I spent a couple of weeks down in Southern Headquarters and I now have fairly extensive experience with Savannah and I can say it's very nice for a visit but I can't really recommend it as a place to live. There is a core historic district that is quite lovely with a very active waterfront along the river and lots of shops and restaurants mixed in with remarkably beautiful restored historic homes. It has its own flavor with its system of squares and a lovely central park (Forsyth). It is a combination of history tourism mixed with college students from SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design) that give it a college town edge also.
The way Savannah has developed is that the newer wealth is situated out in the suburbs out of Pooler and Richmond Hill. So you get the vibrant core historic district surrounded by old, dilapidated, near-ghettos that aren't really old enough to be historic and are just ugly, then the outer suburbs which are lovely in a more modern sense. Perhaps related, Savannah also has rather significant problems with crime and the homeless.
The big problem with Savannah is that the infrastructure is woefully inadequate. The road system is confusing and, in places, downright dangerous. There are many heavily trafficked arteries for which there is, quite literally, no alternative route, so an accident or construction can result in multi-hour delays. Related, the drivers here are awful -- not aggressive, just incompetent. Furthermore, official bureaucratic services are an enormous hassle. To turn on water to your house, you have to attach a copy of your house closing settlement, your ID, and $30, then they will start your water sometime within a week or so. There is a "fire fee" that supports fire service that you can pay online, but they will charge you an extra convenience fee for not paying in person. To get your driver's license you need your birth certificate and a certified copy of any name change (largely affects married women) and certain states do not provide certified copies anymore so you can imagine what sort of Kafka-esque power-play opportunities that provides for high-handed staff at the DMV. Just annoyance after annoyance.
Lastly, from what I can tell, Savannah is not particularly amenable to outdoor activities. I may be spoiled since my Northern Headquarters has endless options for hiking and biking and just generally being outdoors. I would be very afraid to bike around Savannah given the state of traffic. I have found minimal options for hiking, the odd city park here or there. There is the ocean within a half hour so beach days are possible. But in general, the level of activity in Savannah is much lower than the Ann Arbor area, but like I said, Ann Arbor might be an outlier.
So I guess the bottom line is I don't see Savannah as a long term home. The step-daughter dejure will be graduating next year and I strongly suspect the current southern headquarters will go on the market shortly after.
Addendum: It's interesting to compare Savannah to two other cities that are deeply dedicated to their past. St. Augustine and Charleston. I have spent much less time in those two places, but from what I have seen they are both a good deal more livable.
St. A has a smaller historic district, from what I can tell, and although crime and homelessness are evident mostly just across the water on the mainland, it's still a Florida coastal community which means there is a wealthy beach side of things and therefore can be relatively safe. And of course, Florida beaches are a cut above the rest of the coast.
I would guess that Charleston is the wealthiest of all although I have only been there on day trips. A trip there just this month revealed no evidence of homelessness or safety concerns and, as a corollary, very much wealth.
I know all this drawing contrast between the wealth of an area and its evident safety concerns are ghoulishly unfashionable, but they are reality -- especially so for senior citizens of which I am effectively one. I can get senior prices at McDonald's now. It's one thing to embrace or tolerate societal dissonance when you're a kid and attracted to life's various excitements. It's another when you're trying to live out the remainder of your life as peacefully and drama-free as possible.
