Wichita Falls.... need some answers! :) (Dallas, Burkburnett: apartment complexes, low crime, houses)

[lynn32]

Hi!

We are moving to the area in the next 2 weeks or so and I totally appreciate the forums. They are very informative. So my question is what is the scenery like there? Is it pretty flat? Are there lots of trees and is it green? What about the Climate? Lots of tornado warnings? I know I have read that it is very hot in the summers. Is central air or swamp coolers more the norm. What areas of town are best to live in N, S, E, W, ..... recreational activities? I know there is one charter school in WF and I wanted to know if anyone has children that go there. Help? LOL

Oh yeah... we were looking to spend about a $1000/month on rent. We will only be in the area about a year or so. So not looking to buy. Is that reasonable?

Thanks soo much for your input. Sorry for all the questions. Just needed to get a better feel of what it's like.

[GayleTX]

Wichita is hot in the summer, cold in the winter but not constantly cold, usually snows maybe once, maybe a good ice storm; the wind blows quite a lot....in the summer you are glad - in the winter you are not.

It's a farming area....most of the outlying area is either cultivated fields or pastures with cattle; slightly rolling hills but more flat than hilly. It's not a treeless plain like the Panhandle of Texas is....there are trees along the fence rows and creek beds in the country and lots of large trees in town where they were planted years ago. It's green in the summer (about 7-8 months of the year) and not in the winter. There are 4 definite seasons.

Wichita is a working class town, but has a segment of very wealthy oil families that see to it that there are nice things to do there. The university, Midwestern State, is small but highly competetive and respected. There are activities thru the university available to the public....ballgames, concerts, etc. The city also has a hockey team that is very popular. High school football is a huge deal there (it is in most anywhere you go in Texas, of course), great high school bands. There is a new conference center downtown on the 'falls' that has quite a few events throughout the year. Are you into bicycle rallies? They have the "Hotter Than Hell" 100 mile race every August. There are also quite a few rodeos in the towns all thru that area of Texas and Oklahoma that are lots of fun all summer long.

There is one mall, 3 WalMarts, some good eating places....mainly Mexican and steak.

The medical district there is good, supplies lots of quality jobs and services to a large area of north central Texas and south central Oklahoma. The air force base is an important part of the community and has been for many years and the military families are usually accepted with no problem.

I'm not sure why you'd be interested in a charter school.....I'm not familiar with the one in Wichita, but most of them in Texas have not been very successful. They are just another school run by the state with 'different' rules and guidelines. There are a couple of suburb towns that are almost inside Wichita Falls if you are looking for a smaller school and maybe a little higher academic rating....Burkburnett is one of them...it's near the air force base....and Iowa Park. You might check each school's website for their 'accountability ratings' (TAKS test scores, SAT scores, etc).

$1000 should get your a nice apartment in a safe area of town...you could probably even get a house for that amount. The area around Midwestern is very nice , has several apartment complexes and low crime. Most of the nicer, safer areas are in the west/southwest part of town.

Hope you enjoy your year in Texas......you won't be far from Oklahoma City or Dallas/Ft Worth if you feel the need for the big city once in a while.

[NOTAM]

gayle definitely explained it well...
i used to work at the largest hospital in Wichita Falls.

i like Henrietta (Clay County), Burkburnett, Iowa Park, Electra, Archer City, and Throckmorton. but then again, i dont like to live in cities, and even though WF aint huge, it's still a city.
dont miss the yearly Ranch Rodeo!
WF has some great steakhouses
you can drive to OK for cheap ciggies (if ya smoke) and for Native American casinos for gambilng
very nice Country Club in the city
are yall military? if so, Sheppard AFB has a pretty decent BX and Commissary, and Class Six liquor store,and lots of nice pools, good gyms and a good hospital.

Originally Posted by lynn32

Hi!

We are moving to the area in the next 2 weeks or so and I totally appreciate the forums. They are very informative. So my question is what is the scenery like there? Is it pretty flat? Are there lots of trees and is it green? What about the Climate? Lots of tornado warnings? I know I have read that it is very hot in the summers. Is central air or swamp coolers more the norm. What areas of town are best to live in N, S, E, W, ..... recreational activities? I know there is one charter school in WF and I wanted to know if anyone has children that go there. Help? LOL

Oh yeah... we were looking to spend about a $1000/month on rent. We will only be in the area about a year or so. So not looking to buy. Is that reasonable?

Thanks soo much for your input. Sorry for all the questions. Just needed to get a better feel of what it's like.

[case44]

Wichita Falls has that delicate balance of big-city amenities and small-town living. There is hardly any traffic there and you certainly won't have a problem trying to blend in. You'll have quite a bit of activity there and it is a fine place for families. Enjoy your time!

[loves2read]

Google the link for images and you will see what it looks like--over 155K hits

wichita falls, tx - Google Image Search

[TexasReb]

We are moving to the area in the next 2 weeks or so and I totally appreciate the forums. They are very informative. So my question is what is the scenery like there? Is it pretty flat? Are there lots of trees and is it green? What about the Climate? Lots of tornado warnings? I know I have read that it is very hot in the summers. Is central air or swamp coolers more the norm. What areas of town are best to live in N, S, E, W, ..... recreational activities? I know there is one charter school in WF and I wanted to know if anyone has children that go there. Help? LOL

Oh yeah... we were looking to spend about a $1000/month on rent. We will only be in the area about a year or so. So not looking to buy. Is that reasonable?

Thanks soo much for your input. Sorry for all the questions. Just needed to get a better feel of what it's like.

Being a native and resident of Wichita Falls, I apologize for not having replied to this question earlier. As it is, I can't think of a whole lot to add to what Gayle said!

You might hear a little about Wichita Falls being the "undisputed capital" of Tornado Alley in Texas...and it is true we have, for our size, taken more than our fair share of them over the years. But don't let that scare you off. Your chances of being directly hit by a tornado are less than that of being struck by lightning! LOL

Swamp coolers vs. central heat and air? Well, Wichita is fairly humid, but swamp coolers (and I love them old thangs! LOL) you don't see them much any more. I would say central air for sure. And if you have $1000 a month to spend on rent, then it would definitely be the norm. You don't say where you are from, but that amount will get you a very nice place in town.

In terms of scenery, Wichita Falls is sort of a "nailhead" between topograpical regions. Go east 20 miles or 50 miles south, and you hit the "cross timbers" areas of Texas which are fairly wooded. Go west the same and it becomes more of that treeless terrain associated with West Texas. Also, just NE of Wichita Falls, is a very lovely area (along the Red River) which has lots of orchards and very nice trees and such. And also many of the older neighborhoods are very stately in that regard.

All in all, I would say Wichita Falls is a very nice blend of elements of both the traditional South and the frontier West!

[texdav]

To tell you the truth very time I travel between say Dallas and amirillo;I stop in Wichital falls. Both north and south of it is some of the most boring driving in my travels.Not much choice in food either unless you want steak.The palce oither than that we have found are not that good.That's on el;ong same and same drive IMO. Nice when you fianlly get to amarillo or dallas depending on which way your going.

[NOTAM]

well it is beef/cattle country...
however, there are some other good restaurants that arent steakhouses...ya just have to be a "local" to know where to go, i reckon.
you can find some very good mexican, and very good chicken fried steak and catfish houses
but sure, WF cannot compete with Dallas when it comes to dining-it is not exactly a gourmet dining mecca with exotic fusion cuisine and nouveau cuisine etc....not a yuppie town!

Originally Posted by texdav

To tell you the truth very time I travel between say Dallas and amirillo;I stop in Wichital falls. Both north and south of it is some of the most boring driving in my travels.Not much choice in food either unless you want steak.The palce oither than that we have found are not that good.That's on el;ong same and same drive IMO. Nice when you fianlly get to amarillo or dallas depending on which way your going.

[lynn32]

Thank you so much for all the info. Sorry haven't been a around in a while. I forgot how to get back to my original post! Dorky me!