Southern cities are attracting more immigrants
FRANCO ORDONEZ
Published: October 31, 2009

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Carola Cardenas left her native Venezuela twice to live in the United States. Both times she moved to cities that have long attracted large numbers of immigrants, first to Los Angeles, then New York.

But after four years living in the shadow of Manhattan in nearby New Jersey, Cardenas, 36, and her husband decided to plant some roots elsewhere. They chose Charlotte -- far away from any traditional immigrant gateway.

"We had the idea of forming a family," she says. "We now have a daughter. And we were definitely looking for what would be the best place to raise a child."

The family's story reflects the path that many immigrants, here legally or not, are taking -- from U.S. urban enclaves, filled with immigrants who share their language and culture, to Southern cities such as Charlotte that offer appealing and affordable suburban lifestyles.

A study published this year by the New York-based Center for an Urban Future found that a growing number of successful immigrants in New York are moving to Southern cities that boast a lower cost of living and a better chance to achieve middle-class goals such as homeownership and sending their children to college.

Analysts say the trend reflects immigrants' greater assimilation and movement up the economic ladder. It also reflects new migration patterns that have been created as large numbers from ethnic communities have spread into regions that traditionally had very little diversity.

"What we're seeing is in the bigger, more established cities -- Los Angeles, New York, Chicago -- those places have become more limited, so immigrants are looking for opportunities elsewhere," says Audrey Singer, an immigration specialist at the Brookings Institution. "If you look at the density of New York versus Charlotte, the housing prices, school issues and the range of quality of life, some immigrants decide to take a chance." Cardenas, who became a U.S. citizen last year, lives in a two-story, four-bedroom house in South Charlotte with her husband, Miguel, 38, a graphic designer, and daughter Amelia, 3. They paid less for the house than any one-bedroom condo they considered buying in New Jersey.

Cardenas, a membership and fundraising director for a YMCA branch, said they realized quickly that "we were not in New York anymore." But they were encouraged to hear Spanish on the radio, see a few stores and restaurants catering to immigrants, and learn of growing numbers of Latino businesses opening that possibly could use Miguel's services as a graphic designer.

Cardenas first moved to Los Angeles when she was 4 years old. Her mother moved there to study English and initially stayed because of economic changes in Venezuela. They returned, however, when she was 16.

Cardenas moved back to the United States in July 2000. They picked New Jersey because Miguel's brother lived there, and she found a job at a New York law firm. They found an apartment in an immigrant neighborhood in West New York, N.J.

They loved the activities, the sense of camaraderie and the friends they made in New Jersey. But when they decided to start a family, they knew they wanted better job opportunities, more space and better schools.

"We fell in love with Charlotte," Cardenas said. "It's not so tranquil that you're out in the middle of the boonies, but you still have the city life." North Carolina's Latino population has soared since the 1990s, growing more than 1,000 percent. But it's not just Latinos moving from the Northeast. High-tech professionals from India, teachers from Africa and others from throughout the world are moving to Charlotte after stops in Chicago, Los Angeles and Miami.

Such change prompted the Levine Museum of the New South to dedicate a yearlong exhibit, "Changing Places: From Black and White to Technicolor," to the influx of people from around the world.

Pamela Grundy, curator of the exhibit, heard from several immigrants, including a man from India, that Charlotte reminded them more of home than the urban areas they left.

"The slower pace of life," she said. "The way people interact with each other. To some degree the focus on religion. It feels more like what they grew up with."

Detroit resident Roberto Sanchez travels to Charlotte often on business. He has long wanted to move to the region, saying the pace reminds him of life back home.

"The weather is very similar to Mexico," he said. "You don't need as much money. People are calmer, more easygoing."


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