Best places to retire in East Texas? (Houston, Dallas: section 8, homes)

[Mark Senior]

Oh me, I live only two miles from Holly Lake Ranch. Weekend, second cabin type, expensive, homes were first under construction around 1965-1970 from memory, not the internet. Later came expensive water front, golf course homes, a few new homes are still being built each year even in this bad economy.

Now, here is the IMPORTANT PART OF MY POST. Oh I know many people in Holly Lake, many, many from "up North" lol and hundreds if not thousand, of retires from DFW, the main source of new comers, I am in contact with these people daily.

Now pay attenntion !!!! Holly Lake has 12 to 15 different sections, it covers about 4 -5 square miles. This is, how can I say, it nicely, a run down section of mobile homes, many abandoned, do not pay their dues each month section, separated by over a mile from the rest of the sections of Holly Lake. This is where most all the crime you mention has occured.

The county peace officers scattered miles away are responsible for this, now small section. Yes, it is off the road of "main" Farm to Market road, get me Main FM, lol, so all types of activies go on.

The whole heavily wooded, and I hope still beautiful next year, county by the the name of "Wood" is sparsely populated only 40-45 thousand about 40-50 people per square mile, that rural, even for Texas. So meth type crimes go more undected than they would be in DT Dallas.
The area did grow 15% in the last ten years. Mainly a couple of small area besides Holly Lake, Mineola, Hawkins and the area nearer Tyler grew in population, not Hawkins proper but even smaller areas near the Tyler, Smith County Border.

So this has been, one bad rap put of the entire area of Holly Lake, when it is a small isolated section of Holly Lake that has a big problem in that section. Holly Lake Security doesn't "secure" there, no dues are paid for the securtiy so no security, Holly Lake pretty much doesn't act like the area exists.

[skelaki]

Mark, are there any plans to clean up that bad section?

[cindydial]

I'm so very sorry. I realize Holly Lake Ranch is refined and elegant. I've been saying that throughout. For example, below is an example of the sophistication and elegance:

"On February 15th, Corporal Jacob Richardson of the Wood County Sheriff's Department responded to an assault report at Holly Lake Ranch. Donald Chad Massey had driven through the security gate and assaulted his wife and young son. Earlier in the day, Massey had had an accident in Tyler and fled the scene. Massey tried to run over Officer Clyde Baldwin, a Holly Lake security guard, and rammed Baldwin's patrol vehicle.

Massey once again fled the scene. Mineola Police Officer Josh Banta located the vehicle on Highway 80 and a pursuit was initiated. Massey was stopped in Van Zandt County on Highway 80 just west of Wills Point. Massey was arrested for evading arrest with a motor vehicle and booked at the Van Zandt County Jail."

[cindydial]

In case you don't get it. The point is this is a "community" billed as a "resort"; a wonderful place to retire. For this privilege you pay more than for similar housing than you would outside the gate in Hawkins, Mineola, Tyler or Dallas even. You also pay an initiation fee and monthly dues for amenities and security. Security that is repeated called (as attested to by the Security Report.) to the lovely homes of these "resort" residents. If I had done that; if I had paid first for one of the "lovely homes by the lake" and researched the people who live there later. Oh my.

[skelaki]

Cindydal, You're beating a dead horse. Personally I don't know and really don't care one way or the other about Holly Lake Ranch. But frankly I'm rather tired of the negativity and seeing the same basic things over and over from you. Are there any places you think are decent places to live? And I am NOT talking about Holly Lake Ranch, which you obviously don't have positive opinions about.

[Veteran69]

Cinydal, I got your message on your first post and obviously you have done alot of detail research and thinking where to move your family. Could you share some POSITIVE and suggested places YOU have found and approve of in Texas? I hope I am not asking to much since All I have seen is negativity on one location from your posts. ANY Help or insight you may have researched positively would be great.....

[solytaire]

Yeah, I thought it was just me. I dont even know what Holly Lake Ranch is nor do I care about it one way or the other. But LORD, OK I get it, you dont like Holly Lake Ranch. Damn. But quit taking up space on the thread with that same recycled elementary content. Are there no mods in this thread? Surely just flooding a thread with essentially the same posts over and over again is some sort of violation or something.

[Jimmy Isaac]

Back to topic: I think the utility bills alone are enough reason to consider Longview. Paying less than 25 cents per kwh is awesome. Thank you, regulation!

[Mark Senior]

I just talked with my next door neighbor who has a brother and sister who moved to Holly Lake from DFW about 10 years ago. Nothing of what she speaks has happened, we all may not know about the domestic problem she reported, but again, it is not the norm. That can happen most anywhere. I don't know what her real grip is, but Holly Lake is really a nice place where you can buy nice homes, cabins from 75,000 to nice brick homes for 150,000 and up. My next door neighbor said he has a friend that just started a 3,000 sq foot home.

My last post on this. Oh, Hideway Lake has a $5,000 initiation fee even more than the 2,500 charged by Holly Lake. As you know, this is an attempt to "keep" the place desirable by not allowing folks "in" who really can't afford the place, therefore most likely may not be able to keep the place nice, not just to raise money.

I don't know of any effort to clean up the mobile home section, other than what the county police can do. It's just abandoned. But again, it's off the road most people don't even know it exists.

[cindydial]

Originally Posted by Mark Senior

I just talked with my next door neighbor who has a brother and sister who moved to Holly Lake from DFW about 10 years ago. Nothing of what she speaks has happened, we all may not know about the domestic problem she reported, but again, it is not the norm. That can happen most anywhere. I don't know what her real grip is, but Holly Lake is really a nice place where you can buy nice homes, cabins from 75,000 to nice brick homes for 150,000 and up. My next door neighbor said he has a friend that just started a 3,000 sq foot home.

My last post on this. Oh, Hideway Lake has a $5,000 initiation fee even more than the 2,500 charged by Holly Lake. As you know, this is an attempt to "keep" the place desirable by not allowing folks "in" who really can't afford the place, therefore most likely may not be able to keep the place nice, not just to raise money.

I don't know of any effort to clean up the mobile home section, other than what the county police can do. It's just abandoned. But again, it's off the road most people don't even know it exists.

Nothing has happened? EVERYTHING I have posted has been taken from holly Lake security reports and local newspapers. The point, I repeat, is this "resort" is inhabited by the same "common" people you'd find for less money if you just bought a house in Dallas or Houston. If someone thinks they are moving next door to Milburn and Margaret Drysdale at this exclusive resort they had better get ready for Jed Clampett and Jethro Bodine fighting the board over idiotic "prayer" signs, "disturbances", repeated calls to security about dog problems, etc. Read the security reports. Read the Hawkins newspaper. Oh the heck with it -- bring your pickup truck and and your Glock 19 for bubba-practice at the gun range and you'll be fine...

One of the more recent happenings at Holly Lake Ranch is the insistence of many of the more sophisticated residents on the display of the "prayer" sign. See:

GodleyWords from GodleyWorks from Rick Godley

These and other signs have been banned by the Holly Lake Ranch board as not in keeping with the the resort lifestyle the board is trying to promote (especially in their brochure.) These signs, of course, can not be display by the proud Roller in the backyard or over the fireplace in the living room. If they were to be put in just places then the rest of the neighborhood would miss out on the pleasure and enjoyment of knowing that "Prayer is America's Only Hope!" Since this message is vitally important for all to embrace (whether they wish to or not.) the board has on at least one occasion been verbally assaulted by various Constitutional scholars and other jail-house experts that banning of these [and other unapproved] signs is an outrageous violation of Constitutional and private property rights of those, for some reason, desperately need to display them! It is a complete mystery to these elegant and sophisticated residents of this exclusive resort that they've signed the CC&R documents agreeing not to display all except approved signs. Thus this Constitution argument falls as flat as it sounds ridiculous in the first place. No, instead making Holly Lake Ranch the resort the brochure promises, let's go to the board meeting waiving the Constitution and demand our civil and God-given right to put these important messages in our front yard. What else are we to do? Sit in the back yard working on our PhD thesis while sipping tea?

Hawkins Gazette March 8th:

"Lisa Gail Minor of Holly Lake Ranch, [indictment returned by Grand Jury] on one count of possession and transport of a chemical with the intent to manufacture a controlled substance and one count of possession of a controlled substance, over one gram and under four grams"

Holly Lake Ranch resident "Lisa Gail Minor" indicted for "intent to manufacture." appears here:

http://kltv.images.worldnow.com/images/14043968_BG3.jpg

I kid you not.

From Hawkins Gazette:

"On March 24th, investigators with the Wood County Sheriff’s Department executed a search warrant at 654 Village Trail at Holly Lake Ranch. Cary Don Whitney, 40, and his wife, Misty Renee Whitney, 35, were the residents. Both were at the residence when officers arrived."

Big Sandy-Hawkins Journal thinks you should know:

August 5 – Daniel A. Bacco, 36, of Holly Lake Ranch, was arrested by Officer A. Chandler for DWI-3rd or more (felony) and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.

From the "Wood County Democrat":

"Raymond W. Wirth of Holly Lake Ranch charged with theft by check -- more than $20,000 but less than $100,000."

From the "Mineola Monitor"

"May 18 - Deputy Chris Turner was dispatched to Holly Lake Ranch on an assault of a public servant (a security officer). The victim reported he was struck in the chest by William Baxter, 32. After investigation a warrant was issued and Baxter was arrested on May 20."