looking for a good place to live (Wichita, Plains: title, property)

[Clint_Noname]

For small towns, I would recommend Hays. For larger cities, I would recommend Johnson County.

Johnson County is outside of Kansas City, so it doesn't suffer the same crime and education issues that KC does, but it's close enough to KC's various amenities...and close enough to have big-city traffic in certain spots.

Hays is a nice small town in the west-central part of the state, population 20,000. It has a low crime rate and a very good school system, and it's a good place to raise a family.

But the schools in many larger cities in Kansas -- even Lawrence -- are not as good as you think. Look it up on greatschools.net. Lawrence High School only got a 4 out of 10 based on standardized test scores, the most accurate measure of the quality of education kids are really receiving in public schools.

Why CNN rated Wichita as one of the 10 best big cities to live in the United States is a total mystery to me. In my opinion, Wichita is one of the worst places to live in Kansas. The violent crime rate is the highest in the state, the public schools are bad, there's very little to do, and it's right in the middle of tornado valley (in fact, two tornadoes hit the city in the 90's and even killed a few people, according to this site). And let's not forget the notorious BTK killer...

[Pici0274]

I can compare Kansas, Indiana and Florida. I have lived in each of those states for 20 years in each state. Was born and raised in Indiana 50 miles south of Chicago in a town called Lowell, very safe and quiet, but a small town (7800 pop) with businesses.

In Kansas I lived in Wichita, Newton, Salina and Great Bend, all of these towns were safe. I never had a problem in Wichita finding things to do. There are 2 Mall's, Museums, Art Centers, University, and most anything else that you can imagine. I liked living in Kansas because life is much different. People are friendly and life is layed back and slow even in Wichita. In the winter there are ice storms and not much snow, but the wind is cold. In the summer the wind blows daily and the summer is hot but a dry air and it doesn't seem as hot as a more humid place. Never saw a tornado.

Now I live in Florida and hate every day and hope to move north sometime this year. I am living in central Florida in a town called Palm Bay, just south of Cape Kennedy. This is only April and we have already had a few 90 degree days but mostly in the high 80's. It is always humid here and one is wet and sweating all of the time. That is just part of the life here. Crime is unbelievable! It is a constant. If you are on the east side of Florida there is nothing to do unless you are in some major city. Cost of living here is high and still going up.

I hope this helps. (by personal experiences).

[lkaralanglois]

Where can I live in wichita what county is the best?

[GhettoKC]

Don't live in wichita county is best

[jackieh1791]

Wichita is just a nasty city...seriously. I'm a native Kansan - northeast - and I took my children to Wichita for a few days on a little vacation. Despite the 3 or 4 very fun things we did, I saw all of that city I needed to see in a matter of days. It's dirty and it just doesn't feel safe.

I would suggest Lawrence or Johnson County. You might look at some of the smaller towns south of Topeka too - that is where I grew up and it's a safe area, friendly people.

[marianka]

I agree with KevK. Weather in Wichita is the worst of both worlds. Cold (and windy) in the winter and hotter than hell in the summer. I lived there for 2 years and never saw a tornado (although the small town of Greensburg was wiped out when I was in Wichita. That said, I did see some VERY interesting weather patterns that were very threatening, and I spent a couple of hours in my apartment's basement (storm warnings) on several occasions. If you're looking for a great place to live that has no cataclysmic weather, try Albuquerque. Much, much better weather than Wichita and close to mountains and water sports (fishing, boating, sailing, etc.). My sister lived in Colorado Springs (moved there from Albuquerque) and she loved CS.

[brigirl00]

I've lived in Wichita my whole life and personally would not recommend living here. While there are a few nice things (the zoo, botanic gardens, exploration place) it's very boring. The closest big cities are almost 3 hours away. The taxes are very high, you pay personal property taxes on everything. The weather is crazy, it's almost always windy. It goes from being very cold to very hot. There a very few 'perfect' weather days.

If you are going to live in Wichita I would recommend one of the suburbs. Derby, Maize, Andover. While the housing is more expensive you're going to be in better neighborhoods and schools.

[athfo]

Originally Posted by brigirl00

While there are a few nice things (the zoo, botanic gardens, exploration place) it's very boring.

... only if you live in a box. There are tons of things (for example) to do throughout the year. Concerts, First Friday, Final Friday, festivals, musicals, plays, etc. etc. etc.

[Defiant6]

My gosh, you people who say Wichita is so bad in crime and everything must not get out to other parts of the country much. Wichita is NOT boring, it is no Kansas City or Dallas, but it is a growing city and it is increasing in the number of things you can do. Wichita does have a crime rate, but it is NOWHERE near as bad as some people on this thread are making it out to be. As like other places, there are some areas you want to avoid or stay away from, but overall crime isn't horrible and it's not like Wichita has murders every other day. I've lived by Wichita for 30 years now and have worked, gone to school, and done so much in that city during that time and not once have I ever been a victim of crime. Wichta's public schools are actually decent and they boast a 75% graduation rate. I'm not gonna say they city doesn't have any flaws cause it does and it certainly conservative in a lot aspects and it takes awhile to get certain things done in the city, but overall it's still not a bad place and it has to be doing something right since it still continues to grow.

[brigirl00]

Originally Posted by athfo

... only if you live in a box. There are tons of things (for example) to do throughout the year. Concerts, First Friday, Final Friday, festivals, musicals, plays, etc. etc. etc.

To each their own. The only 'festival' I am aware of is Riverfest. Musicals and plays are not something I care to watch more than once or twice a year. So there's a week and 2 days worth of entertainment. WOOHOO not sure I can handle it