This may not be the right place but as a C6 owner it seemed as good as any to ask.

I'm considering a job with JP Morgan Chase in Tampa. What's good or bad (especially for Corvette owners) about that area?

I'd like to hear from anyone's comments about JPMC too if they have time.

Thanks!

 

you may want to ask this question here: the Off Topic section

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=26

 

Thanks. I just posted it off topic. If a moderator wants to cancel this thread since I also posted off topic, go for it!!

 

The Tampa area is great, but crowded. Lived in the Sarasota/Bradenton area for a number of years and I hope to live on the Gulf side again. Bucs football, Ybor City, Busch Gardens, Quaker Steak & Lube (great bike night on Wednesdays), the beaches and on and on. Best thing to do is to initially rent and look for the area you want to live in and commute from. I worked in St Petersburg and commuted across the Skyway Bridge.

 

Thanks for the reply. You say crowded but crowded compared to what? I lived in the DWF area for 6 years. A 20 mile commute home in rush hour was an hour and a half to 2 hour event. As long as the traffic "moves", that is ok. If I can expect "stop-and-go" traffic every day, I'll stay put. Lifes to short to spend it parked (even in a Corvette) on an interstate everyday.

 

The roads in Florida are SO MUCH nicer than most of the rest of the country. Smooth and flat. Perfect for a Corvette.

 

Let's see St Petersburg/Tampa:

Cons
There's 11 curves in 318 miles, women in SUV's lov to cruise the left lane with cell phones shoved up their ears; rock haulers 24/7; Q-Tips clog the road and form rolling chicanes(a Q-Tip is an old person driving a big car-all you see is a skinny little neck and a head of white hair ); lot's a wannbe LEO's that attempt to block faster moving traffic; hurricanes; blood sucking insurance companies clogging the roads leaving the state; Tampa drivers are slow and can't drive worth a poop; St Petersburg drive fast to keep up with faster LEO's, but they don't drive much better than the Tampa slugs; bloody hot until December; insanely high reality prices.

ProsNo snow; cold equals 60 degrees;Sebring; Sebring; Sebring; long straight runs damn near everywhere; Barrett Jackson a short day drive away.

 

Tampa will be the next N.O. when the next hurricane strikes. Move inland. Homeowners Ins is doubling again. Other than that, FL is the best place to live! Much better than NY, maybe not as nice as S. California.

 

I live in Sarasota. People drive like bats out of hell. I was almost run over 10 times during breakin. Weather is great! Roads are great! RE and RE taxes high. Did I mention the weather is great!!! Re the quetips, if you are lucky you will be one some day. and heck, they got to drive, they are too old to walk!

 

My insurance hasn't doubled....and is still no more expensive than it was in Michigan ...non-factor. Tampa will never be the "next N.O." as it will drain. Just keep flood insurance and don't worry. I lived a mile off the Gulf and was 21' above sea level, not even in a flood plain. Port Charlotte didn't have flooding issues, it was wind damage. Arcadia took a huge hit and that town is 40-50 miles inland.

During "the season" population seems to nearly double in areas with all the snow birds.

Come on down for a week and move around the town during the peak rush hours and then you can decide for yourself.

 

It was all over the news, Will Tampa be the next NO. As for Ins, mine doubled 2 yrs ago from 900 to 1800. Everyone who has renewed recently has doubled again, to 3600. Ins co are pulling out of FL, RE prices are falling. I see alot of half-backs, you know Notherners who moved to FL, then moved 1/2 way back to N.C. I still love it here, as least the ground doesn;t shake.

 

We moved from the Chicago area to the Tampa bay area 8 years ago due to a job transfer. The traffic is heavy here at times (snow bird season) but no where near as bad as Chicago. The biggest problem is that everybody is from somewhere else with inconsistant driving habits and with all the cotton heads even the slightest traffic situations can become a major driving risk.
Real estate prices have skyrocketed 91% since '02, 150% since '98. Our property insurance has almost tripled in the last 2 years due to the hurricanes and sink holes and is worse if you get stuck with the state Citizens policies.
It’s hot as he%% and rains daily (can you say bad a$$ lightning) in the summer but great the rest of the year.
The roads are great if they are not under construction, lots of lakes in my area that translate into great twisties.
Imho the infrastructure and planning for the massive growth of the area is at least 20 years behind. Schools are good if you find the right area, just plain bad in others.
Could we suffer a massive N.O. type flood? No, downtown Tampa and a good part of Pinellas and the coastal areas would be under water but it would drain pretty quick, the biggest fear would be widespread wind damage and its not if it will happen but when will it happen. This year? Next? 10 years from now? It will be hell no matter what if a cat 5 smacks us.
It's all what you make of it, good luck...

 

EXCEPT IN DOWNTOWN TAMPA ITSELF! Sure the roads are nice but I'd say only in the surrounding areas around Downtown Tampa; downtown is a hit and miss deal. Actually, even some of the roads outside of the downtown area are old style or in need of repair-it's not as good as it was 10 years ago. I live in Pinellas County (near Clearwater and St. Petersburg) and the roads out here are 90-95% good. If you can, buy a commuter car and keep the vette in the garage, if you have one available or under a very good car cover and try not to use it for work. Once in awhile maybe but its always better not to use it for daily commute if you can.
Overall, I recommend the Tampa Bay area and live either in Pinellas or Hillsborough counties; STAY OUT of Pasco county! WARNING! WARNING! DANGER, WILL ROBINSON! Seriously, stay away from Pasco county.
Good Luck

 

Another note, West coast of FL gets little warning when a hurricane approaches from the gulf. The good news, they usually are not major hurricanes unless they come from the coast of Africa. Up north you worry about snow storms, down here you worry about hurricanes. Preparation is key. Don't be one of the guys in Home Depot at midnight trying to buy the last sheet of finishing plywood for your window.

 

I would recommend staying away from Arcadia Chevrolet, about an hour from Sarasota.

 

From a sports car owner's perspective, Tampa is great. Many great cars, owners who appreciate them, and lots of avenues to cruise. I'd limit my commute due to high traffic volume during rush hour. If you are working in downtown Tampa, living in South Tampa is perfect, but not cheap. I've only lived here one year, but I love the city. Easy access to concert and sports venues as well as short drive to the airport. Having lived in Denver, where they moved the airport to Kansas, the airport location here in Tampa is a big plus. The only serious downside is hurricaines. Sort of like asking Mrs Lincoln, other than that one incident, what did she think of the play? In the past, the odds were with us. But with the Gulf heating up (think 100 octane fuel for hurricaines), I'm less confident.

 

Thanks to everyone for the input.

I need the Corvette for my daily-driver as my "other car" is a '67 Jaguar Series 1 XKE Coupe. I can only afford so many toys. Sometimes they have to serve doule-duty. My wife has the truck and drives as much as I do. The Jag is a great cruiser and weekend car but is just too old for everyday use.

As for hurricanes, I grew up in Indiana in "tornado ally". I was narrowly missed by 3 (the infamous Pslam Sunday tornados) which I saw from my back yard and I was actually in a 4th a few years later that devastated everything around us. Luckily we were renting at the time and didn't own much and my car at the time just got a scratch where the TV antenna fell on it from the wind. We were VERY lucky. There were those 50 feet away that lost everything. We were without power for over a week and no fresh water either because we were on a well (no power = no water). I understand the need to be prepared.

At least with a hurricane there is more warning.

Insurance does not sound good but that is just a cost of living factor if and when I negotiate salary.

I'm being told that Plant City and Lakeland are good from a commute standpoint as the office is on the east side. That is off the coast somewhat at least.

Thanks again.

 

On the east side of what? The east side of Tampa or the east side of Hillsborough County?

Plant City and Lakeland are off of I-4 which can have bad traffic. I live in SouthEast Hillsborough County. I am about 20 minutes from Ybor City. I can make the Airport, without traffic, in 35 minutes.

I like the Brandon, Riverview, Apollo Beach area.

It all depends on your price range. Of Apollo Beach, Riverview, Brandon, Lakeland and Plant City, the last two will be your least expensive.

The property values compared to the Northeast or the West are still good.

I love the area.

 

You might want to try asking in the Southeast section as well. http://forums.corvetteforum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=42

I know there is a big corvetteforum community in Tampa. They always have something going on in Tampa.

Good luck in making a decision.

 

Cool site to estimate RE values.

http://www.zillow.com/