Wondering where the best place to live in MT is... (Billings: good schools, university)

[themolinas]

Hi All! I just joined this site today because my husband and I might get moved to Montana to do some USMC recruiting and we are trying to figure out where the most ideal place to get stationed would be. Here are our options: Billings, Butte, Bozeman, Great Falls, Kalispell, and Missoula. We are currently stationed in San Diego, Ca...so needless to say it's going to be quite an adventure! We are looking for some place that is beautiful and afordable...we look forward to your input!

Thanks!

[MTSilvertip]

Welcome to the boards and to Montana.
I would first like to thank your husband for his service and you for your support of his noble endeavors. Semper Fi

The choices listed are interesting, and I will try to give you a little help if I can.

Billings- Largest city in Montana. Decent housing, much lower priced than the western part of the state. Not as picturesque as the western side but a lot of opportunities for outdoor adventures. Excellent medical facilities, more crowded than many towns, but all the attractions and entertainment available at larger towns.

Butte - Rich History, smaller city, pretty reasonable housing prices, legendary celebrations on St. Patricks day. Decent medical facilities, mountains all around town, lots of recreation and Butte is a very civic minded place with active associations working to bring in entertainment and promote the city.

Bozeman - Beautiful setting, very high housing costs, traffic congestion, but has access to a lot of entertainment through the college. Decent medical facilities, taxes are higher but if you don't mind a little drive there are several small towns near Bozeman that have great community spirit and are much cheaper to live in.

Great Falls - Mostly affordable housing, high plains but close to the Rocky Mountain front. Air Force town with Malmstrom AFB so military PX and medical available. Good recreation and entertainment opportunities.

Kalispell - Much like Bozeman, very pretty, very expensive, but most services available. I don't spend much time there so I won't go any deeper but there are several posters here who are from the area so they could help with specific questions.

Missoula - liberal mecca of the state. Expensive, in the mountains and if you leave town the recreation opportunities are super. Lots of good small towns around the valley that would be great to live in. Good hospital, lots of traffic, entertainment through the college, probably the closest we come to matching San Diego in temprament. ( I was stationed at San Diego for a while with the Navy so I can make the comparison).

Good Luck to you and if you have specific questions please feel free to post them or contact me on the PM feature.

Welcome to Montana! I look forward to hearing more from you and your husband in the future.

[themolinas]

Thanks so much for your advice! It really helps to hear what the locals have to say...it's hard to get a feel for the place when you're just searching online.

I forgot to mention that Helena is also an option, but from your descriptions I think Butte is moving towards the top of the list. We are looking for a small town feel...my husband grew up on a 2000 acre ranch in north eastern Colorado so needless to say San Deigo is WAY to crowded for him!

What are the winters like out there? I'm a native Californian (please don't hold that against me) so I've never lived through a "real" winter...just curious what to expect besides a new wardrobe

Thanks again for your help!

[seven of nine]

I saw your inquiry on the moving to Montana thread, welcome to the board.
I myself live in eastern Montana and it is very different from the western side of the state. Take a look at my album if you want to see how the prairie looks.
Willl you have children in school? Will you need good access to an airport? Will you need a job? All things to consider. The winters are rough but believe me if I can learn to drive on ice and snow you can
Here are some older threads to get you started.

http://www.city-data.com/forum/monta...-me-about.html
http://www.city-data.com/forum/monta...lena-like.html

[MTSilvertip]

I hold the people who serve in our armed forces and their families in the highest regard, no matter where they are from.

It may intrest you to know that Montana has one of the highest percentages of veterans per capita of any state. The last figure I heard was around 14% so you will be among friends.

I won't kid you, the winters can be rough. Long periods of grey and snow, the temperatures can fall way below zero and stay there for a while. It can be really rough on people from warmer areas, but, when the sun breaks through and the whole world sparkles like it is covered with diamonds, or when you walk out at night with a full moon through a snow covered field with the stars so close it seems you could reach out and grab a handful, or when the first flower pokes its head up through the snow, and you get really excited to see a little green showing up along the road, you appreciate the winter, and the spring even more.
West of the divide is warmer but has more snow, East of the divide has less snow but is colder. It is a dry cold so very different from places with high humidity. Our thermometers may say 95 or -30, but it doesn't feel as bad as you may think. Once you acclimatize, a cool 30 degree day can feel pretty warm after a week or two of 10 degree weather.

Helena is similar to Butte, only about 70 miles away. It started out as a mining camp in the 1860s so there is quite a bit of history.
It is the capitol and the seat of government of all kinds with all associated pomposity and self rightiousness. the civilian medical facilities at the hospital are marginal, but the VA Hospital at Fort Harrison just west of town is very good.
Shopping is limited unless you really like Wal Mart. Most of the locals will drive to Great Falls, Bozeman or Missoula, (all about 90 miles away) to do any serious shopping or attend concerts or other functions.

Housing prices aren't as high as Bozeman, but not cheap. Expect a small 2 bedroom to be over $150,000 and if you want a yard or garage, the price goes up. The taxes within city limits are VERY prohibitive, but there are a lot of small towns within 1/2 hour drive that are very nice. Helena is in the mountains, but in a rain shadow so it is pretty much high desert. There are 3 major reservoirs on the Missouri river close to town. I wouldn't reccomend the city schools, but the outlying areas have very good schools. There is Carrol College, ( a catholic school) and the University of Montana has the technical college in town. Far more liberal than most of the state, (the main income is from government so the more government the better right?).
It does have some entertainment opportunities, and a rich history, but as for spirit or hometown pride, no. A lot of the people are standard bureaucrats looking out for number 1. The normal people are very decent and there are a lot of clubs and organizations in the area.

Hunting and fishing opportunities are good to excellent in all areas of the state, there are ghost towns, geologic formations, hot springs, forests, mountains, prairie, fossils, and wide open spaces. Each season brings new things to explore and see. I think you will find it a great place to live and have a family.

Good Luck!

[seven of nine]

that was a great post Mt.
shoot I would move here if I wasn't already here!

[griz134]

Can you drink the water in Butte? I heard it has arsenic in it. Butte is probably the coldest of all these towns.

[MTSilvertip]

Yes you can drink the water in Butte. The city water is treated the same as any city water is and is tested just as the water from any city water treatment plant is checked.

Cyanide, Arsenic, Lead, any organic metal or mineral can be leached from the background soil and rock that the water passes over or through.

If you are on a private well in Butte, or Helena or Great Falls for that matter, you stand a chance of having a high concentration of heavy metals in your water.

In many areas, water soluble salts such as Alkali are also a problem. There is no such thing as "Pure" natural water.

Any private well anywhere should have the water checked on at least a 2 year period as Coliform Bacteria is a far greater danger than the background metals.

That is a non-issue. Lead in the water of Helena and East Helena are of far greater concern outside of the treated city water.

Any of the towns listed can be pretty cold. Butte has the highest elevation with Bozeman and Helena at roughly 4200 in second place.

In this state you choose between quality of life, affordability, taxes, wind and snow, cold and snow, just plain snow, or high wind with snow being blown out of the area quickly in a ground blizzard.

If you look for the bad side, there are always plenty of negatives for just about anyplace.

I prefer to look at what makes the place great.

[Montana Griz]

Originally Posted by MTSilvertip

Yes you can drink the water in Butte. The city water is treated the same as any city water is and is tested just as the water from any city water treatment plant is checked.

Cyanide, Arsenic, Lead, any organic metal or mineral can be leached from the background soil and rock that the water passes over or through.

If you are on a private well in Butte, or Helena or Great Falls for that matter, you stand a chance of having a high concentration of heavy metals in your water.

In many areas, water soluble salts such as Alkali are also a problem. There is no such thing as "Pure" natural water.

Any private well anywhere should have the water checked on at least a 2 year period as Coliform Bacteria is a far greater danger than the background metals.

That is a non-issue. Lead in the water of Helena and East Helena are of far greater concern outside of the treated city water.

Any of the towns listed can be pretty cold. Butte has the highest elevation with Bozeman and Helena at roughly 4200 in second place.

In this state you choose between quality of life, affordability, taxes, wind and snow, cold and snow, just plain snow, or high wind with snow being blown out of the area quickly in a ground blizzard.

If you look for the bad side, there are always plenty of negatives for just about anyplace.

I prefer to look at what makes the place great.

Hey MTSilvertip.............. Your 3 posts on this thread are very informative.....
great job.

If I may.....some slight corrections regarding elevations:
Butte: approx 5538'; Bozeman: approx 4795'; Helena: approx 4058'

Also, a question: Have you had the opportnity to harvest a "ursus arctos horribilis" yet in your outdoor adventures? ........not from Montana, of course.

[MTSilvertip]

Hello Montana Griz,

Thank you for your feedback. I would like the OP to have as much information prior to making a decision as possible. They have to live with it for a couple years even if they don't like where they are.

I used the term "Roughly" and did not mention the exact elevation for Butte because I was being lazy this morning and didn't want to look them up for publication.
It is a writers perrogative to use a shading of words to obfuscate facts. (Just look at a newspaper to confirm that statement).

I like your wording, "ursas arctos horriblius", covers all basis.

Lewis and Clark named them "Ursas Horribilus" the Horrible Bear after several tried to eat them, but todays PC crowd started calling them "ursas arctos" a couple years ago. Bull pucky. They are still a horrible bear to cross.

I have crossed paths with several, but have never had the license to legally take a grizzly. Never had problems with them outside of a couple killing calves on the ranch each spring.

I have taken some "Ursas Americanus" and am currently pursuing a "Felis concolor " that killed one of my brothers horses and a "canis lupis" because they have really hurt the herds of "Cervus canadensis".

My screen name comes from the fact that since I was a little kid, a scar on my left temple caused a small tuft of hair in to grow in silver, not because I am succesful hunting Grizzly.

In the group I ran with as a kid, nicknames were better than real names. I didn't come from the oceanside so I didn't like "whitetip", ( a shark), so I was always "Silvertip" or "Bear" from my build and personality. (short legs with a large belly and I like to hibernate through the winter) .

I would assume most of the Grizzly varients on this board are football fans, but honestly, I have never seen a University of Montana game in my life.