South Padre Island? (Dallas, Corpus Christi, Port Aransas: employment, living, cost)

[Bblond41]

Hello, I am thinking about moving to texas from ohio I have been doing alot of research on south padre island I am a single mom of a 9 year old girl I would like to find a clerical job in the healthfield which I have a degree in I was wondering how the cost of living for apartments and also the job market is and schools in this part of Texas. I also love the beach in florida but really would like to move to texas to be able to travel into mexico for the cheap shopping so I was wondering about the beaches also. If anyone has any help I would greatly appreciate it Thanks::

[RGV]

Hi BB41,

Here's a link to the SPI newspaper:


South Padre Island's newspaper: Island Breeze - A product of the Valley Morning Star, South Padre Island, Texas

It'll have info on realestate and calendar of events.


The school district is Port Isabel ISD. It's one of the wealthiest districts in the RGV because of the amount of property taxes they get from SPI and the Port of Brownsville.

Here's their website:

Point Isabel ISD

Good luck.

..

[Bblond41]

Thanks RGV

I was wondering if you know anything about the employment there or in the surrounding areas Thanks

[RGV]

You're welcome.

There are no hospitals in Port Isabel/SPI. The closest ones will be in Brownsville and Harlingen along with the big medical offices. (both these cities are about 20 miles away and not on the coast.)

Now, there are medical offices in the PI/SPI area, but I don't know what the employment situation is in that field. Most of the other jobs are going to center around the tourist trade.

[minniemouse]

South Padre Island and Port Isabel is a very nice places.

I visited it this August.

The weather was very warm....big humidity but the sea and the beach..OK!

About shopping....if you find a souvenir shops, yes, there are!

I visited Galveston and Corpus Christi also but with beaches...SPI is better!

[Bblond41]

Thanks Minniemouse I am trying to get all the information that I can to make sure that I am making the right move because I have not personally been there and dont want to take my daughter and myself to somewhere to live that turns out to be a disaster it sounds nice I am just worried about the employment there. Thanks

[Spree]

Try Harlingen. There's two medical centers and decent schools, low cost of living. You'll be 30 mins from the beach and 30 mins from Mexico.

[CPACPA]

After graduated from CCSU I have lived in Texas for more than 30 years. I love Corpus, but I can not forget my terrible experience during Hurricane Allen. So I moved to Temple, Texas. It is a better place than Corpus with more fishes I have ever caught in my life. I still love Corpus. Everything you gentlemen said are true. I want to go back for vacation and visit my friends, but not living there, especially during hurricane seasons.

[CPACPA]

There are always demand for above professions in Temple, Texas. But not other kinds of employment opportunity.

[teatime]

The problem with SPI is there's only one bridge to get on/off the Island. Several years ago, a barge ran into it and took out a big chunk of the bridge. It happened after midnight and folks who had no idea kept driving and plunged into the water. For months, people had to take ferries to and from the Island to get to work, school and shopping. When they rebuilt it, they did put in a warning system and a similar disaster has been averted a few more times.

The one bridge thing is a problem in other ways. Traffic backs up terribly on holidays and some weekends. Spring Break is a nightmare out there. And, of course, if there's a hurricane or some other disaster looming, it could be chaotic trying to get off the Island. They've been discussing a second bridge for a very long time but haven't done much with the idea.

Port Isabel is a nice community; you might want to consider it. Or Laguna Vista/Heights. I personally wouldn't want to deal with the Island's seasonal traffic and, of course, Spring Break.