Wichita falls, TX: Housing within Fowler Elementary boundaries (Lindale, West: sex offenders, crime rate)

[bye CA]

Hey everyone,
My family is most likely moving to Wichita Falls or to an area where we can commute into Wichita Falls. We have very young children who are everything to us and want them to go to the best schools and live in a safe area, preferably where there are other children to play with. From our research, it seems that Fowler Elementary is the best school for our children, but I am unsure about the crime rate of the area and the overall 'feel' of the area. I see that there are 4 sex offenders in the school boundaries and the houses aren't very expensive (this is coming from a Californian). We have the means to live anywhere we want, but desire to live wherever is best for our children. The streets/landmarks that make up the Fowler boundaries include SW Pkwy to the north, Fairway Blvd to the east, Gregg Rd to the west, and the lake to the south.

Also, if schools weren't an issue, where is the absolute best place to live in or around Wichita Falls? As I said before, the cost of housing won't be a factor in where we reside.

On a side note, why don't more houses have a basement/storm cellar in Wichita Falls? Seems like an important feature where there is the possibility of tornadoes.

P.S. What's up with all the child predators in Texas, and where do I get the tags for hunting them?

[1badgmc]

Sorry if my post might be too late for you...

Originally Posted by bye CA

Hey everyone,
My family is most likely moving to Wichita Falls or to an area where we can commute into Wichita Falls. We have very young children who are everything to us and want them to go to the best schools and live in a safe area, preferably where there are other children to play with. From our research, it seems that Fowler Elementary is the best school for our children, but I am unsure about the crime rate of the area and the overall 'feel' of the area. I see that there are 4 sex offenders in the school boundaries and the houses aren't very expensive (this is coming from a Californian). We have the means to live anywhere we want, but desire to live wherever is best for our children. The streets/landmarks that make up the Fowler boundaries include SW Pkwy to the north, Fairway Blvd to the east, Gregg Rd to the west, and the lake to the south.

A lot of the houses in the eastern part of the Fowler area are older and often somewhat small. It's pretty obvious when you drive through the neighborhood and see how many of them have had their garages enclosed to add more living space. If you stay in the area south of Langford and west of Cypress, you'll find the newer, nicer houses. Most of them were built in the last 10-15 years.

Jefferson and West Foundation are also very good schools. I went to Jefferson myself and my oldest son went there for Kindergarten before we moved to the West Foundation area.

Crime is not bad in this part of town. You shouldn't have a problem feeling comfortable. There really aren't many parts of town that make me feel unsafe or uncomfortable.

I've lived in this town my whole life. I've always been in the southwest part of town, but there are nice neighborhoods spread out all over town.

Also, if schools weren't an issue, where is the absolute best place to live in or around Wichita Falls? As I said before, the cost of housing won't be a factor in where we reside.

Like I say, there are good neighborhoods all over the city. If you've got any particular places you're looking at, I can help you out, but to pick an area as being the best would be hard.

On a side note, why don't more houses have a basement/storm cellar in Wichita Falls? Seems like an important feature where there is the possibility of tornadoes.

I've always wondered this myself. We had a huge tornado in 1979, after which there was a huge boom for storm cellar businesses. Things have been relatively quiet since then and most of those businesses are long gone now. I think a lot of homes that had cellars put in had water leakage issues and ended up just filling them in. It's rare that I've heard of many houses built in the last 15-20 years that have cellars.

There's actually a house at the corner of SW Pkwy and Lindale that was destroyed in the 1979 tornado. The house was rebuilt entirely underground. The entire "house" that you see above ground on the property is just a garage/shop. Pretty neat.

P.S. What's up with all the child predators in Texas, and where do I get the tags for hunting them?

I'm with you there.