Moving in Great Falls Montana

[Reziac]

I grew up in Great Falls and attended public school... admittedly mumblety-mumble years ago (my HS class just had its 40th reunion) ...best schools of anywhere, were rated among the best in the nation. Things have changed all over but I'd expect 'em to still be relatively good.

[Sunshine Vitamin D]

Hi, how are you? I moved from Michigan to Great Falls when I was in middle school. I lived there from 8th grade to senior in high school and left for college and came back for a year or so after I graduated from college. I now live in Portland, Oregon and my husband and I are both teachers here. We LOVE it. We are raising a three year old and have one on the way. Because of this we have considered moving back to Great Falls. The schools in Great Falls are excellent. In 2006 NPR rated Montana with having the best public schools, tied with Vermont and Maine. Summers are gorgeous. Winters are very long and can be lonely if you are not involved in a winter sport. I suggest you buy a family ski pass and spend your time on the MOuntain for the winter weekends. Passes are inexpensive and the ski hill is big and not populated. Some of the BEST, most fun, skiing I have done was at Showdown.

Great Falls can be hard. It seems like the majority of the younger families there are not educated. A lot of people drink in Montana, it is the culture, and I am not talking about a beer or a glass of wine or two.

The nicest thing that attacts my husband and I, besides the great schools, is the simplicity of life. It is safe, quiet, and people are genuinely kind. People look out for each other. Shopping? not much...good thing for online shopping. Outdoor recreation is in abundance in Montana and you are lucky to be moving there. I am willing to give you more info, if you would like it. I consider myself pretty hip, smart, and liberal. I know a lot of people in Great Falls. Let me know if you would like more info, send me your email address. Have a lovely day! Jeramie

[Montanan07]

I recommend not listening to these people. I've lived in Great Falls for 22 years and I can tell you this town is a wonderful place, if you have a good attitude. First off, to the person who said our medical is old timey they are 100% WRONG! We are actually ranked in the top 20 best medical towns in America. We have a better medical facility than anywhere else in Montana. Also. I would like to tell you the truth about schools in Great Falls. If you want your kids to have a great education and go on to college without hassle, ENROLE THEM IN GREAT FALLS HIGHSCHOOL. CMR is a bad idea for schooling, heres why: CMR only has two duel credit classes... While Great Falls Highschool has 14+ in almost every core class and multiple elective classes. Cmr may be more superior in the sporting section but CMRs education system is weaker than Great Falls Highschools. If you care about your childrens education CMR is a bad idea. Plus you can find a nice home on either side of the river. It doesnt matter where youre "located" around the river, great falls has trashy areas and non trashy areas. People on the newer side (cmr side) all quack about how theyre better yet its almost the complete opposite. The Great falls highschool side is actually getting newer neighborhoods than the other side is getting, plus it is home to some very beautiful neighbprhoods and victorian style housing. The north side of Great Falls is lush with trees and parks. Even if the houses may be "old" youd be surprised how almost 90% of these homes look inside, are nearly nicer than homes theyre building in this day of age. If you dont want to be in bad neighbprhoods its easy to avoid, dont settle directly downtown, or in parkdale. Those are basically the only places where you wouldnt want to move. Sure theres trashy neighborhoods other areas, but theyre so small and obscure it is almost impossible to find. I hope this helped and dont go by word of one person. I personally have a opened mind as i am a doctor who lives in a 100 year old home, i chose for the reason that it was twenty times durable and nicer than the plastic homes they build today. Everyone in this town is kind except for the people who shape our city to be some crappy place when it isnt even close to that.

[Reziac]

GFHS was better educationally than CMR when I lived there, too. Not a huge difference but always some. CMR had a fancy new facility; GFHS's building was as traditional as it gets. But I'd put either against, say, CA's top-rated schools, and expect that average MT kids would mop the floor with all comers.

Back-when, the only really trashy parts were around Black Eagle, and a swath north of downtown (which was mostly old and ill-maintained, not dangerous). Some of the NW part was mostly older trailers on individual lots but perfectly ordinary people living there (some of my relatives among 'em). I don't imagine it's changed much.

If I had to live in town, well, you can't do better than those older neighborhoods around GFHS. Genteel houses, quiet and clean, good people.

My mom was the administrator's assistant at Deaconess Hospital for over 30 years (1966-1999, I think??) Who knows, maybe you've met.

[candmforever]

And, Great Falls was recently in national news stories for it's exceptional musical community for youths. there's a youth Sinfonia and Symphony as well as a regular symphony with wonderful performances. People are very friendly and helpful. If you are outdoorsy at all, you will LOVE it here. There are tons of opportunities to get out and enjoy the mountains. Skiing, hiking, hunting, floating the rivers, camping..there's no end. We've lived here 4 yrs and can't seem to get it all in! And the winter time? I'm a Floridian and if I can handle it, anyone can. Just remember, "There's no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing". As long as you are properly prepared, you will be fine in whatever temp MOntana can toss your way.

Sure, since Great Falls is small, shopping and restaurants are limited. Sure, there's sketchy places and people, casinos, bars, etc. Most places do. We don't even notice because we choose to focus on all the other GREAT stuff here. We are moving back to FL this summer b/c hubby is retiring from the Air Force and we are nearly heartbroken. Great Falls has been a wonderful place for us. We can't recommend it enough.

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by candmforever

And, Great Falls was recently in national news stories for it's exceptional musical community for youths. there's a youth Sinfonia and Symphony as well as a regular symphony with wonderful performances.

Glad to hear that's all still with us. GtF was big on classical music when I was a kid, too.

So why don't you retire in Great Falls instead of back to Florida?

[candmforever]

Originally Posted by Reziac

Glad to hear that's all still with us. GtF was big on classical music when I was a kid, too.

So why don't you retire in Great Falls instead of back to Florida?

DH couldn't find a job. He never even found a job to put in a resume for, much less make it to an interview or be considered for anything. He looked for a up to a year before his retirement and it just wasn't happening.

[patches403]

I grew up in GF and attended public schools K - 12 back in the 80s and 90s. I still have family members who work in the GF public schools. I can tell you the schools are far better in GF than they are in most parts of the US. I would be thrilled to have the option of sending kids to public school in GF. I don't remember there being much option for private schools. In my day, the only options besides the public schools were one religious grade/middle school, the alternative high school (in my day strictly for the pregnant girls and troublemakers) and the school for the deaf and blind. You won't need private schools in any case; the public schools are better than the private ones. The public schools haven't had all the extracurriculars cut like in many other states, getting good grades is actually considered a positive thing among most of the popular kids and jocks and there's strong community support for education you won't find in many other states. There's huge support for the high school sports since that's about all there to root for locally other than one very minor league baseball farm team. Way different than the urban area I live now where the high school games are a minor footnote after the pro and college team results.

In general it doesn't matter which high school district you end up in - they're both great and similar in overall quality as are the majority of the grade and middle schools that feed into them. Where it might matter is if your kids specialize in a particular sport or extra curricular activity where one school might be significantly better at than the other or if any of your kids need special ed classes. From what I've been told, the special ed program is stronger at one high school. If you have specific needs from your schools, best to do your research before buying a house so you end up in the best school district for your needs. While I was in school, one high school had the better football team while the other was better for art and music for example.

As far as shopping/restaurants, as others have said if you like big box stores and chain restaurants you're in good shape. There's a few other options, but very limited since this is the middle of Montana. An Amazon Prime membership will probably be a worthwhile investment for you as far as shopping goes.

Also as others have said, the wind is a huge factor in the weather. Snow isn't as big a deal since the Chinook winds generally melt it pretty quickly, but the wind is a near constant presence year round, but especially in the winter. The wind is by far the biggest thing I don't miss about living in GF. When you get there, visit the local sporting goods stores and farm/ranch supply stores to see what brands of outdoor gear they sell and stock up on the better brands. Carhartt, Columbia, and The North Face are some of the bigger brands.

Lots of nice parks and a great walking trail along the river. Most people who live in Montana long term do so at least partly for the access to outdoor activities. With the appropriate gear, you can spend a lot of time outdoors, and you will want to since the sun will be shining and it will be beautiful outside even when it's 30 below zero (as long as the wind isn't blowing).

[Reziac]

Great Falls has perhaps the best riverside parks I've seen anywhere.