moving to st croix

As someone who has lived in several major cities--New York, London, Boston, Miami--I think the air quality is really great in St. Croix! There is a nice fresh feeling to it when you step off the plane, most of the time. When I go over to St Thomas on the seaplane and land in downtown I'm always surprised by the lower air quality from all the traffic. Don't even get me started on visiting the northeast!
However, sometimes on STX the refinery does give off scents. I work at night on the southwest shore of the island and the wind blowing from the refinery direction has the scent of gas or some weird industrial smelling chemical. During the summer, African Dust blows across the Atlantic and into the Caribbean. Some people react badly to that---especially those with asthma. The Montserrat volcano erupts every so often and deposits ash on the island. Again, can be aggravating if you have respiratory problems or are sensitive to such things.

If you are moving for aesthetic reasons regarding air quality, you would probably be satisfied. If moving for health reasons, you may find some problems with the African dust. Are there other reasons why you are considering moving to the Caribbean besides air? Most everyone on this board and on island would recommend coming for a visit before moving. There are a lot of differences between here and the mainland that make living here very difficult/unbearable for some Americans. On the other hand, some people wouldn't live anywhere else...The money spent on a week long trip may save you a lot of money/emotion down the line if you decide island life is not for you and have to move back within 6 months (that is if you can still afford to move back, otherwise you're pretty much stuck).

it seems about once a year my bf has really bad reactions to the dust, it get so bad he has to use an asthma inhaler for the problem. breathing gets very difficult for him.

I think as far as the refinery goes, it depends on where you live. On the North shore I don't believe you ever smell the refinery.

As far as pollution its great. If you have trouble with allergies stateside you will run a good chance of having them here, with things growing all year and the ash.

If you can't afford the pre-move visit, you might be unable to afford living in the USVI! Although I understand that airfare is a lot more expensive from some parts of the country than others, and sometimes it does work out OK -- it's a pretty big risk, especially if you have never even visited St. Croix before.

That said, air quality is all relative. If you live in the mountains stateside, it's probably about the same as in the islands, slightly worse in the more populated areas of St. Thomas/St. Croix. If you're coming from a city, it's probably better air than what you're breathing there. I always breathe easiest on St. John, but that might just be because it's home. 🙂

Good luck -- hope it works out for you!!

the air is great compared to large cities in the states. Lived here for years and years and the only thing that bothers me is when we do get a volcanic eruption is the watery eyes. But thats just me probably.

After a rain espically the air smells so nice and fresh.

I moved down here sight unseen 19 years ago amanda and loved it first sight. And I know alot of people who did the same.

Did you say where you are moving from??

I would be more concerned about living arrangements and jobs.

I think things are going to slowly pick up here. So jobs may open up more.

Good luck with your possible move.

Amanda~ My husband and I are going on our PMV May 18-24. We have never been to STX before, but are 99% sure we are picking up and relocating within the next few months with our dogs. I will be more than happy to get back in touch with you when we return. PM me your email address. I have been researching STX since February and would be happy to share what I have learned so far.

Jenny

Jenny, Thank you SO much! I would love to hear everything you've learned, and would love to stay connect for when we do move down there. We wouldn't be moving until late September/early October, which we hope will be a good time to find a job for the busy winter season. We both have extensive experience in customer service, so believe we would transition well to working in a resort or the like, even if it was temporary. I also have a dog, so would really love to hear of your experience moving down with dogs. I've read some comments that sound like having a dog would be no problem; others that say it makes getting an apartment and the transition much harder. The tentative plan at this point is to have friends care for her while we're settling in for a few months, then after visiting family for the holidays to return with her.
Feel free to email me any info you can and are willing to share. We're also looking just to meet people online who are from the area or moving to the area, so once we get down there we will perhaps have a few contacts of nice people willing to answer our questions, etc. I hope your trip goes great! I really wish we could visit right now as well!!

Thank you!
Amanda

Right now with the rental market so bad for landlords, having a dog should not be a problem. Its not going to be easy, but you should definitely have choices. Whereas when the market is good it can be much harder and you have to jump on things that accepts pets. Finding a condo that takes dogs is always hard however, there are very few that allow owners to have dogs and fewer still that allow renters to have them.

I really appreciate everyone's comments. To answer a few questions that you asked, we will be moving from Columbus, OH. We currently live near downtown in the arts district, our home is not far from 3 major freeways, so we are positive we're breathing a steady stream of burnt diesel fuel at all times. (in addition to several nearby factories, and nearby coal burning facilities) I grew up in the country in southern Ohio, Nate (my boyfriend) grew up in a larger town in northeastern Ohio. While we realize that we're attempting to make this move on a tight budget, we have been quite frustrated with our city life for quite some time and are ready for a big change (since moving from the country, I've lived in the city for 10 years now). We've come to the decision to move to St. Croix after exploring many possibilities, and are trying to educate ourselves of all the pros/cons St. Croix has to offer. We do have some tropical experience...we visited the Dominican Republic a couple years ago, and truly fell in love with the climate, the flora and fauna, and the laid-back feel of island life. Nate volunteered in Costa Rica for several weeks a few years ago as well. I feel moving to the Caribbean has been a topic of conversation repeatedly throughout the last few years, and as I mentioned before, we're ready for a big change. I've heard warnings of "rock fever" and do realize the reality of living in a space with obvious boundaries, however, I have not owned a car for the last year and a half, and have more or less lived within a 2 mile radius the whole time! If we do end up moving, I will buy an old car to drive around the island, so I feel that I may actually have less of a trapped feeling that I do here! (maybe this is just my positive thinking in action! :-)) We also have a dog, and will be planning to bring her down a few months after we move, so any feedback from islanders with dogs is greatly appreciated as well! She's pretty spoiled right now-- gets a walk to our local (off-leash) park almost every morning where she can run her heart out! Comments were made that if we are living on a limited budget, we may not be able to afford life on St. Croix. I am wondering by what standard of living you are coming from? We already feel that we live more minimally and simply than the average "american," so are hoping that we'll able to get by fine. Neither of us currently makes much of an income, and we are saving at this point as much as we can, so are living about low key as we can. (I work in a yoga studio, he works in a science museum.) Any further info about this would be helpful.
Feel free to provide me with any comments, suggestions, or advice. I'll also be checking this site regularly, as I'm so pleasantly surprised of how many comments my post received since last night. Thanks again!
Amanda

"Comments were made that if we are living on a limited budget, we may not be able to afford life on St. Croix. I am wondering by what standard of living you are coming from? We already feel that we live more minimally and simply than the average "american," so are hoping that we'll able to get by fine. Neither of us currently makes much of an income, and we are saving at this point as much as we can, so are living about low key as we can. (I work in a yoga studio, he works in a science museum.) Any further info about this would be helpful."

Life in the islands is simple. But the simple here is very expensive compared to most of the us. If you were coming from Jersey or San Fran prices might be comparable or even cheaper. But coming from Ohio prices are going to be much higher here. And the double negative to that is wages are lower. So it may be a big or small adjustment. Yes the electric may compare to your heat bills in winter but the diff is we get them all year. So learn to do with a/c right away. Groceries, well expect to pay at least double.

It does sound like you will not be able to work in your current job fields, or at the least he will not be able to. So be flexible and get what you can get when you first get here. You may be able to teach yoga but you will definitely need a second job, that will not make much on stx. I would recommend getting your health card right away so you can wait tables.

A couple of vacations does not really let you experience what its like to live here. The honeymoon phase last for 6 months to a year. That's when most decide to stay or leave. Rock fever is real and chances are you will experience. Most people don't leave their little radius either, but you always know you can. Here its expensive to do so, and the other side of rock fever is missing family.

Best of Luck!

Amanda779,
Having moved here from southern Ohio, I can attest to the prices here are WAY HIGH compared to Columbus.
You will have extreme sticker shock when you visit the grocery stores...........NO Kroger here! (Tho you will occasionally see Big K products (soda) in the stores). And the selection of anything is horrible......empty shelves, so when you see it, buy 2!
Rents will blow you away too......especially when you are looking for something that allows pets. The rental market has lots of places, but many are still NOT allowing dogs. The places that generally let you have one is usually really run down & in neighborhoods with tons of nonstop yapping mutts and free range chickens.....the roosters NEVER shut up either.......
Eating out is EXPENSIVE to.............and most times the service and food leaves you under whelmed.
Then there's the whole blending in with the masses...........things are done differently, so much so you begin to short circuit leaving many to tuck tail and run. Especially if you have no family or close friends here to help..........
None of us are trying to down play the island and tell you not to come, but the blunt and harsh statements are made so new arrivals will come here eyes wide open!! It's beautiful here, but don't let it fool ya.
Now if you get here and decide to stay and bring your dog here, there are restraints when they can fly due to heat.
Summer is bad time to ship animals.
You will most likely have to put your dog in a kennel, depending on breed and size, so find a flight with 1 stop if possible. Generally they have flights from CMH with either 1 layover in Atlanta or Miami......and look for the shortest one of those. You will need a health cert & all shots to date prior to bringing your dog too.
Best Wishes.

hey Amanda I am from Granville Ohio. Do you know where that is? about 20 miles east of Col. where Denison Univ. is.

We need more Buckeyes down here.

YEAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!

Most friends i have coming down from Columbus do the Col. to Miami then here. They said its a great flight.

What size dog amanda? Easier if they are under the seat size. If a german shepard size put on diet and squeeze into under seat carrier. lol

I originally moved here with 3 dogs and 1 cat. was easier i think then.

Good Luck!!!!!

Another Central Ohioan here...

Amanda, you sound young and relatively unattached, except to your boyfriend and dog. 🙂 Probably means you don't have not much else to lose for trying, so why not try. Are you living in the Short North? If so, you'll find prices comparable down here. ie...over-priced.

Air quality here is great! ..except when you're driving past a stinkin lagoon, or stuck behind a beater going down company street.
If you have allergies, however, it's not any better or worse than Central Ohio.

Dog: leave it behind when you first move, then have someone send it down to you (or bring it). You'll want to be flexible when you first arrive and your boyfriend can fill in for the dog until then.

Again, thanks to all for your comments, I find them to be VERY helpful. I am quite surprised to hear from so many Ohioans in St. Croix! Good for you to go somewhere so much more beautiful than our boring, flat state!
To answer more questions:
DixieChick: I am familiar with Granville. An old roommate of mine was from there, I've visited several times. Her brother currently works at the Granville Inn. My dog is medium sized (about 38 lbs), so we're hoping if we do decide to relocate someday sending her on the plane would not be a huge problem.
Neil: we are in the Short North area. while most rentals are very expensive, we seemed to have lucked out with our place, and actually have very low rent. It's the least I've paid in 10 years, and in the best neighborhood in Ohio (in my opinion :-)) Living here here has strangely been the reason we've decided to relocate-- we feel we can't live in a better place here in OH, and know there are more fitting places for us "out there". And yes, other than boyfriend and dog, we have very few attachments comparatively, and are wanting to settle elsewhere before any more are formed.
Islandtyme: I am originally from southern Ohio, and am interested to hear where you're from. Moving directly to the island from southern OH I'm sure would be a huge price difference....we at least do have the transition of the city to help with that. Although I am aware that as far as cities go, Columbus is one of the most affordable nation-wide.
Thanks again for all of the feedback. It is invaluable when considering such a big move.

Plenty of people here from the midwest. Always is in someplace warm! And they you have tons of TX and LA because of Hovensa.

Amanda: if you are in love with the short-north lifestyle, shops, cultural events, creative restaurants/bars, foods, nightlife, arts, access to the arena and new ballpark, and all that great bohemian city vibe going on down there, etc etc, -then moving here is going to be a huge culture shock for you, --unless, that is, you truly have saltwater in your veins. For everyone else, the "Short North" in Cbus is the city's best kept secret.