JulesV

Look, many of the complaints worth mentioning about Armidale are the same complaints you will read in every other review of every other suburb in Australia. So let's instead concentrate on the idiosyncratic features of this funny little town:

First, it's bitterly cold (just check bom.gov.au). It's as cold - and often colder - as the southern snow fields, but without the snow (except for the rarest of times we get a flake here or there). So if you dig mild summers and brutally cold other three seasons, you're in business. I think it is ridiculous, but your mileage may vary.

Shopping is awful, unless you dig '(s)mall' shopping or have a vested interest in the local retail sector. Council never had a clear vision for the retail industry in town and so the mall suffers from being very disjointed in its layout. This is offset by Armidale having the best NBN (FTTP) in Australia, meaning etailing can sometimes be as good as it gets... except for when postage is prohibitively expensive for almost no good reason. Probably something to do with Armidale's fuel being the most expensive in NSW, but who knows, right? But generally a trip to town to purchase something (especially if it is an even slightly out of the ordinary item) is an exercise in complete and utter frustration and disappointment. And it is cold.

Education, retail and health dominate the employment sector, with many schools, the university and Hunter New England health outlets all here. Which also means there is a very large gap between the haves (those that work in private practice (real estate, law etc.) and are probably fourth generation Armidale-ites or are employed at the university) and the have-nots, ie everyone else. This is reflected in the local retail market, the real estate market and so on, with hilariously inflated prices and egos present especially in the real estate market. As much as it pains for people to admit it, the place is reliant on the university for its existence.

The council is a wreck, as shown by the complete reluctance of all other nearby councils to merge with Armidale. Despite this, much of the infrastructure is very good, with terrific public parks, sporting facilities and so forth. The local public hospital is also outstanding, given what it has to work with. There are many, many public and private schools in Armidale, too. Some local roads leave a bit to be desired. The town has been stagnant for the ~15 years I've lived here, barely growing in population and absolutely not growing in facilities or attractions (aside from the ubiquitous farmer's markets and what-have-you springing up). It's also so very cold - you can be freezing while also getting sunburnt due to the never ending UV rating of 'extreme'. Despite being a halo town for the evo-cities campaign, it has been revealed that only a few families bothered to resettle in Armidale as part of this campaign. This is despite Armidale - on paper atleast - probably being the pick of the bunch. I think this speaks again to the actuality of expectations not meeting reality.

There are only two sets of traffic lights, which is a huge pro. Traffic flow is instead managed by a large amount of roundabouts, which are vastly superior for traffic management if you drive even a little bit actively and know how to indicate.

There is a quaintly aspirational aspect to the pubs in their propensity for 'craft beer' and local wines. The local music scene is similar, and despite its best efforts from a very committed few, it leaves much to be desired compared to almost any coastal town. But note that Armidale is only ~20,000 people large. A few of the pubs seemingly go in and out of financial administration on an annual basis. These pubs are largely ruined by the attendance of the kids who attend the colleges at the university (many of the pubs 'sponsor' the colleges), but otherwise they are ok. They're trying, at least! You won't get much - if any - change out of $50 if you buy a round of beer for 5 even though you'd only be springing for tarted up Lion Nathan swill. The food is pretty honest and well priced. Don't expect any Surry Hills ostentatiousness here (and it's better for it, though some glitzy, seasonal variety wouldn't hurt)!

On that point, local eateries are not nearly as good as they wished they were. Many cafes change their faces and owners regularly, and it would seem that most are afraid to try to be genuinely different (or more likely, they know how to sell to the reality of Armidale and have decided to not bother with the aspirational segment). But there is some decent food to be found if you hunt around and it isn't always prohibitively expensive. Expect a lot of very safe food fare that is largely indistinguishable from one outlet to another.

Related to both of those points - there is very little else to actually do in Armidale if you are of university or TAFE age and are not actually attending either of those things. Sure, you can get involved in almost any sport you can think of (and see first hand what happens when big fish in small ponds clash with people whose egos write cheques their skill can't cash), but that can be real tiresome on an otherwise fine (but probably cold) Saturday afternoon. It also doesn't pay the bills nor does it help if you don't care for sport and it can really ram home both how small Armidale is and how knowing the right people is critical.

Armidale aspires to be green and eco-friendly and progressive (the Socialist Alliance and similar groups have a decent following here), and there is a large undercurrent of people who support and live these ideals. But then, there are more churches than you can poke a stick at and it has been a safe National seat for as long as can be (until a successful independent came along an election or two ago). So here again, Armidale isn't nearly as good at that as it aspires or presents itself to be, but I do feel it has improved here over time. Politics aside, Armidale does have a magnificent tip and waste recovery centre, and great facilities for green and recyclable waste, among the very best.

It is 6 hours to either Brisbane or Sydney (and soon you'll be able to fly to both instead of just Sydney), which is both good and bad. Despite appearing to be close to the coast on Google maps, it is a solid 2 hour drive along a rubbish road and even then, you're only in Coffs Harbour which is a truly awful place. Thankfully once you have arrived there you are only a matter of minutes (or at most another hour) away from properly magnificent northern NSW beaches and coastal towns. And away from the onerous cold.