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El Dorado has toughened up over the past 20 years or so. La Cueva is definitely the top-performing high school in the APS district, followed maybe by Sandia.
I don't have any children yet (we are expecting) so I can't comment on the school situation, but we just moved here after being at Luke AFB in Phoenix for 4 years and we had a gorgeous home in Phx. However, we opted to live on base. I don't know your husbands rank, but all the housing is new and privatized and we love our 1600 sq. ft townhouse. It just takes some getting used to. I just think that you need to keep a really open mind to living on base. There are also one story houses and other bigger houses just depending on rank, etc. But, we love how safe it is on base and the proximity to things that are on base. Key words here...no commute, safe, nice neighbors that keep to themselves, quiet. I was born and raised in Abq and went to college here too, so I am very familiar with the area, and hubby and I chose to come back after 8 years. We lived on the west side during his first entlistment here and let me tell you, the commute sucks.
We're Navy (but not for much longer) here in Albuquerque. The housing on Kirtland looks very nice. I used to love living on base... it's so much safer, the schools are better. The commissary on base here is great - I make it down there twice a month for our major shopping. My husband worked on the west side when we first got here which is why we chose not to live on base... reluctantly. 3 years ago, there was no waiting list.
We came here from Jax, FL - total sticker shock in the grocery stores. Even compared to civilian grocery stores in FL... major budget buster! The commissary has been a godsend!
If you do end up living on the west side, I'm told they are building a new high school to alleviate the overcrowding at Cibola, which currently has the largest student body in the state. However, with the booming growth on the west side, it's only a matter of time til that school is overcrowded as well. I don't know much about elementary and middle schools on the west side, but I've never heard anything particularly bad. The La Cueva district on ABQ's north side is currently the best public school district. There are a handful of good private schools, as mentioned in a previous post.
A lot of folks seem to be pushing Four Hills. That area is nice and closer to Kirtland, but pricey. I would recommend looking at the neighborhoods around the Academy/Wyoming Blvd area, some of which are in the La Cueva district. I think you are bound to find more reasonably priced housing around there, and your husband can take Wyoming all the way straight to base (~20 min. commute). Hope that helps a bit.
I just wanted to update my posting. Rio Rancho is having gang activity. Some people want to think that we really don't and only Albuquerque has it.
Don't fool yourself. Seems to be more crime. Schools - lets just say I decided to homeschool - safer. It just seems ROUGHER than before. Was talking with a friend yesterday about crime in Alb., Peralta, and Los Lunas.
Guess they make Rio Rancho look tame.
I plan on moving this year. Who knows, I might just come back. Maybe grass is not greener elsewhere........but I want to find out. I did love it here for six years.....just not now. People thinking about moving here.....I think you can do a lot better somewhere else.
I think that Ventana Ranch would be the best Family area in town.
People are VERY welcoming there.
Their school is very very full, but i think they are going to keep building.
Hi moving to ABQ I am also in the same boat as you. We will be moving there this summer and my husband is stationed at Kirkland as well. The crime rate has me concerned too. I was wondering if anyone knows anything about the towns south or east of ABQ like Los Launa? Do many military families venture that far from the city and what would the commute be like time and distance wise. Any help would be great. Thank you.
I assume you broused the forum before this first post of yours or you wouldn't have picked an existing on-topic thread like this.
Do a search with [albuquerque crime] in the search box and you will find so much crime stuff that your head will spin. After it stops, you'll likely come to the conclusion that it isn't any worse or better here than anywhere else.
> ... towns south or east of ABQ like Los Launa? Do many military families venture that far from the city and what would the commute be like ...
I assume you meant Los Lunas. The town was named after a family of the same name - Luna. Luna is also the word for moon in Latin, Spanish, Italian, Romanian (lună) and kind-of French (lune).
Probably a lot of military families who live off-base live there for the inexpensive housing and easy commute. Normally, I'd advise agains living there and commuting to Albuquerque, but commuting to the base would be a snap. It's over 15 and less than 20 miles.
Note that there is also a Railrunner stop and a bus that is waiting for the train for the airport.
I always roll my eyes when people say the area around Kirtland AFB is dangerous and terrified to live there. Yes there is some bad areas that i will tell you where not to live as i wouldn't live there either but there are also some nice areas arround there also.
My advice is not to live along the Central Ave and Zuni Ave corridor from San Pedro to Wyoming. Also the Trumbull neighborhood area south of Central/Zuni and east of Louisiana and lastly areas east of the State Fairgrounds.
But there are nice areas like Eubank and Juan Tabo south on the Manzano Mesa/ Four Hills area east of Kirtland and also the Ridgecrest area along Carlisle from Central Ave to Gibson Blvd. Even Gibson Blvd has vastly improved from I-25 to Kirtland over the last 10 years and even now with new apartments and shopping center currently under construction across from the Airport.
So if you want to live close to Kirtland AFB there are nice areas but looking at the A.M. bumper to bumper traffic on Gibson Blvd going to the base i assume alot live elsewhere in ABQ.
I assume you meant Los Lunas. The town was named after a family of the same name - Luna. Luna is also the word for moon in Latin, Spanish, Italian, Romanian (lună) and kind-of French (lune).
Hey Mort -
Sound the DUMB QUESTION ALERT here!! But ol' EnjoyEP has a dumb one, and you seem like the type of fellow that might be able to give me the answer. I realize this is slightly off topic and I am a mod and thus should be setting a better example, however, since this thread was revived recently from a nearly 1 year hiatus, what the heck:
Why is is named "Los Lunas!? I don't know much Espanol, however, the little I do know is that "os" is a masculine ending and "as" is a feminine, and rarely would you throw them together like that; even my father-in-law, who does know Spanish quite well (but is not familiar really with ABQ other than visits) noted that he thought that was incorrect grammar.
Again though, we are somewhat dumb (very dumb?) to the language and the reasoning. Do you know why it was named as such with that grammar (other than "The Moons" meaning?).
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It has been 8 months since posting
when people say the area around Kirtland AFB is dangerous and terrified to live there. Yes there is some bad areas that i will tell you where not to live as i wouldn't live there either but there are also some nice areas arround there also.
But ol' EnjoyEP has a dumb one, and you seem like the type of fellow that might be able to give me the answer. I realize this is slightly off topic and I am a mod and thus should be setting a better example, however, since this thread was revived recently from a nearly 1 year hiatus, what the heck:
