Moving to Brownsville (Houston, McAllen, Harlingen: neighborhoods, construction, best schools)

[210]

Originally Posted by conanS

Brownsville is a big place.

As of 2005, the population was 167,000 people. Not very big.

[pgv98]

I would go straight to SPI or Port Isabel. With 120k a year you could get into a nice house in either of those places. The problem you will have is sitting at the border every day. Might want to consider buying two cars and keeping on in Mex and one in Texas and just walking across the border.

I have worked in the maquila industry for 2 years now all over NE Mex and the only places in the Valley that I would live are SPI and Port Isabel. Be sure to budget in private schools for your kids.

The bad experiences I have had in the Valley:
*Someone stealing my shopping cart inside a wal mart so they didnt have to go to the front of the store to get one
*The daily occurrence of people cutting in line at the stores
*The trash you see being thrown out of every window of every car
* Drugs and violence that is increasingly coming across the border
* 3 out of the 4 people my Canadian friend talked to didnt know where Canada was (one thought it was part of the US the other two thought it was in Europe),


Good experiences:
*Close to Mexico and more importantly Monterrey (world class city in Mexico with almost 4 million people)
*The beach (you will have to search for a place that is not covered with trash though) but Oct through April it is pretty nice
*Fishing and Hunting are amazing
*And very, very cheap

[TexasKitty]

Having lived elsewhere and experienced a variety of cultures and economies, I hungered for my hometown and My Valley. One thing to remember Max, when you speak of one city, you are basically speaking of the ENTIRE VALLEY. There may be slight differences, such as higher crime rates in some cities while others boast more employment and better schools.
I was reared in Brownsville and it is a Great City to live in. Yes, there are populations that are more economically challenged than others, but show me any city is the Valley that isn't? I have also lived and worked at SPI as well as commuted to and from SPI to Harlingen. The fun at SPI runs out very quickly when the kids tire of Schiltterbahn and there is one mall with four floors but only one gets used, it gets boring. The Cinema is a 20 yr old building that was cheaply renovated and has horrible acoustics and it smells of old urine and mildew.

There are fun activities for the family, and they are seasonal. Those too will become tiresome.

If you love the Ocean, then it's for you. I would not recommend living in Port Isabel however. Do some research and you will find out for yourself. It is one of the reasons why I commuted for over five years instead of buying a home there.

Do yourself a favor. Drive over to the Alton Gloor area in Brownsville, past the Hospital and you will find some great new subdivisions there, or better yet, search for a home in Los Fresnos. You will still be close to all the Shopping, Dining in Brownsville and Los Fresnos has great schools.

SPI is great YEAR ROUND, but you will see an influx on Mexican Nationals in April (Easter) and of course Spring Break which can start as early as February and run through April.

The Valley has deep roots in Mexican Culture and we are a proud people. We are Educated and many of us know what hemisphere Canada sits on. It's the ignorant people out there who desire to look at the few shortcomings of a few people and choose to judge everyone by it, that enables folks to perpetuate negative behavior.

Brownsville just opened a new million dollar Fine Arts Museum, Has one of the Top Ten Zoos in the Nation, Has a wonderful Childrens Museum, Numerous Cultural Attractions that can be found at the Visitors Center, Brownsville Society for Performing Arts, Brownsville Heritage Complex, Camille Lighter Playhouse (casts children in their plays as well), Of course the Famous Charro Days (since 1938) which we Celebrate with our Sister City, Matamoros, which holds a special place in our hearts. Parades, Food, Carnivals and many other festivities, ending with the the great Sombrero Festival with lots of fun for your kids.

Brownsville carries Culture and Tolerance for those people who are different. We are proud and Honorable.

I truly hope you find the best place for you and your family. God will still Bless you no matter where you choose to live.

Blessings

[Karen9921]

I lived in Brownsville, back then I was single, and I loved it. I would move back anytime if given the opportunity. We were down there last summer and had a blast. Great private schools. The town has really gotten big, they really do take siestas during the day. The whole town shuts down for 1 hour. So Kool

[pgv98]

"We are Educated and many of us know what hemisphere Canada sits on. It's the ignorant people out there who desire to look at the few shortcomings of a few people and choose to judge everyone by it, that enables folks to perpetuate negative behavior."


That is why you have to go on your experiences when evaluating something. Acknowledging both good and bad makes you knowledgeable not ignorant of the situation.

In my experience, the valley is one of the most uneducated places I have ever lived. This does not mean that 100% of the people there are ignorant, just that based on my experiences in the Valley most of the people I talk to and do business with do not have well rounded educations (especially geography).

Monterrey is a different story and most of my friends go there every weekend to be in a more cosmopolitan city.

The caliber of schools is in the Valley is well below other parts of the US. The public school system is atrocious and getting worse. The universities in the Valley offer many opportunities, but nothing close to the level of top 25 schools. Some people could care less about this and more power to them; but to some people it is important.

The Valley IS changing for the better; 10 years ago most people could not wait to leave and now people who grew up in the Valley seem to want to stay.

I would never voluntarily move to a place without first asking people for both good and BAD experiences, then I would go judge for myself. McAllen is probably the premier place (outside of South Padre Island) in the Valley and you can even find a Starbucks there to sit and talk about what hemisphere Canada is in.

[oneangel]

To Development:

All of your information is very useful. It's nice to know of all the cultural activities and things for children to do. We're thinking of moving to Brownsville but are confused as to whether McAllen is better. What's your take on that, Brownsville vs. McAllen?

My husband and I are teachers, so we'd be looking for jobs in the public school system. Which of the 2 has the best schools overall?

[Vicman]

Oneangel - I'm not sure about the Hierarchy of Valley public schools.

I know that South Texas Independent School District is a magnet school district that operates magnet high schools and 7-12 secondary schools taking students from three counties (Cameron, Willacy, Hildalgo), with two schools in Mercedes, one in San Benito, and one in Edinburg. See the profile here: http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/...ct_profile/849

There are a lot of zoned school districts in the valley.

Which municipalities or areas are you considering?

By county:

CAMERON:
* Brownsville Independent School District
* Harlingen Consolidated Independent School District
* La Feria Independent School District
* Los Fresnos Consolidated Independent School District
* Lyford Consolidated Independent School District (partially)
* Point Isabel Independent School District
* Rio Hondo Independent School District
* San Benito Consolidated Independent School District
* Santa Maria Independent School District
* Santa Rosa Independent School District

HIDALGO:
* Donna Independent School District
* Edcouch-Elsa Independent School District
* Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District
* Hidalgo Independent School District
* La Joya Independent School District
* La Villa Independent School District
* Lyford Consolidated Independent School District (partial)
* McAllen Independent School District
* Mercedes Independent School District
* Mission Consolidated Independent School District
* Monte Alto Independent School District
* Progreso Independent School District
* Pharr-San Juan-Alamo Independent School District
* Sharyland Independent School District
* Valley View Independent School District

WILLACY:
* Lasara Independent School District (K-8) (High school residents attend Lyford CISD or Raymondville ISD)
* Lyford Consolidated Independent School District (partially)
* Raymondville Independent School District
* San Perlita Independent School District

[oneangel]

TO TEXAS KITTY:

I read your posting and it was also helpful like the one I read previously from "Development." Being that you're knowledgable of the area, I'd like to ask you the same questions:

We're thinking of moving to Brownsville but are confused as to whether McAllen is better. What's your take on that, Brownsville vs. McAllen? (lower crime rate, culture/activities, schools, affordable housing and taxes, etc.) We have a baby, so it's important for us to pick the right place.

My husband and I are teachers, so we'd be looking for jobs in the public school system. Which of the 2 has the best schools overall?

[oneangel]

TO VICMAN:

Thanks for the details. We honestly aren't sure of which municipality to consider. We'd focus on Cameron and Hidalgo counties, but wouldn't even begin to know which one to pursue since there are so many. Here in Florida, each county just has one place where we'd submit our paperwork to, but it seems that there we'd have to do it for each and every school district.

Which ones would you recommend?

[Vicman]

Originally Posted by oneangel

TO VICMAN:

Thanks for the details. We honestly aren't sure of which municipality to consider. We'd focus on Cameron and Hidalgo counties, but wouldn't even begin to know which one to pursue since there are so many. Here in Florida, each county just has one place where we'd submit our paperwork to, but it seems that there we'd have to do it for each and every school district.

Which ones would you recommend?

I don't live in the area, and I do not have much knowledge on-hand for which school district is better.

Based on Greatschools.net, the South Texas ISD magnets seem to test well. See: http://www.greatschools.net/cgi-bin/...ct_profile/849

South Texas ISD, by the way, is headquartered in Mercedes.

As for regular ISDs... I'm not sure which ones are considered better.