[Griffis]

By the way, if anyone has any thoughts or suggestions regarding Pauls Valley and the surrounding area, or Pauls Valley vs. Purcell as a place to live, I'd appreciate hearing from you!

[eddie gein]

Paul's Valley is a nice place, however, it doesn't have the advantage that Purcell has in terms of access to Norman, Moore and OKC. It is actually as easy to get from Purcell to west Norman as it is to get from east Norman to west Norman.

Purcell has an exurb element to it that PV does not. Probably more educated professionals who commute from Purcell to points north than PV. The commute from PV to Purcell is a lot easier than navigating HWY 33 on a daily basis from Chick and back.

If you really like Pecan Pie though you need to go with PV.

[Griffis]

Originally Posted by eddie gein

Paul's Valley is a nice place, however, it doesn't have the advantage that Purcell has in terms of access to Norman, Moore and OKC.

This is actually one of the things I find more appealing about PV over Purcell.

It is actually as easy to get from Purcell to west Norman as it is to get from east Norman to west Norman.

Purcell has an exurb element to it that PV does not.

Please don't think I am being harsh or contrary; I sincerely appreciate your responses and think of you as a wealth of info on various towns and regions of the state. It's just that for us, we would be happier living further away from the metro.

Once we leave the city, the only reason we'll have to come back is to visit my mother-in-law in her nursing home. We would consider moving her to be closer to us, but her sister lives in OKC and has Power of Attorney and is her medical proxy.

Neither the trip from PV or Purcell would be a hardship to make 2-3 times per month. Especially considering that I am currently commuting from NW OKC to Purcell and back five times per week for work. I am in great hopes this will end soon.

We do quite like Norman, and have lived there before (its where my wife and I met and my older daughter was born) but we don't intend to live there again. Homes are pricier, property tax is higher, it is beginning to sprawl a bit more than we'd like and there are a couple of personal family reasons which additionally make Norman a poor choice for us. For similar reasons, we aren't looking in Noble.

Really as far as I am concerned, every little town from Yukon and Mustang to the West, Edmond and beyond to the North, Midwest City, Del City, Choctaw, etc. to the East and all the way to Noble in the South are just OKC Metro. Extensions of a place I increasingly want nothing to do with. I won't even consider buying a home anywhere that touches close to OKC. And as OKC continues to spread out like a bad epidemic, all of those towns will soon run together into one big mass of civilization.

I am not knocking people who enjoy living in OKC or the greater metro area; it is just not for us. If I were going to live in a city in Oklahoma it would certainly be Tulsa.

Probably more educated professionals who commute from Purcell to points north than PV. The commute from PV to Purcell is a lot easier than navigating HWY 33 on a daily basis from Chick and back.

Well, if we settled in Chickasha, I believe I'd be commuting on HWY 39, a road I've traversed many times over the years. I realize it is not much shorter a distance than my current commute from OKC, but it is without question an easier, nicer, and less trafficky drive.

There are several things we like about Chickasha including its size, cost of living and cost of housing. You have to really WANT to be in Chickasha to go there. It's big enough and has enough going on without being a suburb of anyplace. I have a long, happy history there (although I don't want to move there in order to recapture my youth. I realize it is true "you can't go home again" because people come and go, places change, YOU change, etc. I do, however, still have a lot of friends and connections there. My children certainly prefer it over Purcell.

But if my wife lands the Pauls Valley job, it wouldn't make much sense to live in Chickasha with one of us commuting to Purcell and the other to PV, so we'd probably try to find a home in one of those towns or somewhere in between.

If you really like Pecan Pie though you need to go with PV.

Well, I am partial to pecan pie but don't crave sweets very often. I used to live by the Bama Pie factory in Tulsa and loved it when they'd be making a batch. The whole area smelled like fresh, hot pecan pie.

I didn't realize Purcell was known for Pecan Pie. Is there a restaurant there that is known for it or a place that mass produces them or something?

[educator1953]

Pauls Valley is where the Field's Pie Factory is. Supposedly they make the world's best pecan pies.

They're pretty good, but can't hold a candle to the pecan pies I make. Yes, I'm bragging. LOL

[eddie gein]

Griffis,

meant HWY 39. 33 goes through Guthrie and Kingfisher and points east and west.

PV is a nice little place. Besides Field's pies they have Ballards which is a little drive inn that is an institution in south central Oklahoma.

If Punkin's is still around, it has good eatin' and then there is Bob's Pig Shop which is a really cool place that sell BBQ and has been around since the '30s. It is the headquarters for the world championship noodling contest that spawned the video Oklahoma Noodling which won some awards as an independent film.

If you don't mind a limited number of people who are young professionals in your town then PV would be just fine. In the summer you can over to Stratford and get some of the best tasting peaches around.

[Tiffany724]

Sorry to hijack just a tad Griffis, but my husband is looking at staying in these areas too. He'd be renting an apartment in either Paul's Valley or Purcell until we join him in OK next year. It sounds like some people in here know a bit about the areas. Are there any places you would avoid that are unsafe at all in those towns? Aside from google maps satellite view we've never been to any of those areas so trying to find an apartment blind has been hard.

[Griffis]

Originally Posted by Tiffany724

Sorry to hijack just a tad Griffis, but my husband is looking at staying in these areas too. He'd be renting an apartment in either Paul's Valley or Purcell until we join him in OK next year. It sounds like some people in here know a bit about the areas. Are there any places you would avoid that are unsafe at all in those towns? Aside from google maps satellite view we've never been to any of those areas so trying to find an apartment blind has been hard.

Tiffany, I am not that familiar with Pauls Valley though I hear it is a nice little town. The times I've been through there I thought it seemed pretty. The historic downtown area is nice and Pauls valley apparently has more brick streets than any other town in the US. I find that hard to believe, but I read that somewhere recently.

All little towns in any state may have their rough areas, but I don't think there are any specific places to worry about or avoid in either Purcell or Pauls Valley. I believe they are both pretty nice, safe small towns.

[StillwaterTownie]

In looking at citi-data, Pauls Valley and Purcell don't stand out for having a high crime rate as towns go in Oklahoma, but some towns, such as Perry and Cushing have lower crime.

[Griffis]

Well, my new job in Purcell is connected to the office in Garvin County which is based in Pauls Valley. The people here at my office as well as the community in general are so friendly and kind.

I've been able to ask several folks about the "Purcell vs. Pauls Valley" question and the consensus seems to be that they prefer Purcell. One lady at work lived in Pauls Valley for years and moved to Purcell a couple of years back. Her whole family enjoys Purcell more.

She and others have told me that Pauls Valley may be a prettier town, but I've heard tell that Pauls Valley is a little less welcoming to newcomers than Purcell.

I still like the idea of living further from OKC and Norman, but Purcell might be our place after all.

Although we are still looking at homes in Chickasha too!

[Bass&Catfish2008]

Originally Posted by Griffis

Well, my new job in Purcell is connected to the office in Garvin County which is based in Pauls Valley. The people here at my office as well as the community in general are so friendly and kind.

I've been able to ask several folks about the "Purcell vs. Pauls Valley" question and the consensus seems to be that they prefer Purcell. One lady at work lived in Pauls Valley for years and moved to Purcell a couple of years back. Her whole family enjoys Purcell more.

She and others have told me that Pauls Valley may be a prettier town, but I've heard tell that Pauls Valley is a little less welcoming to newcomers than Purcell.

I still like the idea of living further from OKC and Norman, but Purcell might be our place after all.

Although we are still looking at homes in Chickasha too!

Griffis, I totally agree that PV is less welcoming. It is less transplant friendly and a tad mor clannish/tribal.

PV is a quaint little town but the several times I have rolled through it generally seemed the locals were a little more standoffish. May have been me but I think it is quite clear that Purcell would be a nicer town to move to and live in as it is accustomed to getting some of the Norman crowd and the greater metro Okies.