[Blindtlk] Best places to live

[Arielle Silverman]

Hi all,

I agree with Julie. There isn't any one best place for a blind person
to live or even a set of criteria that all blind people universally
consider. While many of us agree that public transportation is a good
thing, having a hired driver may be considered the ultimate in
convenience. If a town is small enough to keep driver fares low, it
might actually be preferable to live in a small town and hire a driver
than to live in a sprawling big city with lots of traffic and long
waits for buses, multiple bus transfers, etc. Remember too that we all
find ourselves in situations where using public transit or walking are
not feasible, such as if we have to carry groceries or other unwieldy
things.
Perhaps the worst place to live is a large spread-out city or town
that has poor public transit. Scottsdale where I grew up is one such
example. Public transit was bad, and cab fares were exhorbitantly
high, so there wasn't a good way to get around. Either small towns or
big cities that actually have good, reliable transit are much easier
to handle.
I do think that blind youth often end up in a kind of catch-22 if they
live with their parents in rural areas or places with poor transit
options, and don't have an affordable living situation away from
parents. They can't find work in the rural area or can't get to a job
site, but don't have the money to move to a better area without
getting a job. Add negative parental attitudes about blindness on top
of this and it can be a real disaster. I have often wondered if
vocational rehabilitation should provide for basic housing costs in
these cases just long enough so that these folks can move out of their
parents' homes and be in places that have the resources (both material
and psychological) to provide for employment or college entrance.

I am currently applying for jobs all over the country to begin after I
graduate next spring. My first priority is to find a place where my
husband and I can find meaningful work. A second priority is to be
near family and friends including my NFB friends and others in the
blindness community. If it turns out that multiple places are tied on
those two criteria, then I'll start to factor in things like weather,
public transportation availability, political culture etc. But those
things aren't nearly as important to me as the job options or the
opportunities to stay socially connected. I would never rule out a
place to live just because of alleged blindness concerns.

Best,
Arielle

On 10/31/13, Judy Jones <jtj1 at cableone.net> wrote:
> Oh, yes, so true, I wouldn't even touch that part, just focusing on the
> transportation.
>
> When I was there, though, the bus system covered not only Honolulu, but went
>
> down into Pearl City and Kaneohe.  I could get off the bus a block from my
> sister-in-law's house.  The only place then that was not bus accessible was
>
> a small area on the north side of the island.
>
> Hope the transportation is still as good.
>
> Judy
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Dave Mehringer
> Sent: Thursday, October 31, 2013 6:53 AM
> To: blindtlk at nfbnet.org
> Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Best places to live
>
> Judy Jones wrote:
>
> "
>
> I think the best place I've ever been for good transportation and still
> very
> affordable is the island of oahu.  I understand it is still a dollar a bus
> ride, but my source may be over a year old anyway.
> "
>
> I've been to Honolulu many times and, yes, the bus system is
> quite good, at least in the city. Outside Honolulu, around
> Oahu, I haven't found it to be that great. It helps that
> the city relies on tourism for a large
> part of its economy, so it's important for them to ensure
> that people who don't have cars can get around. According to their
> website, the adult base fare is $2.50. They do however sell 4 day
> passes for $25, and I normally choose this option when I visit.
>
> As far as overall livability though, the major downside about
> Honolulu and about Hawaii in general is the high cost of
> living. Honolulu consistently ranks as one of the top 5 most
> expensive cities in the US; housing costs in particular are
> very high.
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