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I came here to sound off for one last time before I move to give other people advice about why I think NO ONE should move to Lehigh Acres!!
1. I first came to this city back in January from Palm Beach County. We found a beautiful BEAUTIFUL house. Everything was peaches and cream. I have lived in Lehigh for about 15 years. I'm sick of Florida and want to move to Tennessee. But, I know Lehigh well and can respond honestly to your issues. First of all, Lehigh Acres vs. Palm Beach Co. is like apples and oranges.
2. We realize we won't have a car and we would be 20 minutes from the bus stop. This is fine with us. Coming from Palm Beach County, we figured the transportation would be similar. Not having a car anywhere in Lee Co. is going to be a problem as we do NOT have good public transportation. And yes, Lehigh is remote so access to public transportation is close to non-existant. The Lee-Tran does run to Lehigh, but its not something that is going to get you to Fort Myers quickly!
3. Transportation is NOT the same. There's LESS buses than PBC and the bus NEVER came!! We literally had to call EVERY SINGLE TIME we went out just to know when the next bus came! And the operators were rude as heck! Talk about customer service!! You will find customer service personnel in SW Florida in general are RUDE. I'm not sure why. You are lucky if your cashier at Publix or Walmart even acknowledge you! Trust me, this is not a Lehigh thing. The Lee-Tran offices are not in Lehigh, they are in Fort Myers. Yes, it is true, there are some very rude people down here.
4. Woods. There's woods everywhere! Everyone lives in their own secluded little area which is scary as heck! You don't know what kind of animals are lurking in there! I heard cases of foxes, raccoons, and stray dogs on the loose in these areas! There was a little black snake that always creeped around our house from time to time! It was creepy! Yes, Lehigh is a remote area ... in the woods!! This is Florida, swamp land, so yes there are critters everywhere! Lots of snakes, spiders, giant cockroaches, etc. This is not city life.
5. Walking to school IS A NIGHTMARE!! I've never seen such unprofessional and negligent operation of school bus pick up in all of my days!! When we first got the city, first day of school, we couldn't find the bus stop because it was freaking 6 in the morning and it was DARK AS NIGHT out. If it wasn't for our rental car, we wouldn't have seen kids walking ALONE to their bus stop in pitch blackness!! I had to endure this trauma for 2 semesters!! I never walked in such darkness in all my life! I was constantly frightened at what vicious animals could be lurking in the forest and kill me! If it wasn't for Jesus Christ protecting me from wild beasts, I probably would not be here to report this today! Yes, they do make the kids walk to the bus stop in the dark. It has been this way as long as I can remember. Several kids have been killed over the years. It is dangerous, especially in areas where they are not any sidewalks.
6. Lee county. Lee County schools are THE WORST I'VE EVER BEEN TO!! Not only was Lehigh Senior High School the worst educational experience but it was extremely ghetto and low class! They set their students up for failure right from freshman year!! The point is not to get you to go on to prestigious universities, they set you up to go to Edison community college! Where you will remain for many years!! School Choice sucks. And yes, Florida is known to have a poor public school system. Edison College is a good school. I attended and graduated there. It's not for everyone. Young people with good grades would probably do better going to a university but for those who work (adults/parents), Edison is a great school. I absolutely loved Edison!
7. The house. Back to MY HOUSE, all of sudden after 3 months, things started breaking in the house!! The laundry broke, the sink gutter broke down, the hose broke, the sewage system went insane and all this madness! This house was BRAND NEW with no chinese drywall! Built in 2007!! Every single time someone would take a shower in my bathroom, feces would erupt out of my mom's shower!! The toilet also broke down! Every single time someone takes a shower in my bathroom, the toilet fills up with water and floods!! These damages cost more than $1,000 to repair and it STILL is not fully repaired!! I experienced similar things with the house I just moved from. My guess is that when the housing market was plummeting, the builders threw the houses together quickly and halfheartedly just to get them done. Shoddy work. Unfortunate but I think many homes were poorly built.
8. The city is BARREN compared to Palm Beach County! When I first came I did not expect it to be like that! I had never lived in a place like this before! The first city you come to is Immokalee and it was a sight I will never forget!! BARREN BARREN BARREN roads is all you see! Land workers all around living in little old style wooden houses! Immokalee is a very poor area; mostly low paid migrant farm workers just trying to survive. And yes, Lehigh is very barren now. During the building boom, they were building houses everywhere. The the crash came and hundreds of houses now sit empty, some of them half built! They are overgrown with grass like a jungle. Kids have painted graffiti on them. It's a sad sight.
9. Summer. Summers in Lehigh Acres is the worse in all of Florida!! Don't come here for summer vacation! It is hot hot hot!! I was burning and sweating ALL SUMMER LONG!! We couldn't turn on the AC because the bill is more than $200 a month!! Poppycock!! So we never turned it on but left the windows open but it never helped because it was so humid and hot!! Summers anywhere in Florida are HOT and LONG. That is one of the main reasons I want to leave Florida after 30+ years here! It is unimaginable to live without A/C. My A/C bill was $400 a month all summer long in a 2000 sq ft. home.
10. The grass! It's super human! Grass in Lehigh Acres grows at an astronomical rate!! No amount of cutting will NEVER be enough to stop it! Not even for a freaking week!! We tried cutting this stupid grass even at level 1 of our lawnmower and it grew back instantly over the course of several days!! Who wants to cut grass in 100 degree heat?!! The water system in all houses in Lehigh makes the sewage from the house dump onto the grass so it grows like crazy!! And it stinks extremely bad as well!! Everything grows wild in a tropical climate!
11. Crime. Crime in Lehigh Acres is out of control!! Robbers, gangsters, drug dealers, unruly teenagers, destroying homes and businesses over the most petty things! Crazy crimes happen because I really don't know why!! I heard about Lehigh BEFORE even coming here because I was watching the news one day while in Palm Beach County and there was some news of a crazy murder that happened here in Lehigh..Well I never expected to move there!! Lehigh is the highest crime city in Lee County! That just tells you! I don't know that Lehigh has the highest crime rate in the county - but yes, there is crime here. The crime in SW Florida has steadily increased over the past 8-10 years. There is a lot of crime in the Cape. In Bonita. In Fort Myers. Being so remote, Lehigh does seem more prone to home invasions and burglaries!
12. The people are strange!! The people here I will admit are VERY diverse. They come from everywhere. But they are strange for some reason! I can't put my finger on why but they just are!! They act really distant and stuff! No sense of community!! LOL. People are strange everywhere. You may have just suffered culture shock. Lehigh is a very diverse community. All of SW Florida is.
Well that's all I can think of for now but there's lots more I can tell you about Lehigh! It is a hell hold! We are FINALLY getting out of here after 7 months in this hick town! Onto to better things and blessings!! If you want to live a lower quality of life and have a car, come to Lehigh! But if you want to better your lives, your future, and your children, go elsewhere!! There's a load of better cities in Fort Myers/Lee County metro than Lehigh!! Well anyway though, take heed my word, you have been warned!!
I hope you find a place better suited for you! I don't mind Lehigh. As long as I have to stay in SW Florida, I will stay in Lehigh ... I like that it is quiet here and it is secluded so you aren't bothered by noise and crowds like in a city. But we all enjoy different types of living. Variety is the spice of life.
To each his own for what they buy and where they live . I have seen one street looking beautiful and one street over looking kind of run down. So if you have a good street to live on and good neighbors that is what makes like better.
With so many foreclosures no one will know what their neighborhood will look like if their neighbor's move out because they are foreclosed on and have to get a rental or move out of state. Sort of musical chairs only with houses.
I came here to sound off for one last time before I move to give other people advice about why I think NO ONE should move to Lehigh Acres!!
1. I first came to this city back in January from Palm Beach County. We found a beautiful BEAUTIFUL house. Everything was peaches and cream.
2. We realize we won't have a car and we would be 20 minutes from the bus stop. This is fine with us. Coming from Palm Beach County, we figured the transportation would be similar.
3. Transportation is NOT the same. There's LESS buses than PBC and the bus NEVER came!! We literally had to call EVERY SINGLE TIME we went out just to know when the next bus came! And the operators were rude as heck! Talk about customer service!!
4. Woods. There's woods everywhere! Everyone lives in their own secluded little area which is scary as heck! You don't know what kind of animals are lurking in there! I heard cases of foxes, raccoons, and stray dogs on the loose in these areas! There was a little black snake that always creeped around our house from time to time! It was creepy!
5. Walking to school IS A NIGHTMARE!! I've never seen such unprofessional and negligent operation of school bus pick up in all of my days!! When we first got the city, first day of school, we couldn't find the bus stop because it was freaking 6 in the morning and it was DARK AS NIGHT out. If it wasn't for our rental car, we wouldn't have seen kids walking ALONE to their bus stop in pitch blackness!! I had to endure this trauma for 2 semesters!! I never walked in such darkness in all my life! I was constantly frightened at what vicious animals could be lurking in the forest and kill me! If it wasn't for Jesus Christ protecting me from wild beasts, I probably would not be here to report this today!
6. Lee county. Lee County schools are THE WORST I'VE EVER BEEN TO!! Not only was Lehigh Senior High School the worst educational experience but it was extremely ghetto and low class! They set their students up for failure right from freshman year!! The point is not to get you to go on to prestigious universities, they set you up to go to Edison community college! Where you will remain for many years!!
7. The house. Back to MY HOUSE, all of sudden after 3 months, things started breaking in the house!! The laundry broke, the sink gutter broke down, the hose broke, the sewage system went insane and all this madness! This house was BRAND NEW with no chinese drywall! Built in 2007!! Every single time someone would take a shower in my bathroom, feces would erupt out of my mom's shower!! The toilet also broke down! Every single time someone takes a shower in my bathroom, the toilet fills up with water and floods!! These damages cost more than $1,000 to repair and it STILL is not fully repaired!!
8. The city is BARREN compared to Palm Beach County! When I first came I did not expect it to be like that! I had never lived in a place like this before! The first city you come to is Immokalee and it was a sight I will never forget!! BARREN BARREN BARREN roads is all you see! Land workers all around living in little old style wooden houses!
9. Summer. Summers in Lehigh Acres is the worse in all of Florida!! Don't come here for summer vacation! It is hot hot hot!! I was burning and sweating ALL SUMMER LONG!! We couldn't turn on the AC because the bill is more than $200 a month!! Poppycock!! So we never turned it on but left the windows open but it never helped because it was so humid and hot!!
10. The grass! It's super human! Grass in Lehigh Acres grows at an astronomical rate!! No amount of cutting will NEVER be enough to stop it! Not even for a freaking week!! We tried cutting this stupid grass even at level 1 of our lawnmower and it grew back instantly over the course of several days!! Who wants to cut grass in 100 degree heat?!! The water system in all houses in Lehigh makes the sewage from the house dump onto the grass so it grows like crazy!! And it stinks extremely bad as well!!
11. Crime. Crime in Lehigh Acres is out of control!! Robbers, gangsters, drug dealers, unruly teenagers, destroying homes and businesses over the most petty things! Crazy crimes happen because I really don't know why!! I heard about Lehigh BEFORE even coming here because I was watching the news one day while in Palm Beach County and there was some news of a crazy murder that happened here in Lehigh..Well I never expected to move there!! Lehigh is the highest crime city in Lee County! That just tells you!
12. The people are strange!! The people here I will admit are VERY diverse. They come from everywhere. But they are strange for some reason! I can't put my finger on why but they just are!! They act really distant and stuff! No sense of community!!
Well that's all I can think of for now but there's lots more I can tell you about Lehigh! It is a hell hold! We are FINALLY getting out of here after 7 months in this hick town! Onto to better things and blessings!! If you want to live a lower quality of life and have a car, come to Lehigh! But if you want to better your lives, your future, and your children, go elsewhere!! There's a load of better cities in Fort Myers/Lee County metro than Lehigh!! Well anyway though, take heed my word, you have been warned!!
Been living here for 7 years and have no idea what you are talking about....I guess it is time for you to head back to where you came from.....this is not the place for you...
I guess hot/humid ain't for everyone. When I lived in Houston, I'd be up and out at 8am to cut the grass during the summer. (I believe Houston gets hotter than SWF) No point to being out there in the middle of the day mowing. So maybe the OP could try that approach.
AS for me, I'm fortunate that my body doesn't mind the heat. I'd have my a/c set to 78-80 range and be fine with it. My bill was always below $120 or so for 1600 sq. ft.
I love our home in LA. We've had our seasonal place for about 2 years now and still love it. Bought it for 24k, fixed it up, love our neighboors and the town. It is a working mans town with working class people, just like me. We have met nothing but wonderful people everywhere in and around Lehigh. Ya the schools might not be the best and its hot in the summer, but thats Florida. We still love it. Remember it's you who makes your life.
The title of this thread should read: "Why no one should move to Lehigh Acres without doing extentive research first."
The OPs issues are ones that could have been easily found long before they moved here and long before they wasted their time posting their post. Just saying.
I though that Lehigh Acres was not incorporated.
That means when the citizens of Lehigh Acres incorporate they will be able to avoid the down falls that have plagued Cape Coral if they are smart and get it together the potential to end up better and get there faster then the surrounding areas is great.
But you will have to pay close attention to whom you elect, to make sure that you end up with a functional city you do not want to turn Lehigh Acres in to and other retirement community that is supported by the property owners taxes. You want a real city not a 100 square mile retirement community.
Good Luck you can do it if you want to.
I came here to sound off for one last time before I move to give other people advice about why I think NO ONE should move to Lehigh Acres!!
1. I first came to this city back in January from Palm Beach County. We found a beautiful BEAUTIFUL house. Everything was peaches and cream.
2. We realize we won't have a car and we would be 20 minutes from the bus stop. This is fine with us. Coming from Palm Beach County, we figured the transportation would be similar.
3. Transportation is NOT the same. There's LESS buses than PBC and the bus NEVER came!! We literally had to call EVERY SINGLE TIME we went out just to know when the next bus came! And the operators were rude as heck! Talk about customer service!!
4. Woods. There's woods everywhere! Everyone lives in their own secluded little area which is scary as heck! You don't know what kind of animals are lurking in there! I heard cases of foxes, raccoons, and stray dogs on the loose in these areas! There was a little black snake that always creeped around our house from time to time! It was creepy!
5. Walking to school IS A NIGHTMARE!! I've never seen such unprofessional and negligent operation of school bus pick up in all of my days!! When we first got the city, first day of school, we couldn't find the bus stop because it was freaking 6 in the morning and it was DARK AS NIGHT out. If it wasn't for our rental car, we wouldn't have seen kids walking ALONE to their bus stop in pitch blackness!! I had to endure this trauma for 2 semesters!! I never walked in such darkness in all my life! I was constantly frightened at what vicious animals could be lurking in the forest and kill me! If it wasn't for Jesus Christ protecting me from wild beasts, I probably would not be here to report this today!
6. Lee county. Lee County schools are THE WORST I'VE EVER BEEN TO!! Not only was Lehigh Senior High School the worst educational experience but it was extremely ghetto and low class! They set their students up for failure right from freshman year!! The point is not to get you to go on to prestigious universities, they set you up to go to Edison community college! Where you will remain for many years!!
7. The house. Back to MY HOUSE, all of sudden after 3 months, things started breaking in the house!! The laundry broke, the sink gutter broke down, the hose broke, the sewage system went insane and all this madness! This house was BRAND NEW with no chinese drywall! Built in 2007!! Every single time someone would take a shower in my bathroom, feces would erupt out of my mom's shower!! The toilet also broke down! Every single time someone takes a shower in my bathroom, the toilet fills up with water and floods!! These damages cost more than $1,000 to repair and it STILL is not fully repaired!!
8. The city is BARREN compared to Palm Beach County! When I first came I did not expect it to be like that! I had never lived in a place like this before! The first city you come to is Immokalee and it was a sight I will never forget!! BARREN BARREN BARREN roads is all you see! Land workers all around living in little old style wooden houses!
9. Summer. Summers in Lehigh Acres is the worse in all of Florida!! Don't come here for summer vacation! It is hot hot hot!! I was burning and sweating ALL SUMMER LONG!! We couldn't turn on the AC because the bill is more than $200 a month!! Poppycock!! So we never turned it on but left the windows open but it never helped because it was so humid and hot!!
10. The grass! It's super human! Grass in Lehigh Acres grows at an astronomical rate!! No amount of cutting will NEVER be enough to stop it! Not even for a freaking week!! We tried cutting this stupid grass even at level 1 of our lawnmower and it grew back instantly over the course of several days!! Who wants to cut grass in 100 degree heat?!! The water system in all houses in Lehigh makes the sewage from the house dump onto the grass so it grows like crazy!! And it stinks extremely bad as well!!
11. Crime. Crime in Lehigh Acres is out of control!! Robbers, gangsters, drug dealers, unruly teenagers, destroying homes and businesses over the most petty things! Crazy crimes happen because I really don't know why!! I heard about Lehigh BEFORE even coming here because I was watching the news one day while in Palm Beach County and there was some news of a crazy murder that happened here in Lehigh..Well I never expected to move there!! Lehigh is the highest crime city in Lee County! That just tells you!
12. The people are strange!! The people here I will admit are VERY diverse. They come from everywhere. But they are strange for some reason! I can't put my finger on why but they just are!! They act really distant and stuff! No sense of community!!
Well that's all I can think of for now but there's lots more I can tell you about Lehigh! It is a hell hold! We are FINALLY getting out of here after 7 months in this hick town! Onto to better things and blessings!! If you want to live a lower quality of life and have a car, come to Lehigh! But if you want to better your lives, your future, and your children, go elsewhere!! There's a load of better cities in Fort Myers/Lee County metro than Lehigh!! Well anyway though, take heed my word, you have been warned!!
that's very true,plus all the foreclosures and empty houses.
Lehigh is what it is and one lives there for different reasons. They have a wonderful senior citizen program. All people are not strange. The library is fine. Publix is a great place to shop. Churches are a positive feature. It was never an upscale community. No place is all bad!
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You will find customer service personnel in SW Florida in general are RUDE. I'm not sure why. You are lucky if your cashier at Publix or Walmart even acknowledge you! Trust me, this is not a Lehigh thing. The Lee-Tran offices are not in Lehigh, they are in Fort Myers. Yes, it is true, there are some very rude people down here. 
Yes, Lehigh is a remote area ... in the woods!! This is Florida, swamp land, so yes there are critters everywhere! Lots of snakes, spiders, giant cockroaches, etc. This is not city life. 
Yes, they do make the kids walk to the bus stop in the dark. It has been this way as long as I can remember. Several kids have been killed over the years. It is dangerous, especially in areas where they are not any sidewalks. 
Summers anywhere in Florida are HOT and LONG. That is one of the main reasons I want to leave Florida after 30+ years here! It is unimaginable to live without A/C. My A/C bill was $400 a month all summer long in a 2000 sq ft. home. 
Looks as if this place is not for you...move
