What is Helena like? (Missoula, Bozeman: sales, mobile home, employment)

[jakeatc]

I will be moving to Helena in a few months and I am wondering what the city and surrounding area are like? Is the city close to the mountains? I really have no idea what to expect. I know that certain cities like Bozeman are very expensive and I would imagine that Helena, being the capital, would also be expensive. Anyone know much about Helena?

[seven of nine]

Hello, welcome to the board,
Here is an older post to get you started
http://www.city-data.com/forum/monta...helena-mt.html
Good luck and hope it helps.

[rickers]

They have some great craft shows in the civic center. The civic center is a beautiful building that has a slight appearance of a Mosque. The State capital building is beautiful and there is also a pretty good Mexican restaurant on the west edge of town. I did once catch a guy in the act of stealing the tail-gate off of my truck in broad daylight in Helena once while loading out at the end of a craft show that I exhibited at once at the civic center, right in front of lots of people too ! The brazen little bastard, he took off like a bat out of hell when I caught him !

[jakeatc]

Thanks for the information. I was wondering if there is any part of the city to stay away from, or is most of the city nice? I was reading another thread and it mentioned the smog during the winter months. I've never heard of that before, smog in Montana? I know Montana doesn't have a sales tax, but how does the property tax look? Is the property tax high as well as the housing, or just the housing. I was thinking about looking for a house in East Helena or Montana city, what are the pros and cons to each city, or is there a better place to look. I will be working at the airport and don't want to be too far away. Thanks

[rickers]

I've been to Helena many times and I never noticed or heard of any smog problem. Missoula can at times get air inversions that trap dirty air at the surface that doesn't get blown away at times but that issue is way over blown by folks on this forum. I'm not sure about Montana City or East Helena but the fine older large houses you see in the older parts of Helena I don't think you'll find in those other towns. I could be wrong but you may only get smaller modest houses and mobile homes in those towns. You could always talk to a few realtors about the tax situation. Tax rates can vary greatly from one town to the next. I know that up here along the highline the property taxes in Havre can be twice as high as some of the nearby towns.

[txsizzler]

Jakeatc, Helena definately DOES have smog/air inversions in the winter, where cold air stays trapped in the valley for days to weeks at a time. It can be a problem for people with severe respiratory issues, and Helena typically will stay well below the rest of the state temperature-wise (except for the other Southwestern valleys and the valleys west of the divide). However, once a good front moves through, winds will come, and clense the valley of the smog for a couple of days.

I would recommend you look at East Helena if you are wanting to live out of town, yet want close proximity to the airport. Montana City is not bad, considering I-15 is right there. Also, look at other valley locations, Townsend, areas along Canyon Ferry Rd, Howard Rd, Wylie Dr, York Rd, etc.


Ian

[MTSilvertip]

Helena is a government town, so it is fairly liberal, lots of regulation and LOTS of taxes within city limits.

The governement is the main employment base, so the economy is fairly stable.
It is in the mountains but most of the city is in the valley.

Many folks live in the surrounding communities and drive in to work due to "progressive" taxing, and there are several commuinities within 30 miles of Helena that are much nicer to live in.

The town itself is just a small city. Traffic, lots of knick nack shops and overpriced coffee shops on the gulch, most of the real stores are on the outskirts of town while the city center dies.

The people are pretty decent, lousy drivers, but pretty nice to talk to.
Several clubs and activities, lots of politics, some decent churches, schools outside of town are pretty good, those inside city limits are ok, not great.

3 reservoirs for fishing and water sports close to town, lots of hunting opportunities, camping, hiking, pretty much standard fair for Montana.

You don't say why you are moving, but good luck with your move!