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The biggest draw of Henderson over the other places is that it is drivable from where I live now, so it would be much easier to visit family. We like some of the things the strip has to offer- restaurants and shows (and have gone there about once a year), I just don't love the strip after dark when the ground is covered by ads for prostitutes- that is the influence that concerns me because I will be raising kids there.
I was hoping that stayed on the strip and Henderson wasn't affected. I don't mind a slot machine in a grocery store. I also know for a fact that small towns can have more drug problems and teen pregnancies than most suburbs outside of cities. What I don't want is to live in a place where I am considered odd for thinking prostitution is not a good thing. I would be surprised if there weren't alot of people like me in Henderson. Am I wrong?
I have spent my adult life in an extremely conservative state and do not like that either. I would say that I am conservative by NY standards and liberal by Utah standards. I am not interested in returning to the North East because of the high cost of living and the skewed sense of "normal" where I grew up- ie-kids expect a brand new SUV at 17, etc. My ideal place to live is a suburb with good schools and nice people. I have a graduate degree and tend to relate better to more educated women, but I do plan to stay home when I move. I would love to have similar type women around (please don't attack me as being elitist- I am looking for honest advice and the more honest I am, the more helpful the advice is likely to be- I am not saying that I am better than other people, I am just being realistic about the type of people I have tended to relate to in my life, and who tend to relate to me).
Not to beat a dead horse (although probably too late for that), but, does this help clarify a bit? Is Henderson still probably not a good choice for me?
Let me add one more thing- I don't mean I only relate to people with graduate degrees. I know plenty of intelligent people who come form different backgrounds and didn't go to college, but are well read and eduacted in a less formal way. Please don't take my last post to mean that I only want to be surrounded by people with graduate degrees (or I would move to a college town). I mean that I would be less likely to relate to a woman who doesn't think eduaction is important or who tries to get by solely on her looks. That does not mean that I think someone like that is bad or judging them, it is just unlikely we would have a whole lot in common. I also do not need to be friends with everyone in my neighborhood, but would like there to be many similar people around. A big part of why we are moving is that I have very little in common with my neighbors here as I am not a member of the very dominant religion and most people's social lives revolve around their church here. I am having a hard time explaining what I mean and it may not be coming out very well
I get what you are saying, but, I think you have a perception problem. Just because there are hookers on the Strip, doesn't mean the parents that live in Henderson raise their daughters to consider that a viable career choice.
Hookers are throughout the country. As a journalist, I went on many police ride alongs and I can tell you with certainty, they have them in every county in the nation. The difference between the rest of the nation and Vegas, is that in Vegas. it is not hidden. (They ADVERTISE??? If ya gotta pay for ads you must not be very good HA).
With regard to intelligent women. Do you really think Vegas/Henderson is filled with blonde bimbos who snap their gum and say, "Uhm.... like why do I have to learn to read?"
No offense to you, but that is pretty insulting to the hundreds of thousands of women living in the area. Don't you think there are female physicians, IT techs, veterinarians, etc in Vegas?
You need to get this pre-conceived idea of Vegas out of your head and start viewing it as a regular town with regular people. I think your main problem is you visit the Strip once or twice a year, and from the Strip, you believe the entire region is the same.
That's just like going to Orlando, FL and believing even the residential streets are filled with Disney rides, music and cartoon figurines.
Since you have some time to make the decision, why don't you book a week in a Henderson hotel. Take the week to just drive around. Spend time in the parks. Check out the parks and rec department for available activities, go shopping, visit the schools etc? That will show you what the town is like more than anything that can be said here.
(Removing the tape from Dyn's mouth)... okay, NOW you can be funny, Dyn.
Since you have some time to make the decision, why don't you book a week in a Henderson hotel. Take the week to just drive around. Spend time in the parks. Check out the parks and rec department for available activities, go shopping, visit the schools etc?
Rent a house short term, and use the kitchen. You're not going to go out to eat every day, are you? Then don't do that on your Vegas "reconnaissance mission" either.
Besides -- one of the best things about Las Vegas is the grocery stores. At least the Mexican and Asian groceries. The "normal, boring" grocery stores are normal and boring. I avoid them except when it makes financial sense.
Spending a little time shopping -- in July or August, preferably -- is better intelligence than all the posts on city-data.com
Then check out some schools. There's ALWAYS some staff there. Ask for a tour. What's the worst they can say?
SouthernSarah, I fear you are misunderstanding me. I DO think that Henderson has plenty of educated women and I think I might really like it there. The problem is, everytime I convince myself that Henderson would be a good choice, I get feedback that it probably wouldn't be and I should look elsewhere. There are earlier comments on this thread stating that if I do not like the Vegas life, I cannot escape it in Henderson and I should look elsewhere. Then I get other comments saying that it is similar to any other city- if this is true, it would be a great choice for me. Can you see why I am confused?
I think the blonde bimbo type you referred to may be more prevelant there as many people I know like that love vegas for the reasons that I do not, so it may attract that type. I also think many people, like me, move there for other reasons. I do not need to be friends with everyone in the neighborhood.
My original thoughts (going back a few months before I did any research and visited) were based on stereotypes and I was ruling Vegas/Henderson out. Then, it occured to me that I was being closed minded and since I was interested in Phoenix, I shouldn't just rule Henderson out as it has many things to offer that Phoenix does not (like no state taxes, cheap flights from just about everywhere, driving distance from family), and if quality of life was substantially equal, Henderson would be my first choice.
I have been in Henderson now for a year and I really love it. We live in the Athem Highlands area and are raising our three small boys here. I have only seen a panhandler once in the year I have lived here. I am a stay at home mom and I am the errand runner so I am always out and about with my kiddos in tow. I went to the Best Buy near Sunset Station and a guy came up to me asking for money, told him sorry and he walked off. There are a ton of parks here for my kids to play and alot of them are covered which makes it tolerable in the summer. I usually pick the ones with the splash pads in the summer so we can cool off. I don't take my kids on the strip often, but I have taken them to the MGM to see the lions, the Ghirardelli ice cream shop near Harrahs and the Wynn to meet a friend for lunch once. We do go to the local casinos to eat sometimes as well. It was a huge decision for me whether or not to ever take my boys in a casino. You can ask my two oldest boys about the casinos and they will let you know that the people in them are making bad choices. I just hope my teachings of good vs. bad choices will hold up when they get older. I don't know if we will stay here long term, it actually scares me to raise teenagers here. But, I know several locals who have been raised here and tell me there is no desire to gamble or see the strip. Maybe it gets old after a while? And I don't know anyone who would think you were odd for thinking prostitution is not a good thing.
I haven't lived in Chandler, but I have lived in Gilbert,AZ which isn't that far and I loved it there. Between the two for me, I like it here more for a few reasons. The weather is a tad milder here in the summer, but I liked the more mild winters in Phoenix better. Since we have moved here we have had a ton of visitors, which can be a good or bad thing depending on how you look at it. I personally love getting to see my family every few months. There is so much to do here, maybe if you have lived here 20 plus years it may get boring, I don't know but I love having all of the options. We moved here from a very small town in Illinois so maybe my perception is skewed a little. We had limited options where we lived before and it is nice to be able to have options for shopping and entertainment. If I couldn't move here, I would have picked Phoenix as my second choice. I really just love it out West, I grew up in Chicago and cannot stand the cold winters with snow.
I have never lived in Woodlands, I have only heard about it, mostly good things. The closest I have lived to there was San Antonio.
I would highly suggest you schedule a trip out here and stay in Henderson. It is truly the only way you can get a feel for the town. And maybe you can take a drive up to Phoenix(about 5 hours) and check out Chandler. Just because I love it here, doesn't mean it is the right place for you. The only person that can decide if this is the right place to move is you. Good Luck!
I say to the OP...go for it. If you don't like it you can always move again. This is relatively common for Las Vegas suburbs. People move in, find it's not really what they expected...and move on.
I say to the OP...go for it. If you don't like it you can always move again. This is relatively common for Las Vegas suburbs. People move in, find it's not really what they expected...and move on.
Add "slam the city on internet fora with the kind of vitriol displayed only by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad" after "what they expected..."
The biggest draw of Henderson over the other places is that it is drivable from where I live now, so it would be much easier to visit family. We like some of the things the strip has to offer- restaurants and shows (and have gone there about once a year), I just don't love the strip after dark when the ground is covered by ads for prostitutes- that is the influence that concerns me because I will be raising kids there.
I was hoping that stayed on the strip and Henderson wasn't affected. I don't mind a slot machine in a grocery store. I also know for a fact that small towns can have more drug problems and teen pregnancies than most suburbs outside of cities. What I don't want is to live in a place where I am considered odd for thinking prostitution is not a good thing. I would be surprised if there weren't alot of people like me in Henderson. Am I wrong?
I have spent my adult life in an extremely conservative state and do not like that either. I would say that I am conservative by NY standards and liberal by Utah standards. I am not interested in returning to the North East because of the high cost of living and the skewed sense of "normal" where I grew up- ie-kids expect a brand new SUV at 17, etc. My ideal place to live is a suburb with good schools and nice people. I have a graduate degree and tend to relate better to more educated women, but I do plan to stay home when I move. I would love to have similar type women around (please don't attack me as being elitist- I am looking for honest advice and the more honest I am, the more helpful the advice is likely to be- I am not saying that I am better than other people, I am just being realistic about the type of people I have tended to relate to in my life, and who tend to relate to me).
Not to beat a dead horse (although probably too late for that), but, does this help clarify a bit? Is Henderson still probably not a good choice for me?
I understand what you are saying and I understand you are trying to say it without offending anyone. I don't really think there is anything wrong with saying what you want. You do not want to live near scourge...you want decent schools, decent people and a nice, safe, neighborhood. I lived in Henderson for about 5 months, (from Detroit area) before we moved to the NW (Centennial Hills). Although, I am not there full-time yet, (husband is) here is my take:
Both in Henderson and CH I have been to many of the stores. By myself and with people. Only ONCE has anyone ever come up to us and that was at a Walmart, a little Asian lady trying to sell some jewelry. She was pretty pushy, but we didn't understand her anyway so we just shook our heads and kept walking. I would never even be worried about that issue. I don't find it a problem in the least.
I love Henderson. Anthem is very nice. Probably more of the people you are referring to. I love the GV area also. I found the people to be SO much more pleasant than in SE MI. Like, incredibly more so. (many grumps in my area of MI)
My daughter went to 9th grade at Coronado. Nice school. She liked it a lot. She met friends right away. These friends I liked a whole lot better than some of the friends she had since 4th grade here in MI (and we are in a very good school district here). Drugs? Uh, yep. Drinking? I'm sure. Been going on forever, all over. If we could have stayed in Henderson, we probably would not have come back and she would be going in to her senior year there. (Long, boring story)
Strip presence? Well, only however much you want it to be. You do not see stripper cards laying around on the ground in Henderson. You do not see hookers. In fact, I have been on the Strip more times than I can count and I can not tell you I EVER saw a hooker. But then, I am not looking. The tourists are probably more scantily clad. I have taken the girls to the casinos to bowl, see a movie, or just sight-seeing. We do not make a big deal out of the "Strip" side of things. But, in Henderson, it was pretty much just living. They went to football games, homecoming, school events and hung out at each other's places.
Did you ever consider Summerlin?
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(playful shove)
