Tyler and Longview

[Back2TX]

lol.... nope! No tall buildings here.

[MJ_is_in]

From the list of apartments that Ripley gave, which are nearest to that discount cinema and which are nearest to shopping and chain restuarants? Also, are there any in walking distance?

[dixierambler]

Originally Posted by MJ_is_in

From the list of apartments that Ripley gave, which are nearest to that discount cinema and which are nearest to shopping and chain restuarants? Also, are there any in walking distance?

From that list, probably Towne Lake Village would be the closest to the cinema, but it definitely ain't walking distance. More like 3-4 miles. Longview is not a very "walkable" town, and didn't have bus service until just a few years ago (and the buses are the short church bus type). You will need a car (or pickup) in Longview. And don't forget to get your roach killers and cowboy hat when you move here !

[Back2TX]

Luckily I've only seen two roaches here. (knock on wood) I HATE roaches... I can handle snakes, spiders, bees, etc.... but can't handle roaches.

And yes... not even really sidewalks in the neighborhoods. So I argree with Dixie on Longview not being real "walkable." Although there are some very nice parks with great paved walking/biking trails.

[ripley]

Originally Posted by MJ_is_in

From the list of apartments that Ripley gave, which are nearest to that discount cinema and which are nearest to shopping and chain restuarants? Also, are there any in walking distance?

MJ, of the three apartments I mentioned .. Pine Knoll is closest if you had to walk someplace to eat, but Longview is not THAT big.

No matter whee you choose, you're within 10-15 minutes from anything you need.

No apartments are within walking distance to the Discount Theater.

[MJ_is_in]

What is the downtown area like? Is it safe? I saw an apartment complex that we may check out.

[CajunInTX]

Originally Posted by MJ_is_in

From the list of apartments that Ripley gave, which are nearest to that discount cinema and which are nearest to shopping and chain restuarants? Also, are there any in walking distance?

Shopping and Chain eateries? I moved to a neighborhood off of Hollybrook Dr., but I used to live in Summer Lake and it was right behind the mall and Olive Garden and some others wre by it. Yes, walking distance. There is a regular movie theatre in walking distance to them too. Out of the three Bailey company apartment complexes I would say Summer Lake is the middle class of Bailey properties. I had a townhouse there and it was like 750/mo with 2 covered parking spots back in 04'.

I agree with the other guy that transportation is nearly a must around here. I am from a suburb of New Orleans and personally was not used to having to go more than a few blocks to get to something. On one hand though, Longview is a lot more friendly to navigate than Tyler, it is far more spread out.

And as far as "racial relations" go... Even being from a metro area this place is far from as racist as Greater New Orleans. There are a lot of middle class african americans mixed in with white folks, but it seems the hispanics kind of stick to one part of town around Green St. and Mobberly Ave. My wife is from a small town south of Longview, and honestly, since I moved here I've actually not even thought about race in befriending new people. I think you'll be fine, that's the least of your worries around here.

If you rent you'll be fine, but the tax assesor likes to count dollars so if you buy the property tax is hefty. It seems the city government has been trying to gear Longview for the retirement group.

In the long run there is a fair amount of activities here from putt-putt, eateries, shopping and so on, and it seems it is still on the grow.

But just do like me and don't let these Texans try to force their Dr. Pepper on you.

[MJ_is_in]

Well, we should be arriving in Longview next weekend to start the housing search. Again, thanks to all who has posted...the information has been very useful.

We have vehicles so transportation is not an issue for us...I thought if we move to an apartment, it would have been nice to have the option of walking or driving to do things.

I do have more questions:

Does Texas charge a property tax for cars?

How much does full coverage car insurance run? My wife and I are in our 30's both with clean driving records.

Are there non profit organizations in Longview to do volunteer work?

How is the downtown Longview area? Is it a safe area? I saw an apartment downtown and was wondering is it worth checking out?

[CajunInTX]

Originally Posted by MJ_is_in

Well, we should be arriving in Longview next weekend to start the housing search. Again, thanks to all who has posted...the information has been very useful.

We have vehicles so transportation is not an issue for us...I thought if we move to an apartment, it would have been nice to have the option of walking or driving to do things.

I do have more questions:

Does Texas charge a property tax for cars?

How much does full coverage car insurance run? My wife and I are in our 30's both with clean driving records.

Are there non profit organizations in Longview to do volunteer work?

How is the downtown Longview area? Is it a safe area? I saw an apartment downtown and was wondering is it worth checking out?

No property tax on vehicles, just a registration. About 60 bucks a car.

We have a truck and a car with full coverage... The car is 72.xx/mo the truck is about 82.xx/mo

There are non proft places here... The rescue mission is where a lot of folks volunteer. They do habitat for humanity around here. I do a lot of volunteering for wetland conservation. If you start going to a church here they will give you plenty of oppurtunities to volunteer.

Downtown Longview is coming back to life. They have been revamping it a lot. A few up scale bars/restaraunts. It is not really rough down there. I had taken a couple of pictures around downtown and put them on the data page for longview. It may not help much but if you look it may give you an idea.

[traveler4321]

My family and I are moving to the Tyler/Longview area. We have 2 children age 13 and 6. My husband will be working in Kilgore so we need to live within 30 minutes of Kilgore. I am wanting information about the surrounding towns. Can anyone help me with which area/town has the better schools, better shopping, and better housing? Also, my son plays football. Are there any towns with better football teams? Any help with deciding which town we should live in would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for your help.