Ft Sill Bound: Need Help (Lawton, Duncan: travel, new home, college)

[home4mad]

Harry T-
Here is my take on the Duncan Area-i was born and raised in the duncan area moved to texas for 5 years and then decided to move back to the duncan area to have a family.

The school systems in and around duncan/marlow and comanche are very good-however at this time comanche is the coveted school district in the stephens co. area due to its outstanding staff/new facilities and after school activities (piano lessons/art ect..)-all state funded.

The duncan area is receiving a lot of run off from Lawton due to BRAC and the gang problem Lawton is currently experiencing persons from the Lawton area are wanting to get away from that and move to a smaller community like Duncan/Marlow/Comanche.

Duncan is home of Halliburton so you have a lot of old *oil money* in this area and at times tends to be quite clique-ish due to your economical standing in the community.

Homes for your price range are few however when you find it-you will get quite a nice place w/or without land your choice.

Commute from Duncan-Lawton on the Duncan Bypass is around 30-45 mins...it is 4 lane the entire way so flow is great and the occassional traffic jam is due to the local farmers and their tractors!

Overall the Stephens Co. area is a great place to live and raise a family-their just isn't a lot of *other employment* that pays well other then Halliburton and frankly they could raise their pay scale-but you don't have to worry about employment.

Religious wise-we have it all-just about a church on every corner along with banks and retirement villages! lol

[peggydavis]

Originally Posted by Jammie

Since you have a lot of mosquitoes down there, too, what is the reason that you're West Nile cases are SO low? I posted a few days ago after I saw a national map for West Nile. My state unfortunately is one of the worst for this and OK doesn't seem to rate at all in it.

I recall hearing about the kind of mosquito that carries west nile is not the kind that thrive in rainy conditions. This came up when horses in western OK were getting west nile while eastern OK horses were not. It is weird that we have vaccinations for horses against west nile but not for humans.

[PatoLiza]

Been reading the messages for Harry_T concerning his move to Ft. Sill area last year. Just curious about what he thinks of the place now. Any advise for me from your real life experience there? Where did you end up buying your first home? Happy with the neighborhood schools? Please share and I would really appreciate your help. We are very content with where we are right now and to move somewhere else (Sill or not) is rather inconvenient. Thanks again.

[peggydavis]

We haven't heard from Harry T in a while. Maybe some others will share their experiences with you. Welcome to the forum!

[peggydavis]

Here's a handy link someone might be interested in comparing the activities at the three Lawton high schools:

High School Clubs, Organizations and Activities : Lawton Public ...

[PatoLiza]

Can someone tell me whether there is a subdivision housing built on Lake Lawtonka? If there is, where would the kids zoned for school? Hope good school. Thanks in advance and hope to hear from you soon. We are due to pcs in Ft. Sill this summer.

[PatoLiza]

Good day! Can someone give me a personal unbiased info on where to live in Elgin? Are the school really up to the State standards? Which shools in the area provides string orchestra? Is there a lake access neighborhood at Lake Lawtonka? We are due to pcs to Ft. Sill this summer and we are starting to gather ideas to make the transition smoother. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

[peggydavis]

I'm hoping Bobby H will see this soon.

He said in his post that the areas around Lake Lawtonka especially Oak Meadows were seeing some significant development. Nearby Medicine Park is a unique area and he said that was seeing development also. I looked around to see if I could find anything listed online, but none of the sites seem to have a search option for certain neighborhoods.

On the Google satellite map, Lawtonka Acres looked very interesting to me.

I feel like I'm trying to be a PCS expert. I also moderate in the El Paso forum. Ft. Bliss is receiving many new people, but some are also PCSing from Ft Bliss to Ft Sill. But I don't live in either area!

About schools, this link seemed helpful: Introduction to the LPS Military Child (PDF)

I noticed Lawton High School had strings listed as an activity on another site there, so maybe they have that at the elementary levels. Music doesn't seem to be discussed much on the LPS website. Maybe your child is gifted and talented as far as music? I noticed that listed on the GT section.

As far as Elgin, from what I have heard secondhand it sounds like the town of Elgin and its schools are going to change completely because so many people are moving there. Most of the houses there are IMO middle class new or fairly new construction.

[PatoLiza]

Hi peggydavis,
You must be heaven sent. Thank you so much for your help. There is a lot to read and then to soak everything in but the more I read, the more I felt better about moving out of here. I am not scared to venture out to new places but to uproot my children from a place they have been for 7 years hurts me. They love their string programs here, both are in the talented and gifted class for all subjects area. I guess TAG is classified as special needs here in Texas. I am hoping that Ft. Sill school district will be able to meet my children's needs. I will continue to browse through the forum. We will be venturing out there in sometimes next month to see for ourselves what kind of neighborhoods exist out there.

[LadyRobyn]

Hi PatoLiza! We live in Duncan (S.E. of Lawton) and we drove up there this weekend.

I posted a few pictures in the Oklahoma pictures thread... not too many of the base (security and all that ) but you can see some of the new houses on base. Very nice.


http://www.city-data.com/forum/2649567-post577.html

http://www.city-data.com/forum/2650054-post578.html

Elmer Thomas Park is just outside the base in Lawton.

I do have some other pictures from on base... if you would like to see them let me know, I will "DM" them to you.