Alexandria-Safe for kids? (Lafayette, Houma, Pineville: low crime, home, employment)

[Growing2Boys]

Hi everyone,
We have the option of 2 places to relocate.
Lima Ohio (cold, boring, rural, low crime, very nice /clean)
or Alexandria LA

I really prefer a warm climate, but I have read some bad statistics on Alexandria.
It seems the crime rate for theft, assualt, robbery & rape are higher then the national average. It also seems the school systems are in bad shape requiring parents to seek out private schools.

I really love the south & prefer the climate, but I want to pick a safe home to raise my toddlers.

Any advice or thoughts are appreciated!

[Growing2Boys]

I wanted to apologize in case anyone finds my post rude. I just read it again & I am thinking if Alexandria were my home town I wouldn't be thrilled with the statements made.

It's very difficult to get a feel for a city you have never been to by looking at statistics. It is not my intent to offend.

Thanks!

[Rmaf623]

Well, crime is pretty bad in some parts of the city, especially in the inner-city areas. However on the west side, crime is almost unheard of in many neighborhoods. Not all public schools are terrible. Many are bad, but some are not. Many people attend public schools and many people attend private schools.

[bkaiser]

I've lived in the Pineville -Alexandria area all of my life. I am a working professional in Alexandria. My children who also grew up here often described it as a great place to retire.

From our paper:
Future economists looking back on 2006 might declare the year a pivotal point as Alexandria and the rest of Central Louisiana broke free from the economic malaise that had plagued Louisiana for years and established the region as an economic stronghold.

This year, the Louisiana Economic Outlook, placed the Alexandria metropolitan region at the top of the state in per-capita job growth for expanding employment by 4.5 percent. Officials estimated that 2006 brought more than 1,000 jobs to the Alexandria metropolitan statistical area, which includes both Rapides and Grant parishes.


Job growth in Cenla is projected to add 1,500 jobs in 2007 and 1,000 more in 2008.

Economist Loren Scott, said that only Houma and Lafayette, both benefiting greatly from hurricane rebuilding, have economies that are growing at a faster rate in Louisiana.
"This is a fun place to talk about the economy. Alexandria is experiencing a lot of growth in recent times,"


Much of Cenla's new job growth in 2006 came as Union Tank Car Co. opened the doors to its $100 million railroad car manufacturing plant at England Airpark.
The plant currently employs about 500 workers. Union Tank Car has less than a year and a half to increase its work force by 350 employees or risk losing the $32 million incentive package given by the state to locate its plant in Alexandria. The money came with the caveat that the facility must employ 850 two years after its startup date, which came in June.

In November, Alexandria International Airport at England Airpark started flights at a new $24 million, 88,000-square-foot terminal. The entire $52 million project, nearly a decade in the making, includes the new building, landscaping, access road and a new 800-vehicle parking lot. In addition to Northwest, Delta and Continental, American Eagle began providing service at the airport on Dec. 14.

About 15 miles up the Red River from Alexandria, near Boyce, Cleco's Rodemacher Power Station Unit 3, a $1 billion solid-fuel power plant, is under construction. The 42-month project, started in June, is expected to eventually employ 1,200 construction workers. Cleco officials estimate the plant will save customers $4 billion over its 30-year life cycle.

A short drive up Interstate 49 from Boyce in Chopin, construction on a new $60 million plywood-production facility, which will employ 130 at Roy O. Martin Lumber Co., is expected to be completed in early 2007. Farther north in Winnfield, an $85 million Jeld-Wen door-facings plant slated to come online in 2008 will create 75 new jobs.

A $75 million expansion at Christus St. Frances Cabrini Hospital and a $50 million expansion of Rapides Regional Medical Center, both in Alexandria, are expected to create more than 200 jobs in Cenla.

During the year, the alternative fuel production got a foothold in Central Louisiana when a California company, Diametrics Medical, bought Pollock-based Vanguard Synfuels LLC, with plans to build biodiesel plants across Louisiana and the Gulf Coast.
Officials cited a favorable regulatory environment, such as state tax incentives and a new law that mandates usage, as a deciding factor in centering biodiesel production in Louisiana.

Vanguard Synfuel announced that it initially would move its headquarters to Alexandria and work toward expanding the Pollock facility to increase production from 12 million to 20 million barrels of biodiesel annually. Company objectives are an annual production of 250 million gallons of biodiesel, which could mean as many as a dozen new biodiesel facilities in Louisiana and the Gulf Coast.

Roy Thornhill of Alexandria-based Heartland Energy Group Inc. also announced that his company would be a distributor of ethanol stills and biodiesel production units.

A $6 million renovation of the Alexandria Mall made shopping a little brighter in Alexandria in 2006. A new site for Forever 21 was built near the food court in the mall, and another new tenant, Burlington Coat Factory, plans to open there in 2007.
Wal-Mart's decision to open a new supercenter on La. Highway 28 West might mean that 2007 will bring announcements of new retailers, restaurants and businesses expanding in a new business corridor for Alexandria.


If you are looking to get out of a big city, my husband refers to our area as "God's" country. The weather is beautiful, the people are friendly, and like all small towns, we have our share of ups and downs, but it's a great place to call home. We are sitting in the middle of the state with driving distance of any "big" city life we want and we can still go back home to our quite life.

[mrkool]

The Alexandria area may indeed be booming economically, as the one poster details, but be careful. I've looked at the demographics and crime stats for that area, and they don't look good. I got my information from an almanac I have, full of stats for American cities. Alexandria rates poorly not only for crime, but in other areas as well. And the heat/humidity/bugs hardly make it "God's country."
Visit and make your own observations. Read the local paper online if you can and get a feel for the local scene.
I think you have two fairly poor choices for relocation, but I'm a family guy, pretty well-travelled including Ohio and Louisiana. I'd go with Lima.

[lululed]

Originally Posted by Growing2Boys

Hi everyone,
We have the option of 2 places to relocate.
Lima Ohio (cold, boring, rural, low crime, very nice /clean)
or Alexandria LA

I really prefer a warm climate, but I have read some bad statistics on Alexandria.
It seems the crime rate for theft, assualt, robbery & rape are higher then the national average. It also seems the school systems are in bad shape requiring parents to seek out private schools.

I really love the south & prefer the climate, but I want to pick a safe home to raise my toddlers.

Any advice or thoughts are appreciated!

I don't nor have I lived there. I can tell you my best friend is from there. Alexandria is NOT considered the loveliest of towns in Louisiana, I can tell you. It is not horrible. WHen I think on the area, I just think "blah". I wouldn't live there either. I do know lots of people who do. They are all great people. The city is not asthetically inviting either. It's education is ???. It is true you must be careful of statistics. I am looking to move as well. You read things and think, "Oh, my gosh.." But, then I read things from here and feel it is a poor representation of the area...Private Schools? Yeah, I would go that route...Have you looked at Lafayette, LA?? If you can move further south, it has much to offer. It is not a perfect place either. See? I can't cheer fully one way or the other. "Blah"...I wouldn't live there.

[cdcdguy]

I have spent time in both cities, lived in both states, and now live about an hour from Lima. Alex. is ok. Some nice parts, some bad parts. Watch for BIG thunderstorms in summer. Alex can be a good town if you look hard enough. But your question was about what is best for your kids. Lima, hands down. In GENERAL, it would be a safer, beter schooled area. There is nothing exciting about Lima, though. You can get any shopping things nearby in Fort Wayne.

Winter is not that bad in Lima, and you would only get a couple of decent snows(4 in. good size snow ).Summer can get humid with temps. up around 90 some days.

Either way, good luck with your choices. You can make yourself happy anywhere, if you focus on the positives.

[Diabla]

Thanks for all the info bkaiser. Good representation of the natural beauty there. It's amazing!

[bkaiser]

cdcdguy,
It's hard for me to take seriously someone's opinion of an area they have never lived in.

[bkaiser]

Originally Posted by Growing2Boys

I wanted to apologize in case anyone finds my post rude. I just read it again & I am thinking if Alexandria were my home town I wouldn't be thrilled with the statements made.

It's very difficult to get a feel for a city you have never been to by looking at statistics. It is not my intent to offend.

Thanks!

It wasn't really taken rudely. Since your choices are only Lima and Alexandria, I can only summise that you work for Procter and Gamble. If that is the case, contact a very good friend of mine that works for P & G. She works in the corporate office in Cincinnati. She grew up in Pineville, LA where I live and raised her son there. Pineville is a beautiful city right accross the river from Alexandria. She has also worked in the Lima area and would be a great source for a real comparison. Her email address is davisdr@pg.com. Tell her Brenda sent you to her.