What is a Small Town in the Carolinas?
What is a small town in the Carolinas really mean?
I think it's really interesting that walkable "small town" doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the size of the area.
Walkable has everything to do with how an area is organized and whether or not it tempts you to get out of your house (or car) and interact with your fellow citizens (neighbors.)
That said, more often than not from the questions (Ask Bob) I've received, I've discovered when I'm asked about a "walkable" town, what I'm often being asked is where the best small towns are in North Carolina and South Carolina.
I admit to being a little intrigued by this and decided to take a closer look at how I myself define a “small town” and how North Carolina and South Carolina define a "small town." I think your going to find the results as interesting as I did.
And if your looking for a small town for your best place to live…you're really going to find this interesting.
Now, believe it or not I had to do a lot more research than you might think and I was surprised the information and definition was not so easy to find.
What you might not know is that the definitions of town or city or village vary a great deal from state to state. Not just in North Carolina and South Carolina but throughout the entire country.
What each state in the country does share in common is the fact that all three types of municipalities (town, city, village) typically requires a charter handed down by their state legislatures but beyond that anything goes.
Some states might declare or define a town as having a certain number of people to truly be considered a “town” while other states might define it according to something like - how its administrative governing bodies work.
Anyway, so how do North Carolina and South Carolina address this issue?
In other words, how does North Carolina and South Carolina define a town, city or village?
Well I don’t want to confuse things but basically under the laws of both North Carolina and South Carolina there is nothing that defines what can be called a town, city or village…
— it is up to the citizens of these each municipalities at the time of their incorporation to decide what they want to be called … a town, city or village.
Simply put, in North Carolina and South Carolina there is no legal distinction among any of the three (town, city, village) beyond the wishes of the people who incorporate them and what they decide they want to be called.
And that can greatly impact your results when you are searching for your best place to live in North Carolina and South Carolina.
For example…
Mount Pleasant, SC has a population of 66,418 and Greenville, SC has a population of 61,782. Both have roughly the same population but Mount Pleasant is considered a town and Greenville, a city.
And then, an area like Cary, NC that has over 130,000 residents with double the population of either Mount Pleasant or Greenville is also considered a town.
Wow…this can get confusing!!!
What defines a small town for me in North Carolina or South Carolina (or anywhere for that matter) is that its population is quite small, and it's geography quite compact.
A community like Fontana Village, NC with less than a thousand people situated in a secluded spot in the Smoky Mountains is definitely a “small town” however, there are many places with several thousand people I also consider “small towns.”
You see this can get pretty relative.
I’m reminded of a conversation I had with a friend who grew up in Minnesota who over the years has lived in several major metropolitan areas and tells people he grew up in a small town even though the town he grew up in was in fact many times larger than most of its surrounding communities.
What defines a town, city or village for you?
What defines your best place to live?
For some of us an area like Cary, NC (130,00 population) is much smaller than where you’re relocating from and fits you’re definition of a “small town.”
For others of us, we may define a small town as less than 50,000 residents.
If you say your best place to live in the Carolina is a small town, you need to define what population you are looking for.
And as we talked about last week, if you want a walkable small town, you'll also need to define walkable from where.
Your home?
Your car?
Next week we'll begin to take a look at some of the best towns in North Carolina and South Carolina. Some walkable and some not as we have defined.
You'll have to define for yourself if they make it onto YOUR list of the Best Small Towns in North Carolina or South Carolina.
In the meantime, think about what defines the type of area that is best for you.
How is it developed…compact with a defined center, or sprawling without rhyme or reason?
What is the maximum population you would like to live in?
Do you want to be able to walk to the downtown from your home, or would you prefer to drive into the downtown area?
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!
See you next week.
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Check out these articles on the best Towns in the Carolinas!!! Explore what it is like living in the Carolinas.
How to Find the Best Small Towns in North Carolina
Small Town Living in North Carolina
Affordable Small Towns with Big Value
About Bob Bencivenga
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Bob Bencivenga is a professional site locator and location analyst for major corporations and has been researching the growth of NC and SC to find the Best Places to Retire or Relocate that are still affordable. |
| Visit his blog The Carolina Report and sign up for FREE updates by email,his FREE Affordable Best Places To Live Report and, get FREE Expert Advice on how to find Your Best Place to Retire or Relocate to in North Carolina and South Carolina, additional resources, and a lot more.
Bob does not sell real estate. |
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Comments on What is a Small Town in the Carolinas?
We used to own The Beafuort Inn in downtown Beaufort SC. We often had guests ask us where else along the coast they can find other small towns like Beaufort. It was always a hard question to answer. Most coastal towns do not have the history, the community feel and the tremendous amount of waterfront as Beaufort.
Now that we are in real estate we realize even more that Beaufort is a unique small coastal community.
Russ
Hi Russ,
I'm a big fan of Beaufort, SC also!
Hey, why don't you contact me and we can talk about you being a
guest blogger one week, and telling all our subscribers about Beaufort
and the types of housing and pricing available there?!
And why you like it so much.
Bob
A couple of clarifications on NC cities, towns and villages. You are correct to a certain extent that it is up to the citizens to decide what the municipality is referred as – city, town or village. Typically this is done when a community is incorporated by the State General Assembly. However, the governing body of the municipality or the citizens can change to a city, town or village as there are provisions in the NC General Statutes to do this. By the way, the statutes list a number of things the governing body or the citizens can change regarding the municipal government such as the form of government (e.g. mayor/council form, council/manger form), terms of the governing body, etc.
Also, I noticed you referenced Fontana Village as an incorporated municipality. Matter of fact, as of the date of the posting, it's not incorporated. It's basically an unincorporated community and resort. There is a bill in the NC General Assembly that if acted upon favorably would incoroprate the community of Fontana Village. Matter of fact, I stumbled upon your blog as I was looking for information regarding Fonatan Village's incorporation process. Great blog by the way!
Thanks So Much Rob for your information!!