Lima Ohio Questions (Columbus, Findlay, Sandusky: environment, relocation, real estate)

[Growing2Boys]

Hello everyone,
We are considering a relocation to Lima Ohio.
I am a nurse & mother to 2 toddlers. I have some questions I hope I can get information to answer. I would love any/ all opinions on these topics.....

1) What suburb has the best public school system? Does this suburb also have multiple preschools? (I am having trouble finding any preschools that have a website around the Lima area. This has me concerned.)

2) What suburb has the most options for fast access to child friendly activities? (playgrouds, pools, YMCA's, libraries, museums, malls, movies etc?)

3) Which hospital would you want to be a patient in? (cleanest, modern)

Any additional info offered would be greatly appreciated! I only work part time & I don't want to wind up isolated in a too small suburb without options for outings with my children.

Thank you!

[jadbad2004]

I think the newly renovated Lima Memorial Hospital would be a wise choice. they have really updated it and added an extension, very nice hospital. As of where to live in Lima, it is a pretty rough city in some areas, maybe you might consider Wapakoneta or Elida, smaller towns but very short drive to Lima and cheaper housing and great schools, you might even look into Ft Shawnee area also. Good luck to you.

[osujess]

As far as the hospital I would agree with Lima Memorial. My husband moved me from Columbus, OH to this place last June. He is from the area, but I am not. The only place I found liveable was Ft. Shawnee area. The school system has received an Ohio School rating of Excellent for the last 2 years in a row. I feel your frustration as you begin to look around for day care. I didn't find one until I moved here, but I would HIGHLY recommend it. My kids attend Shawnee Children's Progrom on Shawnee Rd. At first it doesn't look like much, but I can assure you, coming from someone with VERY high standards, that this is the best program I have ever put my children in. If you haven't been to Lima before I would definately make sure that you visit before a final decision is made. It took my husband 6 years to convince me to move here and I regret it almost everyday! It depends on what you want and are used to because he is just as happy as can be. I hope I was helpful and good luck!

[redpal]

I would strongly suggest St. Rita's medical center. They are currently completing a $130 million expansion. They have more service and specialties than LMH. Have been a patient at both I can tell you that the care at St. Rita's is markedly better.
I would also suggest you consider Lima's Catholic schools. They offer high academic standards, faithfilled instruction and a disciplined safe environment. Yes Shawnee schools are rated "excellent" on the state reprot cards, but I would encourage you to investigate how those ratings are meade. They are more about the socioeconomic backgrounds of kids and less about the product they produce for the average kid. I'm not sure that good student attendance and teacher attendance mean that quality teaching and learning are taking place. It simply means they are there every day.

[Ashley111]

Shawnee and Elida are nice places to live. I do not have children but I know Zion Lutheran Daycare is a nice one (more in Elida). I am almost a nurse and I love St. Rita's. They even have a new Starbucks! I would strongly suggest checking out Lima before moving here. Where are you from? There isn't a lot to do in Lima and I wouldn't choose to be here if I wasn't finishing up school.

[Ashley111]

Oh and both Shawnee and Elida are close to the mall. There are 2 but the second one is ridiculous. There is a pool in town but I wouldn't go there. Delphos about 15-20 minutes away has a nice pool. There is a library right by St. Rita's and the museum is also located there. The museum isn't much to see however. They do have a cute Christmas workshop for children where they can go and make crafts.

[ImaMichigander]

My husband is a cardiologist and we are moving to Findlay in a few months. I think that Lima and Findlay are fairly close-- certainly drivable to and from work. I can speak to St. Michael's Catholic grade school. It's huge-- about 600 kids from pre-k to 8th. They have MULTIPLE little kid options, referred to as the Academy of Angels. They have 3 year old 2 or 3 day, 4 year old 3 or 5 day, kindergarten readiness, 1/2 day and full day kindergarten. While that doesn't help much with a working schedule-- as most are just a few hours, they do bus to a couple of the local daycare centers. I have looked exhaustively at daycare and I am not totally in love with any of them for my 18 month old and my 3.5 year old. But there are lots of choices and I'd be happy to share what I have found with you.... One problem was that the schools that I liked didn't have room for both of my kids, so that might be a challenge.

As for hospitals, Blanchard Valley Hospital in Findlay seems lovely. It just had a large renovation and is really beautiful. If what my husband received as an offer is representative of the pay range at that facility, then the pay is good.

There have been a couple of posts just slamming Lima recently. I don't know much about it and have NEVER been there, but I would encourage you to review them as there seem to be a LOT of strong opinions. I can tell you that there look to be some really nice houses on Realtor.com-- but we are looking at a higher price point than many people may be considering. Findlay's real estate seems really nice also. A house that would have easily been $800,000 in Metro Detroit was $500,000.

I wish you luck in whatever you chose! And again, if anything I have mentioned sounds helpful and you would like more info, please don't hesitate...

[ltrinko]

Hello,
I live in Lima in the Bath area (Country Club Hills) . Plenty of restaraunt options, Rays Super Market, Sam's Club, Kmart and Walmart, Panera Bread is new as of this month. The Bath school district is really great and there is plenty to do in the area. The MetroParks off of 81 have plenty in the summer for little ones. There is also a summer movie program that has KID friendly movies all summer long at the Regal Cinema Theatre over by the American Mall. It is perfect! Ohio State University has a regional campus nearby as well and they offer a variety of programs too.

[mmm...steak!]

I just moved to Findlay from MI but I almost rented a place in Lima... I work at Lima Memorial, St. Ritas, and Blanchard Valley (as well as hospitals in Fremont and Sandusky occasionally) and I would have to agree that Blanchard Valley (in Findlay) is a beautiful place with very friendly staff who seem to have high job satisfaction. Of the Lima hospitals, I prefer St. Ritas to Lima Memorial but they are both great. I recently met a nursing student at BV who has been offered a full time position at St. Rita's following graduation and she says that she feels like she "fits in" there.

As for areas to live, I'm sure that there are some nice neighbourhoods outside of the city limits but Lima itself strikes me as a very unpleasant place (and not somewhere I'd ever consider raising kids.) There are a lot of dilapidated buildings and I don't feel safe there when I'm working late... that's saying a lot because I used to work in downtown Detroit!

[Ashley111]

Originally Posted by mmm...steak!

As for areas to live, I'm sure that there are some nice neighbourhoods outside of the city limits but Lima itself strikes me as a very unpleasant place (and not somewhere I'd ever consider raising kids.) There are a lot of dilapidated buildings and I don't feel safe there when I'm working late... that's saying a lot because I used to work in downtown Detroit!

There was just a drive-by shooting right by St. Rita's and a woman was killed. I know it makes me worry.