??soldotna??? (Anchorage, Kenai, Wasilla: apartments, rentals, new home)

[R. Morgan]

I'm tryin'!! Can anyone tell me anything about Soldotna, such as employment, housing, land, climate, people, SUITABILITY FOR CHILDREN, ETC

[Rance]

Brief History: http://www.ci.soldotna.ak.us/community.html
City stats: http://www.ci.soldotna.ak.us/city_statistics.html
Zoom in on the legend of this map: http://www.ci.soldotna.ak.us/pdf/2002zone11x17.pdf (broken link)
The town website: http://www.ci.soldotna.ak.us/

I live 10 miles away in Sterling. Soldotna is nice. Gets crowded in the summer due to tourist and out of towners. The Sterling highway runs right through town for those going south to Homer and other smaller communities, for fishing. 4 th of July I've see solid cars backed up from one end of town to the other, waiting at the couple stop lights. The Kenai River runs along most of the town and there is great salmon and trout fishing anywhere you can get at the river. Has a handfull of parks for the kids, a couple camp grounds and boat launches. Modern shopping and fast food joints as well as a good selection of fine restraunts. It's a nice place. Not to big and not real small.

[R. Morgan]

I really appreciate that, Rance. I currently live in Redford, Michigan but will be relocating to the area with my wife and kids. what is the weather like in the winter?

[Rance]

It's not bad. Usually a little warmer than Sterling in the winter, but cooler in the summer. It's a little closer to the Cook Inlet. Can get as cold as 20 or 30 below once or twice in the winter, but does get 70's, 80's and even 90's in the summer. For work...you might find something in the Clarion (local paper) at www.peninsulaclarion.com and you may have to register. Or try
http://www.jobs.state.ak.us/ for something. What kind of trade or business are you in?
For the most part...the folks are great. Sure there are occasional DUI's and domestic things. And occasional drug busts. There are 2 highschools with football programs, and a handfull of elementary and middle schools. Plenty enough outdoor activities for kids all year round. Skiing and snowboarding, snowmachines, icefishing, biking, boating, cars, movie theaters, and on and on.

[R. Morgan]

I am in the automotive field (my company inspects auto parts). I would hope to be able to find something comparable to what I am currently making, or at least relative to the area.

[Rance]

Well there are no assembly plants I know of here. But there are auto parts stores and places like Midas or Johnson Tire that service vehicles.

[R. Morgan]

That's good to know. I would even entertain a different field all together.

Gotta log off for now, but will definately log back in tomorrow.

Take care everyone.....

[katieraye]

i can give you a quote as far as raising children in alaska. i grew up in alaska. born and raised there. granted i was raised in soldotna/sterling but i wouldnt want to be raised anywhere else. there are drugs and alcohol like in the states but not nearly as bad. i have traveled a bit since i graduated ive been all over the world and i would have to say alaska would be the ideal place for family. there are alot of things to adventure out and do exp. if you are a kid/pre-teen/teen/college kid. the schools are pretty much like the ones in the states. it isnt bad at all. the cost of living is a bit more but the pay is also a bit more than the lower 48 so i guess it all equals out. hope this helped.

[Nephler]

ha, another Michigander getting out. We are shooting for May.

[flcypress77]

Hello! My husband and I are natives of central fl. and a little over a year a go we recently completed building a new home on the scenic Withlacoochee River, just Nth of Dade city,fl. It's secluded and quiet and we like it but, over the past year something has been causing us to have a very strong interest in your beautiful state. We are expecting our first child in less than 2 months. We have done quiet a bit of research on the Anchorage, particularly Wasilla/palmer area but are a little concerned about the high growth rate. We have checked the city data average home prices/incomes etc. It appears that the income in Soldotna is slightly higher and the home prices are slightly lower. Can anyone tell us what the cost difference may be on food items,gas,merchandise,etc...property taxes vs. the palmer/wasilla area?? My husband is a heavy equipment mechanic and there would be an opp for him to transfer branches in any of those three places. We would rather live in Sol or Sterling area because of being away from the big city. I'm currently a Speech Therapist with the public schools...until our baby comes and then I want to make the transition into teaching at a comm. college/university...just out of the public schools. We want to rent for the 1st year and get a feel for where we want to live. Is there a lot in way of choices for renting in the sol/sterling area? Do you know of any websites of rentals/apartments? Any info would be helpful and thanks in advance!