re: Tell Me About the Mississippi Gulf Coast

I've noticed a lot of love here for Ocean Springs. It's a great town, but not for everyone. Here are my detailed impressions of the towns in Jackson County:

Ocean Sorings - many restaurants and things to do, but also has a lot of traffic, which can be aggravating. Public schools are okay. The people who've lived in the area for generations are great, but there are a lot of people from other areas who tend to be culturally different from the locals. A slight air of pretension, but not too much.

Gautier - what you see is what you get. Many nice, wooded lots available for construction. People are easygoing and tend to live and let live. As another poster mentioned, that weird mall gave the town a strange vibe. Now that the mall is gone, it's better. Not nearly as much shopping or restaurants as Ocean Springs, but a nice town with far less traffic and more opportunities to launch boats, fish, etc. Great place for folks who like a quiet place to live. Private school in Pascagoula is a must, in my opinion, but the public schools aren't terrible. (Tuition is very reasonable at the local private school..). Good place to raise outdoorsy kids. Elevation is higher than neighboring towns and did not flood nearly as much as OS and Goula did in Katrina.

Pascagoula - as other posters said, a bit gritty and industrial. Ingalls traffic can be bad, but still not as bad as Ocean Springs. Some very nice areas within a few blocks of the beach. Recent influx of non-English speakers. Private school is a must unless you live in the Beach Elementary area. Not a bad place to raise kids. Yacht club is one place decent kids like to hang out.

Moss Point - I wouldn't recommend it. A few nice areas, but mostly awful. Schools are abysmal. Private school in Pascagoula is a must.

Vancleave - very country and very Protestant

Generally, you are better off near the water. The farther inland you go, the more redneck it gets. Definitely stay south of I-10 and preferably, stay south of Higheay 90.

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It's better than fairhope.

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Why do you say this.
I've never been to OS, but stayed in fairhope a few times. Seems like it would be tough for me to think OS could beat it based on people I know who are familiar with both.

Mr. Bobby has a race horse now. "Mary mahoney's girl"

Fairhope is nice but OS has more stuff to do

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As another poster mentioned, that weird mall gave the town a strange vibe. Now that the mall is gone, it's better.

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What's the story with this?

The mall had been in a steady decline for years. In the end, it was home to weave shops, churches, consignment shops, and the few anchors. Sears and JC Penney's left, and the city claimed that developers were going to raze the mall and build something like Destin Commons but with a Walmart. Belk owns its store, so it is still there, but it's a crappy version of other Belk stores.

Well, the mall was razed, but no new construction has occurred. The city claims that it will happen. Most residents don't believe that. Nevertheless, I don't miss that shitty mall. I go to D'Iberville to shop anyway.

I swear, I am not making this shite up. If it sounds crazy, that's because it IS crazy. Destin Commons with a Walmart?

Nevertheless, it is a peaceful little town with lots of green space.

Anyone know anything about the neighborhood directly across from St. Martin East Elementary? Decent or no?

bump

Dunno. It's literally right next to the elementary school (street runs into the parking lot). Google street view looks pretty decent.

No. We're planning to rent something until we decide ultimately where we want to be.