Want to move to Pleasant View (Sandy, Ogden: ski resorts, fit in, real estate)

[wigs]

Hi all

We are a white family wanting to move from South Africa to Pleasant View Utah.

What is it like to live there as we are a non LDS christian family.

Is the cost of living high? I am in the telecommunications industry and my wife is in the financial banking world.

Our children are 11 and 9 years old.

What are the schools like and also the job situation.

Also will we fit into the LDS type lifestyle.

Thanking you.

[coolcats]

Pleasant View is awsome. I was up there a month or two ago to visit a friend who bought a house there. The area is quite upscale. The houses, though beyond my budget, were much less expensive than what you would pay for in Salt Lake for a comparable property. It was nice and quiet and basically on a big hill so you can see for miles.

For telecommunications, there might be some stuff at Hill Airforce Base, but most of those jobs would require you to be a U.S. citizen since you would be working on military projects. Financial banking is limited in Utah, but there would probably be something in Salt Lake. The commute from Pleasant View to Salt Lake would not be fun -- lots of traffic heading that way.

[dief]

Hi Wigs,

I just wanted to jump in here and give you my 2 cents worth on Pleasant View.

We are a non LDS family from Maryland who moved to North Ogden, UT (North Ogden borders Pleasant View to the east) 3 years ago. We just moved to Sandy, UT one week ago.

Let me preface this by saying that everyone has different needs to make their life full. Here are the facts about the area as I see them:

Housing

The housing prices are lower in the Pleasant View/North Ogden area than areas near Salt Lake. But there is a reason for that. House prices reflect a lot of things and one of those things is amenities. If you have high amenitiy needs, look further south.

Being Non-LDS woman

I have never met a genuinely nicer group of people; they would give you their shirt off their backs. The problem that I found is that we had little in common. I am a woman who had one child at the age of 40. I have traveled around the world as a Flight Attendant, I was married at the age of 30. I drink coffee (don't look for a Starbucks there), I drink wine. For the most part, the LDS women have had very different experiences in their life. One thing that makes for strong friendships is commonality. I found I had very little in common with women my age.

Another thing, people will often say that LDS are exclusionary. There are 2 issues here.

1. The church requires that the members are very active in Church activities. This leaves the members with little free time and the time they have they spend with their families.

2. Go back to my comment about common experiences; they probably have the same issues as non LDS...they have nothing in common with us. They don't intentionally exclude, but it may come across that way.

Being Non-LDS 11 year old boy.

My son was 9 when he entered Majestic Elementary in 2003. It was an easy transition for him. However, as he got older, he found more children asking him to go to church with him. This should not be happening, but it does happen. Another thing to be aware of; I have been told by non LDS parents of high school age children that the issue of being non-LDS becomes more difficult with older children.

There are lots of children in the neighborhoods.

A lot of growth is going on in that area. The farms are being sold and turned into developments. It seems that the City Council is very reactive rather than proactive in projecting growth and building schools. The schools are very crowded, but they are crowded throughout most of Utah.



Final thoughts:

There is limited sophistication in that end of the Salt Lake Valley. Originally it was a farming community. The LDS/nonLDS ratio is very high; (3 out of 4 people are LDS) however changing as more diverse (religiously and ethnically) people come into the area.

We left North Ogden because we needed more amenities and diversity. We moved to Sandy, UT, which is 1 hour south of Pleasant View and 20 minutes south of Salt lake. Real estate prices here are high; but you get what you pay for if you can pay for it. (we have decided to Lease a house for a year to check the area out) In my neighborhood are people from New York, New Jersey, New Orleans, Italy. Many of the people from North Ogden/Pleasant View were born and raised in the area, and they had a very different world view from mine. The school district is better here. (Granite)

If you do decide to go to Pleasant View, look into "Newcomers club" and Women who Wine (a Red Cross fundraising organization)

If you are outdoor types, you will LOVE it there. Hiking in summer, skiing in winter. If you buy a house BUY ONE WITH TREES. It is sunny all summer there, very few clouds.

Read, read, read about the area you are considering. Read my post, read other posts. Gather information as you make your decision about moving to Pleasant View. In my opinion Utah is a very unique state for many reasons, you'd better apprise yourself of all the information you can get your hands on.

Linda

[Elder_Shawn]

These repiles are dead on. I grew up in North Ogden as a minority and loved it! I now live in SLC and love it here also. My wife is from Tennesse and now SLC has really grown on her. A good friend of mine is from South Africa. She loves SLC also.

[LlasaLost]

Thank you, dief, for a very measured, intelligent contribution. Hope your new digs and surroundings prove to be very happy for you.

[CaksPirat]

Dear Wigs,

I am 14 years old. I currently live in Pleasant View, and I think it is a great place to live. People here are really nice and we love our community. The schools are great, and the area is BEAUTIFUL. It's only a short travel to lakes, ski resorts, and it is soon to be the end of the line for the new Commuter Rail.

I am LDS, and yes, our religion does teach us to reach out and try to invite others to church activities. I do not think this will be a problem for you because it is still your choice.

I promise you that if you move here we will do everything we can to make you feel comfortable living in our community. It is a wonderful place to live!

[east_tennessee_family]

Originally Posted by CaksPirat

Dear Wigs,

I am 14 years old. I currently live in Pleasant View, and I think it is a great place to live. People here are really nice and we love our community. The schools are great, and the area is BEAUTIFUL. It's only a short travel to lakes, ski resorts, and it is soon to be the end of the line for the new Commuter Rail.

I am LDS, and yes, our religion does teach us to reach out and try to invite others to church activities. I do not think this will be a problem for you because it is still your choice.

I promise you that if you move here we will do everything we can to make you feel comfortable living in our community. It is a wonderful place to live!

Its so refreshing to hear these comments from a 14 year old. Thank you!!!!! We are considering moving to Pleasant View( or a nice small community near Ogden) in a few months and our BIGGEST concern is our son. He's almost 13 and we are non-LDS. We were wondering how he would be accepted with us being from East Tennessee. Yes we do have a southern drawl and have lived in the Appalachian Mountains all our lives. But unlike many opinions we are an educated people. Our daughter is actually continuing her education in Maryland on a full academic scholarship. Our son is active in our Band program at his school. Is there a Band program at ANY Jr High School that stands out? The school he attends now went to Hawaii last year to preform for the Pearl Harbor anniversary and a band close to where we live now has played in the Rose Bowl parade. Also, would 57k be enough to live comfortably in one of these communities? We don't live beyond our means but it would be nice to have extra money in case we would like to go to a movie or out to eat. Any advice would be helpful on any of these subjects. This is scary, moving so far away from everything we have known all our lives and its a very hard decision.

[mepat]

Hello - we have lived in Pleasant View for three years and are also a Christian non-LDS couple. We are retired and moved here to be closer to our younger grandchildren. We have visited the Lomond View Elementary School on numerous occassions and I met with the band director from Orion Junior High. The new junior high is beautiful and goes from 7-9 grades. Weber High School has great campus. I've only seen the band in parades but seems to be very active. Our neighborhood consists of non-LDS and LDS and we've not had any problems in that respect. We came from the desert and have really enjoyed the four seasons. Cost of living a little higher than we had expected but much better than California.

Many extracurricular activities for kids - music lessons, soccer, gymnastics seem to be the major ones.

By all means, go to the Newcomers of Utah website. We have belonged for a year and have made many new friends - I don't think any members are LDS (they have enough church activities that they really don't have time for other things) as most are here through company transfers, military - both active and retired. There are probably 20+ subgroups - I play Mahjong with a group of ladies and my husband and I are in the 3rd Friday Dining Out group. There are 2 book club groups, bridge, golf, hiking, antiquing, bunko - you name it; they do it. We are also active in our local church. Come on and enjoy the Top of Utah.

[Lmejh]

Well, since reviving two year old posts seems to be all the rage, I don't recall anyone ever asked me to go to church with them when I was growing up through junior high and high school. I hope the OP found PV good for them.