Moving to Oklahoma (Tulsa, Norman, Lawton: to rent, sex offenders, low crime)

ccarnelli09 · 05-10-2009, 10:44 AM

Hello, my boyfriend of 6 yrs is in the Army National Guard and has just received orders in OKlahoma. Anyway, we cannot move until we both finish college next spring (we will both have BA's). Because he is only part time in the Army, we have more options about where to live as he can work in Tulsa or OKC.

We are from Connecticut, where bugs are small and seasons are long and drastic, and everything is within driving distance. We like it here, but winters are too cold and houses too expensive. We are exicited to move to OK but can't seem to find the right place.

We are looking for a green place to live, with some seasons and small bugs (the bug part is mostly my concern!). We would prefer a smaller town (less than a 20,000 pop, more than 8,000), with not a lot of crime as we want to start a family ( schools are important too). I am also looking for a place where I will have support of other military wives/girlfriends, as my boyfriend will most likely be deployed at some point.

We fell in love with some homes in Claremore, but the crime rates were very high. I have heard wonderful things about Mustang and Norman, and Edmond... but we'd like a bit more land than homes in those areas usually offer (at least 1 acre). We have also found nice homes in Tuttle. Energy efficient homes are important to me, but we are open to older homes as well. Our price range would be 150k-300k.

So I guess my question comes down to this... where is a green, low crime, low populated, all american place to raise a family in OK that is within driving distance of the city? Would we be better off looking in the OKC area or Tulsa area?

I appreciate any and all advice, opinions, and personal stories! We have never even visited OK so we are completely in the dark.

Thank You!!!!

Synopsis · 05-10-2009, 11:54 AM

The Northeastern part of the state is called "Green Country" for good reason (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Country_(Oklahoma).

I would focus on areas in the Northeastern part of the state. Grove might be an excellent place for you. It's very green, has low crime, and would be a great place to raise a family. The only problem that you might find with Grove is it is rather isolated and employment there would be hard to find.

Jenks, a very nice suburb of Tulsa might be just the fit for you two. It's minutes from what Tulsa has to offer and is very safe (UBER low crime). It also has a lot of things to do (Jenks Riverwalk, Oklahoma Aquarium, etc.). Plus, you can truck yourselves into Tulsa for the bigger city life if you so desire (concerts, world-class museums, and such).

You might also look into Bartlesville.

Good luck!

Synopsis · 05-10-2009, 12:18 PM

Some pics of "Green Country."

http://www.cityoftahlequah.com/community_info/snakecreek3%5B1%5D.jpg (broken link)

Watch out for that Black Bear!! Yes, there are between 200 and 500 Black Bears in Oklahoma, all in the Eastern part of the state.

http://photos.ocolly.com/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=5711& g2_serialNumber=2 (broken link)

Goodpasture · 05-10-2009, 09:06 PM

Claremore has a high crime rate???????????????

HeatherDawn · 05-10-2009, 09:16 PM

Maybe by "green" she meant like, earth-friendly. Claremore's crime rate being high can't be an accurate representation. Anyway, I'm sure it's not violent crime.

Synopsis · 05-11-2009, 02:19 AM

Claremore has a very low crime rate. Go to the city-data main page and look at the cities under Oklahoma. Claremore's crime rate is far less than the national average.

okcpulse · 05-11-2009, 06:59 AM

I wonder who gave her Claremore's stats. Hmmm. ccarnelli09, I would personally recommend Bartlesville or Jenks for northeastern Oklahoma, and should you choose the OKC area, Tuttle, Blanchard or Deer Creek, which is unincorporated but just outside Edmond and OKC.

ccarnelli09 · 05-11-2009, 05:06 PM

Hi everyone, thank you all for your comments!! What made us nervous about Claremore was the large number of sex offenders living there (57 according to city data), with high rape and assault counts. This made me nervous as my boyfriend will be deployed and I will live alone at some point.

We are considering the OKC area as it will be closer to Lawton where my boyfriend might have to go occasionally. In this area, we are considering Tuttle and Harrah. Does anyone know about these places? We love the openess of both, and their proximity to larger towns.

Well in terms of "greener," I originally meant landscape wise, but energy efficency is important to me too!

Also, if we have to rent first, where would a good place to rent be in OKC? We really don't consider ourselves city people, but we will venture their for entertainment.

Again, thank you all so much for your comments!!!

tulsasportsfan · 05-13-2009, 12:52 PM

Hi, we are ready to welcome you guys to Oklahoma. As far as the small bugs go, you might be out of luck just about anywhere in Oklahoma, but there are some very good things. First of all, as you probably know, the cost of living in/around the Tulsa area is among the lowest in the nation (for cities larger than 100,000). I completely understand you guys wanting to be in the OKC or Tulsa area. But when comparing the two in terms of beauty, charm, or character, well there isn't much of a comparison. OKC is a great city, don't get me wrong. Lots of job opportunities (Oklahoma ranks near the bottom for unem.), great downtown area for sports, night life, entertainment, etc. But Tulsa is so much more beautiful, and we can compete with OKC in terms of stuff to do. I've been an okie my whole life, born in Tulsa, and stayed around the Tulsa area for most of it (left and returned - college). There is a very good reason its called green country. For the most part, Okla. is divided into two halves, the east and the west. I've traveled to every corner of this grand state with many family members spread throughout it. The west is almost completely flat, and pretty baron outside OKC. The eastern part, in my opinion, is so much more beautiful. We've got hills and trees everywhere throughout green country (nickname for the NE part of the state) that you just won't find on the west half. It doesn't sound like a big difference, but drive through OKC and Tulsa and you will quickly see what I mean. For the suburbs you were talking about, there are a lot of small communities around the Tulsa area that are nice. Try looking into Jenks, Glenpool, Coweta, Skiatook, Sperry, Broken Arrow, Sapulpa, Sand Springs, Mounds, Cleremore, Collinsville, Owasso, Wagoner just to name a few. This is just my opinion, as everyone is entitled to theirs, but maybe this will give you a little bit of info you didn't have before. Good luck and welcome!

MuscogeeButterfly · 05-13-2009, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ccarnelli09

Hello, my boyfriend of 6 yrs is in the Army National Guard and has just received orders in OKlahoma. Anyway, we cannot move until we both finish college next spring (we will both have BA's). Because he is only part time in the Army, we have more options about where to live as he can work in Tulsa or OKC.

We are from Connecticut, where bugs are small and seasons are long and drastic, and everything is within driving distance. We like it here, but winters are too cold and houses too expensive. We are exicited to move to OK but can't seem to find the right place.

We are looking for a green place to live, with some seasons and small bugs (the bug part is mostly my concern!). We would prefer a smaller town (less than a 20,000 pop, more than 8,000), with not a lot of crime as we want to start a family ( schools are important too). I am also looking for a place where I will have support of other military wives/girlfriends, as my boyfriend will most likely be deployed at some point.

We fell in love with some homes in Claremore, but the crime rates were very high. I have heard wonderful things about Mustang and Norman, and Edmond... but we'd like a bit more land than homes in those areas usually offer (at least 1 acre). We have also found nice homes in Tuttle. Energy efficient homes are important to me, but we are open to older homes as well. Our price range would be 150k-300k.

So I guess my question comes down to this... where is a green, low crime, low populated, all american place to raise a family in OK that is within driving distance of the city? Would we be better off looking in the OKC area or Tulsa area?

I appreciate any and all advice, opinions, and personal stories! We have never even visited OK so we are completely in the dark.

Thank You!!!!

I think you ought to come visit, and try to check out some of the cities you've mentioned, before, you make the big move. You want to be comfortable where ever you end up. There is no one, all American city, in Oklahoma. It depends on your taste and things you consider important.