Tell me about your city. (Omaha, Lincoln: tornado, insurance, military)

[corel]

Our family is planning a moving from California, perhaps to Omaha (or surrounding area). I would like to hear from those who have lived there for years and those who have recently moved to the area (especially those who have moved there from California). Give me your views on the area, the good, the bad and otherwise. Thank you for your thoughts.

[Dave1215]

Everyone: Please share honest positive and constructive comments. Corel was asking for places to live on a different forum and I have alot of info on Nebraska, the Omaha/Lincoln Metro area, and of course Papillion specifically because of the CNN/Money rating in '07.

I encouraged her to pop over to the Omaha thread and ask opinions beyond the ones I was providing.


For your reference here was the original thread: Where to Move?

[Dave1215]

I am going to appologize up front for the length of this post, but I went to the other thread and pulled out the Nebraska parts of the discussion so you can see the summary of what I provided. Please fill in your perspective or constructive counter-points.

Originally Posted by corel

This similar to the "moving away not moving to" thread. My husband and I are ready to move, but we're still trying to decide where we want to go... so I'm asking for ideas. Here is what we would like:

1) Four seasons (including snow that sticks), but not much hotter than 90 in the summer

2) We need a decent size metro area, because of my husbands work (IT)

3) A slower pace of life then here in So. Cal.


Any ideas? Any and all will be considered....

Originally Posted by Dave1215

Nebraska - either Lincoln or the Omaha metro.

Here is some information from a related post I did last week:

Major data center and IT shops for some major operations, such as:
Google is opening a large datacenter next door in Council Bluffs
PayPal has a major operation (largest outside of California I think)
Many defense contractors
First Data
Mutual of Omaha
Union Pacific
Conagra
InfoUSA
Kiewitt Construction
ACI
TD Ameritrade
Physicians Mutual
Woodman of the World
Omaha Steaks
Gallup
Oriental Trading
Sitel
West Corp
Berkshire Hathaway
Leo A Daly
Some major leading edge technology with the Kiewitt Institute

Might be interested in this report from Nebraska Workforce regarding areas of top growth (Healthcare and IT)

"The City of Omaha has a population of 409,416 and is surrounded by a number of suburban communities. The population of the Omaha metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is 807,305 with over 1.1 million within a 60-minute drive. The Omaha (MSA) consists of Douglas, Sarpy, Saunders, Cass and Washington counties in Nebraska and Pottawattamie, Harrison and Mills counties in Iowa." Source: Omaha Chamber of Commerce


Also one of those suburban communities it talks about is Papillion which was just this year named the 6th Best Place to Live in the US by CNN/Money Magazine. Papillion is also headquarters for InfoUSA.

Originally Posted by corel

Dave,
Thanks for the advice.... it looked great.....
but we're scared of tornados (yes, I know, I'm a chicken). We ruled Nebraska out when we saw that it fell into one of the "high risk" states.

Keep your thoughts coming everyone.... I'm looking into all of them, even those not currently on our list, it is constantly evolving.

Originally Posted by Dave1215

Don't let that scare you. I bet most people that have lived here 20 years have never seen one. Of all natural disasters (and every area has one kind or another), tornados are the one I would choose - they are so hit & miss - even if you were to have one in the area, chances of something happening to either you or your property are so slim.

Where did you see the "high risk" rating - I'm curious.

Originally Posted by corel

Weather Facts: Tornado Alley Map - Weather Great Britain - weatheronline.co.uk

Do most houses have some sort of extra protection... stronger construction, basements....? Please excuse me if I sound more than a little naive, I am when it comes to this.

Originally Posted by Dave1215

Thanks for the link, I'll look at it tomorrow.

No extra construction protection (like you would have with hurricane or earthquake), but almost every home has a basement. The corner of the basement is where you would go and there generally would be plenty of warning if it were to occur. Tornado warning systems in the US are excellent - they are generally very predictable with trained weather radar operators.

Originally Posted by corel

"plenty of warning"??? Aren't the warnings just a few minutes before it hits?
By plenty do you mean just enough time to get to a safe area of the house? To receive a warning though don't you need to have a tv or radio on?
Personally I prefer earthquakes, maybe because thats what I grew up with, but usually they are so fast you don't even know it hit til after it's done. "Was that an earthquake?" or "I THINK we just had an earthquake?" are not uncommon things said during and/or after.

Originally Posted by Dave1215

That link you provided does show what is refered to as "tornado alley". Actually every state in the US has had tornados, this is just the traditional area where the weather conditions tend to be right.

Omaha is in the light green (lesser chance) as opposed to the dark green (higher chance).

When I think of "tornado alley" I tend to think of Kansas and Oklahoma and if Nebraska then southwest Nebraska (south of Lincoln onto the Kansas border).



The weather signs for a potential tornado are fairly distinct. If there is even a hint that potential that the conditions exists for a tornado then the weather service will issue a tornado WATCH. That puts spotters, public safety and weather service on extra alert. It also tells the public to keep their TV or radio tuned to a local station. If a tornado is actually spotted or its signature is seen on dopler radar then they will issue a tornado WARNING for the affected county.

If there is a tornado WARNING then all television and radio stations do an alert. Civil defense sirens would also go off. Its that alert that would tell you to go to your basement or to an interior room without windows. If you live in a metro area or in town there is lots of warning with the systems that are in place. If you are in a rural area without civil defense sirens and you don't watch the weather and you don't watch tv or you don't listen to the radio then maybe you could be suprised.

Even if you are in a WARNING area where a tornado has been spotted, the odds of being hit are still small. Tornados tend to be a few hundred yards in diameter, last for minutes and primarily cause damage from their extreme winds with the direct hit.

Because of the great warning and tracking systems the number of people killed or injured in tornados is extremly small.

Property damage from both earthquakes and hurricanes tends to be much more widespread and much larger. Even a small earthquake or hurricane can knock things off shelves and break them or cause cracks in drywall/plaster or do small foundation damage. With a tornado even if you are in the area as long as you don't have the direct hit chances are you will loose leaves from your trees, maybe a couple of branches.

While they have been recorded in every month (just like they have been recorded in every state), they tend to come in the spring (Apr-June) so that's the time you hear about them.

Of all natural disasters to live with tornados is the one I would pick. The odds of being affected (either property damage or personal injury/death) are so small compared to earthquake and hurricane. But like you said, I think its what you grow up with and what you are used to.

To me, tornados in the Omaha area and surrounding counties are almost a non-event for me.

Originally Posted by Dave1215

Just so you don't let the small weather thing override all the other things I did want to share this last item as well. Good luck with your search:

In addition to Papillion (outskirts of Omaha) being named the 6th Best Place in the Nation to Live by CNN/Money Magazine in 2007, Omaha also is:

a.Omaha was ranked in the top 20 in 2003 for best jobs in the us
b.top 20 here in the us for quality of life
c.#5 according to msnbc.com for raising a baby
d.Study ranks the Omaha metro the #30 funnest metro in america
e.#41 for highest per capita income in the US
f.crime rate if relatively low
g.#7 best big city place to live according to money magazine
h.#15 overal for jobs
h.#32nd in median household income
h.#12th cost of living rank
h.#55 job growth


Forbes Magazine ranked Omaha 15th overall for jobs, 32nd highest in median household income, 17th in unemployment, 12th in cost of living rank 55th in job growth out of all the metros in the nation.

This study one was just released and is the latest it spells out household income vs US Cost of living vs US population of individual counties in Omaha metro and how much they grew by from 2000 to 2006 and projections to 2011. It lays out the job growth here and by what categories... And what to expect in the next year 2007

Originally Posted by Dave1215

Ha... you indicated you wanted 4-seasons and that is what we have. The nice thing about our Winter's is they are not extreme. Yes, it can get cold and yes you will have snow (including a periodic blizzard once a year or so), but then there is relief.

Summers kind of the same way, it can get hot (high 90's and periodic 100) but then there will be relief in the 80's. We do have some humidity in the summer,but not like very high humidity places like Mississippi.

Spring and Fall are beautiful weather.

I love the change of seasons, but also the breaks we get in both summer and winter. I've had several opportunities to move and this was a big reason why.

Take a look at this link: City-Data-Papillion. Scroll 1/2 way down the page and you will see great graphs for the average weather by month. Shows Temp, Humidity, Wind, Percipation, Sun vs Cloudy days. This is City-Data's page for zip code 68046 which is the southern boundary of the Omaha metro area and about 45 miles north of Lincoln.

Originally Posted by Dave1215

Seems like reasonable advice. In regards to my earlier suggestion about the Omaha metro area I'll do a quick response of each one of these suggestions.



The Omaha/Lincoln metro areas are very strong and growing economically. Here is are a couple of links regarding Omaha's Economic Outlook, Omaha Indicators, and Omaha Cost of Living Overview.

In regards to Crime and Divorice/Marriage type statistics take a look at City-Data's own website reviews: Douglas County and Omaha, Lancaster County and Lincoln, Sarpy County and Papillion.





I know I missed some, but here is a fairly comprehensive list of major universities and colleges in the Omaha/Lincoln metro area (Public and Private).

University - Public:

1. University of Nebraska - Lincoln
2. University of Nebraska - Omaha
3. University Of Nebraska Medical Center

University - Private:

1. Creighton University
2. Bellevue University

College - Public:

1. Nebraska State College System

College - Private - 4 Year:

1. Grace University
2. College of St Mary
3. Nebraska Christian College
4. Nebraska Wesleyan University
5. Dana College
6. Midland Lutheran College
7. Union College

College - Private - Health:

1. Clarkston College of Health
2. Nebraska Methodist College of Health

Community College - Public:

1. Metropolitan Community College
2. Southeast Community College

Lots of little towns outside the primary Metro area of Omaha and Lincoln. Very easy commute. Lots to choose from all the way from Urban to Suburban to Rural.

As previously mentioned, one of these, Papillion, was named the 6th Best City to Live in the US by CNN/Money Magazine for 2007. The City-Data link to Papillion is also provided above.




Omaha World Hearld
Lincoln Journal Star
Some of the smaller surrounding communites (8 total)





A few places to kick start thinking about that visit.

• Omaha Convention & Visitors Bureau
• Lincoln Convention and Visitors Bureau
• Sarpy County Tourism

Originally Posted by Dave1215

I am not paid to promote and don't represent anyone or any group - but great question (I do hold a membership in one of the local chambers, but that's so I can stay involved with the community - back to the pride of where I live thing - I am in no way representing them).

I am just an average citizen that loves where he lives. I have had several opportunities to move to other parts of the country with work and have declined each one because of the quality of life I enjoy here.

To most people not familiar with the midwest, Nebraska wouldn't even be on their radar -in their mind its probably flat, no culture, and cowboys/indians on the plains. Folks that end up here are suprised by the nationally known companies that are here, the generosity of the people, the variety of culture, the affordability, low crime, etc etc.

The area I live in has a higher military make-up due to a major military base in the area (Strategic Command, Offutt Air Force Base, and the former SAC headquarters)... I know more folks that were stationed to this base and when they found out they thought it was the worst assignment they could ever have (next to Fargo, ND). Once they got here they fell in love with the area and I know many many that ended up taking this as their final stop and decided to retire here.

Just have hometown pride - which is not uncommon in the area.

Originally Posted by Dave1215

Understand. Its not mountains, but it is does have more topography (hilly) than people think. Don't get me wrong, there are areas on the plains that are very flat and you can see for a long time which is great for farming. But around the metro there are hills so it breaks up the view and gives you a workout if you decide to bike.

Here is a topography map of the state and one of Omaha (scroll to bottom).

Originally Posted by corel

Dave,
You've have been very helpful in describing all the wonderful things about Nebraska for me, and I'm glad that you have. Could you also tell me what the negatives are? I have been checking out the Omaha forum but it's hard to tell if those that are complaining are just complainers or have had some bad experiences that made them bitter or if the things mentioned are legitimate. Please fill me in so I have a good overall view of NE. Thanks again.

Originally Posted by Dave1215

Great question: Instead of me giving a single view, how about you pose that question on either the Nebraska or the Omaha forum? I'll watch for it and give my two cents then see how others respond... could be an intersting discussion... I'll be watching.

[ehenningsen]

If you can live with lakes and rivers with small beaches instead of any large scale body of water, then you would like it here.

There is tons of boating, camping, water-skiing outdoorsey type places for miles and miles and miles, you pretty much can find a place like that in every other county. Bass Pro Shops, Cabela's and Camping World all in the OMaha/Council Bluffs metro.

The city is currently seeing about 500mil - 700mil worth of Health-care related expansions, on top of an already world reknown Med-Hub..

PayPal Operations Center, Google, Strat-Com, Northrup-Grunman, InfoUSA, TDAmeritrade Corporate Headquarters amongst many other Technology-based companies headquartered here making the metro a top 10 US tech hub.

Many insurance companies call the city home including Mutual of Omaha, BCBSNE, Pacific Life regional HQ etc..

First National Bank has their Headquarters in the Tallest building in Omaha..

The metro ranks #2 nationally for disposable income which is the measurement of the 'power of the dollar' after expensive of living and taxes are accounted for.

The metro ranks #1 - #3 (different variations depend on time of survey) most restaraunts per capita in the US, with many great local and national chains all over, the city is a restaraunt mecca..

Condo Boom all over, and there is a huge variety of housing types and locations that you cannot go wrong if you look.

I could spend all day typing here, if you have any questions don't be afraid to ask!

[tpabes]

Dave you did a great job. I would add that Omaha has a some of the lowest tornado numbers in the state. Sometimes cites will weaken storms also. I would say come and check it out if you can. Also check out the Omaha world herald (Omaha.com Home Page) to kind of give you insight on what is going on around the area.

[corel]

I would like to hear from the people that love Omaha: What is the downside to Omaha? I'm sold on the good things I've heard and seen. My husband and I are going to be making a trip out there this month or next, what should we look into while there, not the tourist things but things that would be important for someone looking to relocate?

[tpabes]

I will leave it more to current residents of Omaha, I lived there but moved back to Central Nebraska (just for jobs, no problems with the city). One bad thing about Omaha is the northeastern part of the city where the the majority of the black population is struggling and there has been a homicide problem (Omaha set a record for this past year). You may have read the thread about the World-heralds series Omaha in Black and White. This is not a huge part of the city, and depending on where you are coming from in So Cal, this might be nothing to you. Also some people swear against Omaha Public schools, but there can be a lot of misguided information there. Omaha can also be notorious for road construction, but what city isn't? I leave the rest to the current residents.

[Dave1215]

Originally Posted by tpabes

Also some people swear against Omaha Public schools, but there can be a lot of misguided information there.

There are a number of school districts in the Metro area, depending on where you live, so you will have lots of choices in quality if that's critical for you.

[Dave1215]

It can be Windy here (I don't notice it but I grew up here). I have heard a couple of folks from the East coast say it drives them crazy - why I'm not sure, but I have heard that complaint.

[Smileyman]

How would you rate public education in Nebraska? An annual study gives the Cornhusker State a grade of D+.

More on the story here: WOWT - HomePage Omaha Nebraska Local News, Omaha News, Weather, Sports, Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Omaha Traffic

That's just new tonight.

But really I don't think it can be that bad!!