[medgo]

I am a physician married and have an attractive job offer with good benefits at Lawton, Oklahoma ; however after reading several comments and answers to some threads specially on gang related crimes and other security matters am quite concerned for me and my family. Is it all true of what is said and if so how do professionals like me that live in Lawton, Oklahoma go about with daily living?
Would there be a city close by at a reasonable commuting distance for me to live in which could offer peace of mind and good conditions to raise our two
children (6 and 9 years old)

[Synopsis]

I wasn't aware that Lawton had such a high incidence of the crime you're talking about. I would imagine that such crime would be relegated to some of the seedier areas of town. LadyRobyn and (I think) MKfarnum live there and they seem to like it just fine.

Being a Physician, you'll be able to afford a home in some very nice areas of town, for sure. Hopefully someone else will pop in here and give you some advice as I don't live there.

[LadyRobyn]

Originally Posted by Synopsis

I wasn't aware that Lawton had such a high incidence of the crime you're talking about. I would imagine that such crime would be relegated to some of the seedier areas of town. LadyRobyn and (I think) MKfarnum live there and they seem to like it just fine.

.

Repeat after me... Duncan ...LadyRobyn lives in DUNCAN along with her Husband,daughter, and father and grandchild...and mkfarnam is our neighbor...all in DUNCAN. *sigh*

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Hi medgo, Welcome to the forum. Lawton does have some perfectly nice neighborhoods from what I hear, but unfortunately I do NOT live there so I can't advise you as to which area would be better.

There are several smaller towns near Lawton that would be an easy commute for you including Duncan... a 25-30 min drive. 4 lane highway with minimal traffic. My Husband made that drive for over a year and he still misses it! He says it was a peaceful, straight shot right into Lawton and he enjoyed seeing the Deer and other wildlife along the way.

I'll go round up a few of my other posts that have pictures for you in a bit.

Anything in the north/northeast part of Duncan would put your kids in two of our best elementary schools. There are new homes being built in the Meadowview area that are in the $175,000 range, but you can easily find older homes in the same section of town for less.

Here is a link to Duncan Public Schools Duncan Public Schools List of Schools The kids in the Northern part of town go to Horace Mann or Plato Elementary.

If you have any specific questions fire away!

[StillwaterTownie]

In this age of $4 a gallon gasoline I find it fascinating that someone would preach about living in a different city than the one you work in. As for those wildlife, such as deer, seen along a 25-30 min. drive, I would be scared about hitting one, especially at night. Maybe cows would get out and that would only add to the potential for a very unpleasant accident. I sure have come close to hitting a cow on hiway 51 west of Stillwater before. Deer, too. And then along the way you have the potential of driving into bad storms along the way. People, do yourselves a favor. Work and live in the same town.

[eddie gein]

Elgin is a small town that has good schools and is just a stones through from Lawton. Cache is just west of Lawton and is growing. I would take the job and maybe live in either of those places. However if you want the amenities of a fairly good size town immeidiately available then Duncan is really your only other option.

[LadyRobyn]

Pictures always speak louder than words. Here are some from North Duncan and Marlow: http://www.city-data.com/forum/oklah...th-duncan.html

Driving to Lawton from Duncan. (These were taken in the Wintertime...not as green and pretty as it looks now!)

http://www.city-data.com/forum/2649567-post595.html

And these were taken in Lawton...just for fun. http://www.city-data.com/forum/2650054-post596.html

[medgo]

Lakeside village seems to be a fairly short drive straight down to Lawton as seen on google earth and also has the attraction of the lake and greener terrain. Would you guys be so kind and give your feedback in terms of living there. Oh! just for curiosity and as a legit concern would the lake that Deacon mentioned in respect to the prairie dog killings (which I condemn vehemently being an animal lover ) be the one seen north to Lawton surrounding treasure island or a smaller lake near the actual city of Lawton? How is the housing and weather up there including the twisters? Thanks a lot specially to you LadyRobyn ,The fotos were spectacularly taken and helped appreciate better the area in question. medgo

[Synopsis]

Oops! Sorry about the location thing LR!

[LadyRobyn]

Originally Posted by Deacon

Let us start with museums. Yes, there is a museum that is next to a park that harbored some prarrie dogs that were bothering no one. But the city illegally poisoned the dogs in the middle of the night and was sued by the EPA for illegal use of dangerous chemicals therefore possibly poisioning the water table. Do not drink the water at the museum if you want to visit it. The taxpayers are now stuck paying the fine imposed on Lawton for its inhumane and blatant disregard for it's citizens. I would not recommend eating any fish in the lake that is next to the poisoned dogs which is next to the museum either. There was a proposed building of another mall, but the city fathers nixed that because the one and only mall did not want any competition. If you visit the only mall, watch your back because it is all gangs hanging out in it. You would think by building a new county jail "right next to the only mall" in town that there would be some cop presence. Think again. But it a gorgeous county jail building sitting right next to the only mall in town. You would be safer shopping at one of the 2 Wal-marts. Yes, Lawton has become a 2 wal-mart town. How special is that? There is also a Philharmonic Center but that is full of mold because it was built in a hole and floods everytime it rains. Movie theaters - There used to be one on 38th Street that closed down so to build a huge Movie Theater on Cache Road that also closed down. If you want to see a Movie, you go to the only Mall but pack a weapon because of all the gang activity in and around the mall. Attractions consist of Pawn Shops, Used Car Lots, Fast Food Joints and Banks. As far as Boutiques? There is a Tea Room that has been for sale for 2 years now. As far a nightlife -- A lot of bars come to mind. As soon as the sun goes down, a hooker is not hard to find, if that is what you consider nightlife. I can go on and on but I have to go double lock all my doors because the sun is going down. Feel free to ask more specifics.

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Originally Posted by medgo

Lakeside village seems to be a fairly short drive straight down to Lawton as seen on google earth and also has the attraction of the lake and greener terrain. Would you guys be so kind and give your feedback in terms of living there. Oh! just for curiosity and as a legit concern would the lake that Deacon mentioned in respect to the prairie dog killings (which I condemn vehemently being an animal lover ) be the one seen north to Lawton surrounding treasure island or a smaller lake near the actual city of Lawton? How is the housing and weather up there including the twisters? Thanks a lot specially to you LadyRobyn ,The fotos were spectacularly taken and helped appreciate better the area in question. medgo

I take it you are referring to the above post? Personally I would give it a 2 out of 10 for honesty and accuracy. There might be 3% of that post that is true.

Yes, the City did try to poison the prairie dogs. It happened in Elmer Thomas Park. (The link of pictures I posted "just for fun"...those were all taken there...not exactly the chemical wasteland you were expecting? ) If you visit the park you will see that they do have a huge problem there...IMO they just went about solving the problem the wrong way.

The 'dogs have tunneled under all of the picnic areas, the jogging trails and the children's playground...they have also become so used to humans that they have no fear of them anymore. The last time we were there the City had plastic safety fence surrounding some areas that had become too unstable for people to enter.

The "water table" is no more contaminated in that area than any other residential area that uses fertilizers and pesticides in their lawns... And that isn't a "lake"... it is a man-made pond with a large fountain in the middle.

The mall that he/she referenced? We have been there many times and have yet to be accosted by any *gangs* there. As a matter of fact we do most of our Holiday shopping there and have never had a problem. They did institute a curfew for un-supervised teens last year, which has cut down alot of the rough-housing and problems they were creating. (I am talking about unruly teens and NOT gun-toting gang-bangers)

I'm off to finish my coffee now...

[medgo]

Thanks for your reply LadyRobyn! It is a pity that some people create an unnecessary issue and write negative and inaccurate facts that could influence newcomers. Luckily there exists nice and hospitable persons like you. Oh,if possible let me know a little bit about the area I mentioned previously (Lakeside Village and/or Elgin).Thanks again and congratulations on your new grandchild. medgo