Good town for 50 year old who wants trucking job, and wants to go to a university for degree? (Houston: apartment, rent)

[while parked]

Ok I hope this post will be the end all to all other posts. I think I nailed upon the exact question I need to be asking in my search for a new town.

I am currently living in Kingwood, Texas. I have a class A CDL with all the
endorsements (currently unemployed, wanting to relocate)

I do not like the Houston area. Nor do I like Kingwood. I feel like I am
in the Deep South here; the pine trees, the way people talk, the
humidity, and so on. (I am originally from Illinois and Colorado).

I want to find a Texas town that is a town in and of itself.
Not a suburb of a big city. But a town that stands alone,
geographically speaking.

This town would have to be the HUB of the area. I want it to be
the hub because as a truck driver, I would be better able to find
local truck driving opportunity making deliveries around the region.

I already have a bachelor's degree. But it is 20 years old. And it
is in "General Studies", aka, "worthless".

So I'm going to need to be able to go to a community college for
a couple of semesters to update my classes. And then apply to
a master's degree program at the university. (I'm not exactly sure
what discipline, but it will be one that is universal, like accounting).

So I think I will need both a community college, AND a public
university in my new town. Obviously not all towns with universities
have a community college. Some do, though.

I do not want to live in a big city. I want a small to medium-sized
stand alone city. (no bigger than, say, 250,000. No smaller than, say,
75,000)

Thank you for reading my post. I hope you can save me
time by your suggestions. Thanks again. (seriously, thanks)

[Westerntraveler]

Midessa

[love roses]

I'd say Tyler. My husband is a truck driver and we used to live in Houston originally and then moved to Colorado for a while. When we moved back to Texas we ended up Northeast of Austin in Hutto. He's a contract driver with a company in N. Austin. The reason I say Tyler is because of him. My dad lives in Tyler with my Granda on her land there and from time to time my husband has toyed with the idea of moving there. There are good trucking opportunities there, it's a stand alone small city and it has a junior college (Tyler Junior College). I think there is another college there too, but I'll have to google it to be sure.

[An0nym0us88]

Originally Posted by love roses

I'd say Tyler. My husband is a truck driver and we used to live in Houston originally and then moved to Colorado for a while. When we moved back to Texas we ended up Northeast of Austin in Hutto. He's a contract driver with a company in N. Austin. The reason I say Tyler is because of him. My dad lives in Tyler with my Granda on her land there and from time to time my husband has toyed with the idea of moving there. There are good trucking opportunities there, it's a stand alone small city and it has a junior college (Tyler Junior College). I think there is another college there too, but I'll have to google it to be sure.

Texas College and the University of Texas at Tyler.

[while parked]

I will check out Tyler, the university, community college, there, and also see if it fits my geographic description. Thanks!

[while parked]

midessa you think is a good fit for me, westerntraveler? I think Midessa is spelled wrong, but I don't know how to spell it either.

[GayleTX]

Tyler will have some of the same characteristics that you dislike about the Houston area....only moreso - very Southern atmosphere, very 'old money' owned and operated, very humid, heavily treed.

Amarillo is on a major truck route (I 40 as well as I 27 and US 287)), is a distribution center for several companies, has several major truck stops......much of its economy is trucking related. It's a large town with everything you'd need for a quality life but certainly not 'citified'. Cost of living is very reasonable. There is a large junior college (Amarillo College) there, and West Texas A&M University offers programs thru the doctorate level - it is in Canyon (about 15 miles out of Amarillo). Having lived both in East Texas and Colorado in earlier years, my family felt that living in the Panhandle (the Amarillo area) felt much more 'northern' ....in fact, the local accent is about the same as Colorado and Kansas. People tend to be friendly and helpful but not instrusive. It is on the high plains, very low humidity, cold but sunny winters.
---
BTW..."Midessa" is local shortcut for Midland/Odessa. Those two towns run together and are just one big town altho they have very different atmospheres. They meet the description you gave but they are quite isolated.

[texan55]

Brownsville or McAllen would be my suggestions. But they're an entirely different world.

There's tons of opportunities for trucking here, especially with the creation of a new highway in Mexico that is going to divert a lot of produce this way. There's also a brand new $34 million dollar toll road being built to the Port of Brownsville, and the port of brownsville's shipping route with Port Manatee, Fla., was designated part of the America’s Marine Highway Program.

There's also 2 universities in the valley and numerous community colleges.

But again... the valley is a whole different world from the rest of the country, so you may or may not like it.

[mezman]

Maybe Temple?

McLane, HEB, and Wal-Mart distribution centers. Temple Community College, Texas A&M - Central Texas (Killeen), University of Mary Harden Baylor (Private - Baptist), Baylor (Private - Baptist - Waco 40 min or so away), etc.

Only ~60,000 people so it might be too small for you. Just throwing it out there.

[while parked]

Originally Posted by GayleTX

Tyler will have some of the same characteristics that you dislike about the Houston area....only moreso - very Southern atmosphere, very 'old money' owned and operated, very humid, heavily treed.

Amarillo is on a major truck route (I 40 as well as I 27 and US 287)), is a distribution center for several companies, has several major truck stops......much of its economy is trucking related. It's a large town with everything you'd need for a quality life but certainly not 'citified'. Cost of living is very reasonable. There is a large junior college (Amarillo College) there, and West Texas A&M University offers programs thru the doctorate level - it is in Canyon (about 15 miles out of Amarillo). Having lived both in East Texas and Colorado in earlier years, my family felt that living in the Panhandle (the Amarillo area) felt much more 'northern' ....in fact, the local accent is about the same as Colorado and Kansas. People tend to be friendly and helpful but not instrusive. It is on the high plains, very low humidity, cold but sunny winters.
---
BTW..."Midessa" is local shortcut for Midland/Odessa. Those two towns run together and are just one big town altho they have very different atmospheres. They meet the description you gave but they are quite isolated.

I realized last night while looking at the map, that the person who initially wrote "Midessa" didn't misspell it, rather he combined the two. I had a nice little chuckle over it. How dense can I be, right? Don't answer that.

Amarillo seems to be where my heart is leading me. Although my heart is fickle, and lacks any convictions. It has proven to be very unreliable in the past, especially in regard to the question, where do I want to live? But right now I am feeling pretty good about Amarillo. I like the elevation, the
rugged, monotonous landscape, its connection with the Colorado region. I have always liked the
High Plains. Willa Cather is my favorite author. I think it would be well-suited. On the other hand, I was reading reviews on Sperling, which, quite frankly are a lot more candid than City-Data, less sugar coated,
more of an axe to grind, and I read some things that worry me.
Some say it has very high property taxes, even for Texas. It has the highest percentage of apartment housing in the nation (supposedly because people would rather rent than buy due to the high property taxes.. Comparable houses in the Dallas/FTW area are cheaper than they are in Amarillo. The wages are very low. And entire parts of town
resemble more Tijuana with Spanish businesses and signage then it does
the United States. So now I am feeling more fretful about Amarillo.
What attracts me most is the elevation. We in Colorado love our hot summer days with low humidity, and cool summer nights. San Angelo has a
lower elevation than Amarillo. I am now starting to contemplate Midessa
as a possibility. Thank you for your thoughts on Tyler. I do not think it would be a good fit for me based on your description. I am sick here in Houston right now, I need the West. The smell of pine needles is making
me nauseous.