Best town and weather in Idaho? (Boise, Meridian: real estate, employment, good schools)

[kevinnmelissa]

Me and my husband are trying to relocate to a milder climate,we live in Indiana right now which has severe thunderstorms and tornadoes,which we don't like. I've been checking out Flagstaff,AZ, Portland,OR, Eagle,CO, and Meridian,ID. We also have 3 children so whereever we decide they have to be taken into thought also. If anyone can help with any of these issues we would appreciate any input,I've been on this site alot and have read alot of different thoughts and opinions on this places.

[Torrie]

Take a look at Boise-Metro. I would say they probably have the best weather of the whole state. We can get severe thunderstroms in the Spring and early Summer, but tornados are not a threat.

Meridian, which is a part of Boise-Metro is a great place to raise a family. I believe it was voted in the top 100 places in the country to raise children. If you go to the Boise section of the forum and click on the 1st thread- Boise one stop shot, scroll down and click on the Meridian Chamber of Commerce website and I believe you might find the accolade I'm refering to. You will find a bunch of links on that thread that will also give you info on the area including weather.

Idaho offers wonderful opportunities throughout the state, but Boise in my opinion offers the best. Yes I'll be honest- I'm biased because I live here, though I have visited several locations throughout Idaho, I always come back to Boise.

[breer23]

I went to graduate school in Flagstaff, and while I enjoyed living there (and still enjoy visiting my in-laws there during the holidays), it is a VERY expensive town to live in.

Unfortunately, I've never spent any appreciable time in any of the other cities that you mention here, so I can't provide and comparison.

[mistyriver]

Originally Posted by breer23

I went to graduate school in Flagstaff, and while I enjoyed living there (and still enjoy visiting my in-laws there during the holidays), it is a VERY expensive town to live in.

Unfortunately, I've never spent any appreciable time in any of the other cities that you mention here, so I can't provide and comparison.

Ditto. We used to live in Flagstaff and it is very expensive and salaries are considerably lower. Lots of competition for fewer jobs.
We used to live near Indianapolis too so I can fully appreciate you wanting to leave there. Good luck.
I'd call north Idaho's climate mild but that depends on what you think of 3 feet of snow like we have on the ground right now.
I LOVE the Portland area. I would live there if I didn't love here so much.

[janab]

It depends on the type of employment you do. I think Grangeville, ID is the best place for a small town of around 3200 pop. We have grocery stores, banks, hospital, doctors, dentists, all the necessities yet it is a very small warm welcoming community with good schools. We happen to live down off the prairie where the weather is especially nicer than even Boise area and we have the wilderness as a back yard. What more can I say, we also live about an hour away from the big cities of Lewiston and Clarkston with lots more shopping, schools, employment, colleges.

[micrguy]

Flagstaff is pretty, but cold and very windy in the winter. Plus Flagstaff gets a ton of snow. I have lived all over the country and currently live about a mile away from Meridian. Of all of the places that I have lived, the weather in the Boise area is about the best. Not too hot in the summer and not too cold in the winter. No big storms, not a lot of wind and lots of sunshine from the spring until the fall.

[kevinnmelissa]

thanks micrguy,I appreciate the feedback I have been on this forum alot and let me tell you somethings scare us because everyone seems to have an opinion about everthing we have been researching the Meridian area mainly and seem to love it so far? We have 3 small kids ages 12,9,and 5 so whatever we do it has to be all about them!! We just really want a milder climate as far as bad storms,we can handle snow just not bad rain storms,theres rain everywhere you go we know that we just don't want bad thunderstorms and tornadoes we've had enough of those to last a lifetime!!

[micrguy]

Best description of Boise weather that I heard from a local is that there is about 4 weeks of really cold weather (down to the teens at night) about 4 weeks of really hot weather (up to around 100 during the day) and the rest of the year is pretty tolerable. Nice summers, long falls that last until early December. Having grown up in Ohio/Michigan let me tell you that 25 degrees in Boise feels a lot warmer than what it does in the midwest.

One of my kids was concerned about moving to Boise until my real estate agent said that Boise is the 2nd safest city in the country when it comes to natural disasters or bad weather. The worst thing that I can say that I have seen is when it is fire season and the Boise area fills up with smoke.

[kevinnmelissa]

ok I'm sorry but I have to ask what exactly does fire season mean and when does it happen and for how long? How long have you lived in Boise and would you choose it over Ohio/Michigan?

[micrguy]

If you live out west, fire season is late spring to fall when the forest fires occur. The topography of the Treasure Valley is such that it collects a lot of smoke from fires that may be 100 miles away. The upside to this valley is that it keeps us warmer in the winter and keeps the wind down.

Our family has lived in Boise for just over a year after moving here from Phoenix. Boise has a very midwestern feel to it. This may just be me, but it seems that a lot of the people from California that I have met who have moved here are originally from the midwest. Boise has the best of both worlds, the active western lifestyle and great scenery combined with conservative midwestern values.

The only downside and you can read some of the threads in the Boise section of the forum is that even with a low unemployment rate it is sometimes difficult for people new to town to find a good job. The jobs are out there, but for the most part are unadvertised. Boise is a place where it really helps if you know a local that can assist you with a job search. I was lucky because I gave my resume to someone at our church who passed it along to one of their vendors and I had a new job within three weeks. The company that hired me created a position for me and the job was never advertised. This seems to be typical of many companies in Boise, they are busy and could use an extra person but are not actively looking to hire anyone. If the right person comes along then they will create a new position.