Lady Locket

Hi guys,

Amherst has caught our eye and we were wondering if anyone on here is from the area and can tell us a bit about it? We would like to know about schools, recreation, facilities and lifestyle - just generally how you feel about the area.

The hospitals seem good, and are offering work that hubby can do; the houses seem reasonable in price and there are some nice rural areas; the architecture of the town looks lovely and it seems close to Truro and Moncton which should offer larger businesses if we need it (not sure what shops Amherst offers). So any details would be most appreciated!

LL x

Lord Vader

I grew up near Amherst. Amherst is a decent enough town of about 10k or so that services a larger rural area and other smaller nearby towns. Farming is popular in the areas outside of the town. About 1/2 hour to Moncton and about an hour to Truro. The North Shore beaches are fairly close and the Bay of Fundy is close going in the opposite direction. The "new" hospital was opened in 2002 and the highschool is fairly new.

There are 4 or 5 grocery stores and a Walmart and 2 small malls, an industrial park, most of the car manufacturers have dealerships there. Most of the new shops are located on or near South Albion St, which is separated from the older down town area that has the older buildings. There is a YMCA with indoor pool and an arena for hockey, several baseball fields, a few parks, a few gyms, a golf course, most soccer and basketball is handled by the schools.

Lady Locket

Thank you for the information.

NovaBlues

Don't do it! Amherst truly is grim. You're either on the right or wrong side of the tracks and there are truly more bums around in Amherst than in Halifax. There are no good shops, a huge ugly strip mall, no places to eat or entertainment (small theatre but that's all). Parrsboro or Sackville would be your best bet if you're looking in that area.

Lord Vader

a huge strip mall? Must have been built right after Christmas.

NovaBlues

Youre funny...what do you call that completely ugly strip of homogenised shops then?

Lord Vader

what are you talking about? Do you mean South Albion street? Speaking of funny, how about recommending Parrsboro and Sackville in the same post as complaining about no shops and no where to eat.

NovaBlues

There are plenty of places to eat in Sackville and you can buy real food from the Farmer's Market in summer. Parrsboro has some amazing places to eat...albeit in summer only but so much better than anywhere in Amherst (apart from Zellers breakfast...yum!).
Go to Timmys in Parrsboro and Timmy's in Amherst and look at the standard of clientelle...
I can sense some hometown pride Lord Vader and good for you but really, you would recommend someone heading over from Hampshire in the UK and settling there? I was recommending places where they would be made to feel welcome. No one in Amherst understands the english accent and every trip in is a challenge.

Lady Locket

We enjoy hiking and spending time in nature, we grow our own fruit and veg, and we enjoy renovating houses - so a home hardware store will get more business from us than a cafe! I expect that most, if not all, rural areas in NS tend to close down in winter - thats no different from the Lake District in the UK or most of Jersey. To be fair, where we are in Hampshire offers a good regular farmers market and a year round economy - so we are lucky.

What do you mean by wrong side of the tracks? Do you mean there is a big rich/poor divide in the various areas of the town itself? Is the town run down, bad economy or overindustrialised? How does it compare to say Digby or Truro?

Its not like we have our heart set on it - it is just there is a job opportunity there, so we thought we would at least find out some info on it.

Lord Vader

Sounds like you don't live in Amherst and I doubt you would know where to look for a good meal as you have probably limited your search to the "big ugly strip mall" and Zellers of course. (hint, try down town). I am not from Amherst (fairly close though) and I don't live there and couldn't give a toss if you like it or not, but I do think that accurate information is important and stating that there are more places to eat in Parssboro or Sackville no matter what time of year is just plain stupid with three O's, stooopid. You might as well argue that there are more places to eat in Nunavut than in Montreal. With regards to shops, if the ones in Amherst are too ugly for you than as I mentioned, Moncton is only 30mins.

Novocastrian

What's the difference? From your post, I'm guessing that the clientelle is undiluted redneck cradle in Amherst and the same with a sprinkling of starry-eyed FOB Brits in the other place?

NovaBlues

I'd say if there is a good chance you will find a job there then as a first step it might be good as getting a job here has its challenges. There is quite a big wealthy/poor divide and it's really quite shocking how many of those in the lowest income bracket do live here. There are lots of stunning houses there and indeed some streets are really pretty and while there is an industrial estate it isn't that ugly to be honest. It reminds me of Truro as much of the architecture is similar and now the US/Yarmouth Cat ferry looks likely to be scuppered, that end of NS wil feel the effects. You might be able to pick up a reasonable house in Digby as the Americans sell off their holiday homes.

I do hear a lot on the radio that the hospitals there (Yarmouht and Digby) have their ERs closed a bit due lack of doctors, that might be something to bear in mind.

We looked around a heck of a lot before we chose our home town, or rather it chose us. After a few years here we have decided its not right for us (NS and Canada) so we're looking to head back to the UK.

My biggest piece of advice is don't buy a home unless you have been there. i have met people who have liked the look of a house and the town and bought sight unseen. Aherst might just be the place for you, it certainly wouldn't be y choice of town but then neither would moving over to the west and lots of expats love it there.

Good luck with the move and if you're heading to the Fundy Shore area PM me and you can see what life here's like!

NovaBlues

Right on...Lord Vader, your opinions don't bother me either, just like your attitude. Yes, I most certainly would know where to look for a good meal but downtown Amherst isn't to my taste for sure, obviously it is yours, nuff said. The information I have posted is pretty damn accurate from my perspective and isn't that what this forum is all about? Giving personal perspectives.

Lord Vader

Here is some info on the various business in and Around Amherst. http://ca.wowcity.com/amherst/

Amherst is noticeable larger than Digby and smaller than Truro. I doubt there is much difference economically between Amherst and any other similar sized town in NS.

I think Blue is referring to the rail line that runs through the town, generally speaking, most of the shops, new housing, etc are on the east side of the line. Houses are cheaper on the west side.

It sounds like you would prefer living outside of town in a home with some land to have your own veggie garden. There are plenty of places to do that within a few miles of Amherst.

Lady Locket

You are right, we would like to be outside of the town. Where we are at the moment is semi-rural with just one shop-come-mini-post-office, a pub and community hall nearby, but is still within a 15-20min drive (longer in traffic!) of shops and petrol stations etc; so that kind of set up would suit us fine. Wherever we end up, we would need to be within a 20-30 minute commute of a hospital with A&E and Diagnostic Imaging for hubby to work at.

I personally would like a library somewhere nearby, and some social facilities for young children (moms&tots etc) would be good. Room to expand our home grown food, and access to hiking etc.

We did like Bridgewater and the surrounding area, but there is no work for hubby there (at the moment). Truro is also an option, especially with the new hospital being built. Obviously there is Halifax, which offers the best work options, but we feel that getting the space we want, at the price we want within a short commute is a bit unobtainable - though our minds are open!