Moving to Independence (Wichita, Salina, Junction City: fit in, crime, appliances)

[CampLady]

My husband and I are considering a move to Independence, KS. We want to know what kind of town it is, is it a good place to raise a family, etc. We currently live in a large metropolitan area in Texas and are looking make a move to a smaller community, away from some of the Texas heat and with a slower pace of life.

I know any community, large or small, has its good and bad points. Any comments would be appreciated!

[TruBlu12345]

I heard via the grape vine that Independence was recently rated as one of the top places to raise a family by some survey or another. I can believe it--it's a nice, quiet town, easy to get around. You can feel safe walking or riding a bike just about anywhere in town. There is a great park, with a small zoo and a fantastic water park. With the high humidity and frequent rains, everything stays lush and green until late summer. Also, although I didn't send any kids to local schools, I have worked in the school system and the teachers I've met seem to be dedicated and professional. There is a great after-school program, run by a friend of mine.

On the negative side, every spring thunderstorm includes tornado watches. Summers are hot and sticky. Maybe not quite as hot as Texas, but anything 90 and above with 90% humidity feels HOT. Winters sometimes include ice storms. Also, keep in mind this is a SMALL town. If you want major shopping or great restaurants, you will need to drive at least an hour south to Bartlesville, or two hours to any large city (Wichita, Joplin, or Tulsa.) We do have a super Wal-Mart, one grocery store, a Cato's, and a few other small mom and pop places.

Hope this helps!

[reb262001]

Hi,
I wish you luck. I lived there for 25 years and I hated it the whole time. The people are snobs, and hateful. The town fathers are all crooks. For example Judge Dent lost his license to practice. He screwed around on his wife and cheated people in court of their right to justice. It was plain that his personal opinions dominated his decisions. The past sherrif, Daniels, who's son committed several felonies, was never punished for any. He sold a farmer's big round bales of hay right off of the field and got caught red handed. Nothing happened to him. I, myself had horses stolen. The guy went right to the court house and TOLD them he was taking them. In fact the guy owed me for two years of keep for 8 horses. The sherriff's dept LET him take my animals! I already had filed a lein on the animals 6 months prior. When they made him bring them back, they would not take my complaint. They told me that they would not make him bring them back if I attempted to file a complaint against him. There is NOTHING there. I am not a big shopper, but walmart is the only store. No shoes, no clothes, no appliances, nothing. Oh, Cessna has a plant there. I think they pay 9.00 and hour or there abouts. I hope it is not too late to change your mind.
I moved to Augusta, Ks. a smaller town about an hour and a half west of there on 400 hiway. The police force are nice. The schools are excellent. not much shopping, but Wichita is only 12 miles west. The commute is fast. Wichitans cannot drive though. BE CAREFUL. Good Luck

[libchic]

In response to OMG!, most of that is totally common factual knowledge to residents, unfortunately. I am a former resident, moved years ago, got tired of the $^&(*
Lots of drugs in the town and surrounding area.
A mobile home right down the street from my former house was a meth lab and exploded a year or two ago.
Everyone is related to someone, lots of gossip and there is no privacy.

Thinking of moving there?
Just Dont!

[AnywhereElse]

We moved to Fort Scott and I wondered if we should have moved to Independence but looks like they are twins. They thrive on negative gossip and unless you were born here, good luck getting a decent job. We were concerned too that Independence would be very dependent on Cessna to stay a float and that industry has severe ups and downs and also brings in a lot of workers that stay for short times usually and move on to the next active plant. One thing to watch are the property taxes and vehicle taxes in some of the smaller towns here as with the small population and seeing some surprisely nice new things, well, those few people pay for it. There excuse for drug and alcohol abuse is that their isn't anything else for the young people to do and if that makes sense to you, well, you might really fit in. Except for the largest cities in Kansas expect to discriminated against for not being "born and raised" - they really like that term here. We lived in Salina and Junction City, both of which were much better since Junction City is next to Fort Riley so you have other than "born and raised" and at one time there was an Air Force base in Salina so they got some new blood there too. They treat us like we most certainly must be in the witness relocation program and the comment I most often get is "Why would anyone want to move to Fort Scott?"

[lakerat66]

There is crime and drugs EVERYWHERE!!! I have lived in large cities (Las Vegas, Albuquerque, Dayton, etc.), and small towns (ElDorado, KS, small mountain town in Idaho, very small town in Texas)- all towns regardless of their size have bad people in them. Don't judge any town by what someone says about a "meth house" (they are everywhere), or a certain bad crime. Yes, people can be nosey in a small town- but better than the thugs in a bigger town to worry about, constant crime, and horrible traffic. I'd take a small town over a bigger one ANY DAY Good luck!

[KansasBorn]

I have seen some folks a little taken by the taxes in Kansas. I have been gone a long time and was wondering what to look for. High property, sales, state taxes? Which ones are high?

Thanks

[briansgi]

Property taxes are very high in Kansas, probably equivalent to Texas which also has extremely high property taxes.

[KansasBorn]

Haha! I am from Texas so maybe thats why they do not look so high to me. Thanks for your answer.

[libchic]

If you want real information on taxes in Kansas, get on the internet and go to Kansas Dept of Revenue and look up your specific questions. The rates for business and personal are all there, as well as County information.