like to visit. The Wichita one was great too. I enjoy learning interesting facts about cities. Thanks : )
Thank you for the great comment. I actually went up northwest, but to be honest I didn't think the neighborhoods looked that bad (compared to some I've seen) so I didn't include them in the video. I've been to over a hundred city downtowns and the neighborhoods surrounding them over the past 10 months and Huntsville's, in my opinion, has every city beat.
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip You're welcome! I look forward to watching more of your videos. And yes I I agree with you that the neighborhoods I mentioned are nothing like some areas in other cities I've been to over the years. Birmingham has much worse neighborhoods than Huntsville and some of the cities I've been to in the eastern U.S. And I know you've seen alot worse than me from some of the cities you've visited. I can't walt to see your Chattanooga video. My gf and I have been going there overnight for years. It's land area is alot more compact than Huntsville's and the populations are about the same, but their downtown is much larger. If you get a chance, Rock City is worth it! I know there's quite a bit to do there, but it's like a wonderland built btwn rocks. It's around 15 min from dwntn. I hope you guys enjoy and thank you for the reply!
Yeah Huntsville is really unique I just moved from Huntsville to new market nd it’s growing fast as well
Average person can't afford to live in Madison or Huntsville. Not what it was. Live in N Alabama had to work over there several times. Such a pain now.
God has blessed America!
Let's turn from all wrong and learn to follow His given Son Jesus Christ.
I became a permanent resident of Huntsville back in 2004. It's a wonderful place to live and raise your children. The growth here is amazing. You did miss a TON of amazing things, location and subdivisions. I would highly recommend a part 2, lol.
Personally, I'm a huge fan of the Lowe Mill. Tons of artists, some good food, lots of events going on every day it seems. If you go back, would recommend a visit.
I was born and raised in Huntsville-Many precious memories here-It is a great place to live.
Spent too much time in the historic districts to give an accurate portrayal of how most people live in this city. Doesn't even classify that as a middle class area. A beautiful area for sure, though. Had to laugh when you said "A run down area of Huntsville!" as I live close to there and there's much worse! Actually a nice area to live if I do say so myself. Enjoyed seeing y'all enjoy the Space Center.
I love it in Alabama I love it ❤️live out here to
Lived here my entire life....there's no other city I would want to live in. It's a great mix of both newer technology and a small, hometown feeling city. You can be in the middle of the city and drive 20 mins in any direction and be out in the country. I just wish they would stop building up all these sub divisions. The land and country charm play a huge role in making this a special place to live. It was at its peak for me in the 80s as it hadn't yet become so crowded
In the 80's it was a small town. You could safely ride your bike or walk around town as a kid. I left in 84 after living there for 20 years. It was a fun place to grow up. But, 20 years was enough. I was ready to go out and explore the rest of the world. It's still fun to visit the old hometown and see so many upgrades.
I love this!! We moved here when I was 7yrs old & it's home! My Dad worked for Nasa for almost 40yrs (until covid hit & he decided to retire....bummer). The great thing about this place is, I live in a beautiful suburb called Madison & I can get anywhere around here in about 30 to 45min. The headquarters you mentioned are not downtown though, they are spread out all over the place & I like it that way because we can keep downtown and places like that, southern & beautiful & not industrial. I hope it does grow a little more & I would love to see more concerts & things like that, I just don't want it to get so big, it becomes like Birmingham & places like that. Love Huntsvegas!! ❤️
It's a gorgeous place for sure. But it's Wildly over priced right now. It's hard to live here if your below middle wealth.
That being said, we have had a MASSIVE wave of diversity come through in recent years!
Everything is overpriced right now
This was an exceptionally great video…
Thank you for sharing it!
Thanks!
Fun fact! The Saturn V rockets on-site are kept in pristine and updated conditions because they can actually be reassembled and space-ready in a few weeks!
What you refer to as "down town" is what we call The Square in the South. Underneath the courthouse and all of the surrounding buildings there's a cave system that lends some nice landscape and elevation variety for the waterfall and park below. There's an awesome historic cotton mill that's been converted into an art gallery and creative space for local artists called Lowe Mill that is maybe a mile away from the Space & Rocket Center that is one of my favorite places in Huntsville! We also have the Huntsville Havoc, a SPHL team, as well as being the home of Trash Pandas baseball.
Also, if you think the historic district homes are impressive, you need to drive up Monte Sano Mountain. There's more than a few multi-million dollar homes up the hillside that are incredibly huge and are top-of-the-line.
Every place and city is livable. The real question, is what level are you prepare to live in.
As a big sci-fi nerd, I really want to visit the US Space & Rocket Center some day.
It's a great museum.
I haven't been to it on a long time. It's usually packed.
As someone who drove past that big ol’ rocket twice a day for a while, it’s a cool place!
If you are a literary sci-fi nerd check out Deep South Con. It's a small roving convention that will be in Huntsville this fall. It will have great programming for literature, budding authors and a science track for all things space geek.
I grew up in Huntsville, I can remember we use to take a bus and go downtown to shop, this was before they built the Mall. Also we use to have school trips to the space attraction when I went it had the one tall rocket and a gift shop that was it! My dad worked at a company called Spaco late 50’s early 60’s. Growing up in Huntsville because of the Space Center and Redstone, people from around the world came to work and live there, so going to school I had school friends from Turkey, China, India, Russia, Germany, Italy and many more, it’s a beautiful city, and no matter where you entering the city from the north, south, east or west, it’s beautiful. I moved away when I was 30, but I still have relatives and friends there so I go as often as I can, hopefully I’ll move back once I retire. Thank you for showing us this video, maybe next time take a drive up and down the Parkway, then up and down on University Drive.
Though I’ve never been to Huntsville, I live in central Alabama and love it 👍🏻🥰‼️
😭😭😭😭😭😭
You should have gone up on Monte Santo mountain - a very eclectic artsy vibe in that neighborhood
I think that would be interesting 😅,hi there hope you’re doing well?
Great tour of Huntsville Alabama! I've enjoyed watching!
Thank you, Darleen!
one of the loudest noes on earth was the Saturn five rocket thanks for the show From New York
I live 15 minutes from downtown Huntsville; this is by far the best place to raise a family and have a great quality of life. Moved here 17 years ago from a big city, and this is paradise if you compare the “traffic” and housing prices from other places.
Just moved here. Love this place.
Came across this channel on the hum bug, becoming one of my favorites
Awesome! :)
I really enjoy your videos, keep 'em coming!
Thank you for visiting our beautiful city! And for your great review and commentary!
Too bad you didn't capture all the Defense Agencies in the Research Park Area or our great outdoor Mall (Bridgestreet).
Downtown and the Historic District are quite beautiful, but unfortunately you missed other nice neighborhoods in the area.
We are growing rapidly and the Metro Area, to include Madison, are expanding and there are some extraordinary developments (both subdivisions and businesses alike) that are gorgeous.
Hopefully you'll be back to revisit us to check out all the new stuff soon!
oh man,..who would have known,..Huntsville Alabama,..nice video
I was born there. Wouldn't consider it the most livable. Major cities in Texas far exceed Alabama regarding economic opportunities and forward-thinking people.
Yea you said we don’t have tall buildings in Huntsville. That’s what I say when I compare it to say Birmingham. BHam is more up but Huntsville is waaaayy more spread out in n area. Anyway Huntsville is the best city in the country and quite possibly the world.👍❤️💯
Many agree with you. :)
I am proud to live within 40 miles of Huntsville my whole life. I go there often. The Tennessee River borders south Huntsville, and also don't forget the Huntsville Botanical Garden, Big Spring Park, and the Von Braun Civic Center.
Can yall not. Yall keep highlighting us and it'll keep getting more expensive 😂
ha. you drove right by my house! glad you enjoyed the neighborhood and space and rocket center
I am from Huntsville, Al. There are Alot of elderly that own the empty Houses. There will not sale for years after There passing. Then they may get re-done.
In the 1980's the army started a program called the delta 10 program to train young soldiers into the EOD field, that program was started in Hunstville AL, I was there graduated and it was awesome.
Just moved here 2 years ago.... Birmingham surrounding is so much better. Huntsville is just 1 big hospital parking lot with a ghetto surrounding it. Madison is nicer
My husband has an offer in Huntsville and one in Birmingham. What parts of Birmingham do you like? I’ve heard some recommend warrior area and others have recommended Hoover, Pelham, Helena, Chelsea.
@@tonyamoore2211 Those are all good areas.
Thank God Sherman Missed Huntsville
the attention on HSV has caused property values to explode, which means catch up to the rest of the county. My own home was worth $160k 5 years ago but today would sell for $360k
Even more so in the past year. I bought my house about a year and a half ago, and I couldn't afford to buy it today at market value
Sell it, its gonna be all downhill for Huntsville from here. Crime will go through the roof
@@BruceLee-xn3nn wrong.
@@tmorelli1982 tell it to the cook at IHOP that got shot.
@@BruceLee-xn3nn Really? An isolated incident in 2019. Huntsville is objectively one of the safest metros in the entire country.
Tell It to my equity / home value. I bought this house in December, and it's estimated appraisal is nearly +$70,000 in 6 months.
I had no idea Birmingham and Huntsville were that populated. Thank you for the video
Great city for families and older adults. Not a great place for young adults. Very boring. Not a great place for diversity. Not a great place for people of color (it’s not horrible but it’s still the South). I like to call Huntsville “The North” of Alabama. Not a great place to get ahead. Salaries are extremely low for my profession. This place is my home, but I grew to hate it when I became an adult.
I've lived in the Huntsville area most of my life. I'm 40 yrs old my father was in the military thats what brought us here. There are nice areas but theres also alot of rundown areas and some areas that are not as some people would say "the safest". If you have money nice place