Moving to Edmond

[eRod v1.0]

Hey guys and gals! I am taking a new job in OKC and moving your way in a few months. We decided on Edmond as the place to live after listening to many peoples opinions, and I happen to have a best friend who lives in Stillwater. Can anyone give me the ins and outs of the town? Bare with me as I have a few questions, lol. I've been told to try and get my kids (ages 3 and 5) in the Deer Creek schools. Agree/disagree? I'll be working over by Will Rogers, so what areas would you suggest I look for houses? Also it's important that the neighborhoods be kid friendly. For TV, would you go satellite, Cox, or U-Verse? How about a golf course my family can join? My wife and I both play, and my kids love to putt around. Someone suggested The Greens CC. Anyone play there or belong there? That's it for now! Thanks in advance.

[hipsterdoofus]

Deer Creek has great schools from what I know...Edmond's schools are good as well but everything out Deer Creek way is pretty new. As far as the other questions I'm sure there are others that can answer them better than I could.

[fuzzytoad]

Hey guys and gals! I am taking a new job in OKC and moving your way in a few months. We decided on Edmond as the place to live after listening to many peoples opinions, and I happen to have a best friend who lives in Stillwater. Can anyone give me the ins and outs of the town? Bare with me as I have a few questions, lol. I've been told to try and get my kids (ages 3 and 5) in the Deer Creek schools. Agree/disagree? I'll be working over by Will Rogers, so what areas would you suggest I look for houses? Also it's important that the neighborhoods be kid friendly. For TV, would you go satellite, Cox, or U-Verse? How about a golf course my family can join? My wife and I both play, and my kids love to putt around. Someone suggested The Greens CC. Anyone play there or belong there? That's it for now! Thanks in advance.

1. traffic is HORRIBLE every single day.
2. Deer Creek isn't any worse/better than the other schools for that age in Edmond. It's more of a Social Acceptance thing for the parents, nothing to do with the kids..
3. It doesn't really matter where you look, if you're working at Will Rogers and you live North of 33rd, you're going to be looking at 35min-1:20 hour morning traffic during normal(7am-9am) rush hour.. All depends on the amount of morons on the road... Anytime before/after that you're looking at a roughly 25-35min drive.. same for evening drive
4. Pretty much every neighborhood in Edmond is kid-friendly.
5. go with Cox.. U-verse is a joke.. Satty is ok if you only want certain channels(a'la carte), but Cox isn't bad at all here..
6. There's a multitude of golf courses around this area.. You don't need to focus on any one area in the OKC metro area, there's a golf course for you, trust me..
7. Edmond isn't all that bad.. the houses and neighborhoods are nice.. The shopping in Edmond as a city sucks, unless you're over the age of 65 or like to shop for nothing but dusty, aged wannabe "antiques". Grocery shopping choices in Edmond are outstanding, as long as you aren't counting on shopping in overpriced "trendy" places like Whole Foods or Trader Joes.. We don't have them and imho, don't need them...

The bad parts about Edmond are:

Traffic - The traffic here is retarded. There's a traffic light every 400 feet on pretty much every single street, and they aren't synchronized.. some are on timers, some are on sensors, some just stay one color for hours at a time for no reason..

Snobs - There's LOTS of snobby people here.. It's bad enough to get into the school system.. That may not be a problem for you, just letting you know..

Water - The tap water in most of Edmond is horrific... It smells, it tastes like rotten eggs, destroys indoor plumbing gaskets on a 10-14 month rotation and has unique ability to somehow eat thru PVC pipes.. Your first home improvement investment should be on a water-treatment system, seriously..

If you have teens, or like to go out at night and rip it up, you won't be doing it in Edmond.. If that's what you're looking for - awesome.. Just something to keep in mind..

Good things(since it probably looks like I'm being negative):

It's quiet.

Crime is almost non-existant

There's a new gun range, in addition to an open-air private range

There's lots of riding(horse) trails, bike trails, fishing(at Lake Arcadia, just don't drink it or swim), buncha parks..

Churches on every corner and some in-between..

Pretty tight community when you need them..

Wow, I typed alot..

Been here for over ten years.. I have more complaints than I do praises, but I haven't found a better place to live in this area

[hipsterdoofus]

Ok, maybe I shouldn't have let someone else answer...ignore fuzzytoad - he apparently hates everything and everyone.

1) Traffic being "horrible" is relative to where you live...if you build in the middle of Edmond away from any highways, yes it takes awhile to get out of town (duh?)

2) As I mentioned..I don't know if Deer Creek is better...my wife student taught there though and said that one thing she noticed is that the parents there were as involved as anywhere she had seen...which to me is a good thing. I'm a product of Edmond Schools and cannot complain.

3) The only time it has taken me anywhere near 1:20 to get to work was when we had the flood of the century a few weeks ago. It all depends on what time you are leaving town. I usually get from Edmond to Downtown OKC in less than 30 minutes.

4) Somewhat agree with this...I mean there are a few less desireable parts of town, but doubt you'd be looking there anyway

5)I don't have cable but I will say that AT&T's customer service is pretty bad on the DSL I have with them.

6) no comment

7) no comment

As for a few of his other comments - I already mentioned about traffic. As far as the snobs - that is a myth made up by other suburbs in the area to have a reason to dislike Edmond. My extended family has always been in Edmond, but I've lived other places. I've not seen any more snobs in Edmond than you would in other places where there are a few well-off people. I'm not sure how you can say the tap water is horrific...as Edmond gets its water from 2 distinct sources, Wells and Lake Arcadia. It does NOT taste like rotten egs and it does not destroy plumbing gaskets....apparently someone spiked fuzzytoads water - probably because he's so hateful.

Anyway just I think a more balanced view of things. I'm not really sure why fuzzytoad lives here if he hates it so much...its a good place to live, just try to get on the side of town that is closest to your work. Also, keep in mind it is possible to live in OKC limits and have deer creek or edmond schools. I know a lot that do that but watch out...OKC doesn't seem to care much about those people and runs years behind on roadwork in those areas (although they are finally catching up on some of it).

[eRod v1.0]

Thanks for the comments so far, even you fuzzy. Lol. Traffic is not a big deal. It's unavoidable, so adjust your times. Shopping for me is not a big thing, but I can tell you now you guys have about 500 more stores than where I live now, lol. All I need is a Walmart for groceries! My wife and I aren't big bar goers, so the night life is not a big deal to me. Besides, having friends over for some drinks is usually a lot more fun. When I meant kid friendly, I was really asking are there neighborhoods that have more kids than others. I guess it's not a big deal, but where I live now, it's an "older aged" neighborhood. So, there are only a handful of kids around here for my kids to play with.

Anyways, I am coming down the second week of August for a look around. Any restaurants that I must try while I am there? I am pretty easy and love all types of foods.

[Casey]

I'm with you, hipsterdoofus. I don't find the traffic bad here at all, I don't find people snobby, and I don't find the water tastes like anything.

I just moved to Edmond about three weeks ago, and I love it so far. People are ridiculously nice, there's a ton of stuff available to do, and a large majority of the neighbourhoods are stunningly gorgeous.

angrytoad - what's your favourite grocery store? The only one I've found so far has been Crest Foods, and it's alright.

[John]

Not sure what your housing budget is, but there are plenty of new neighborhoods/houses in the Edmond/DC area to fit whatever need you have.

I'd suggest Rose Creek if you're looking to join a golf club. I believe it's only a $500 initiation until the middle/end of August when they finish the new clubhouse and turn completely private.

[ImTheDude]

Not sure what your price range is, but you will not find a more kid friendly neighborhood in Deer Creek/Edmond than Lone Oak. I have 3 friends that live in there and it is a flashback to the 50's. People are out front every night with the kids playing in the streets and the parents socializing, its great. Houses range from the 180's to 250's and there are quite a few for sale in there right now.

[eRod v1.0]

Dude, thanks for the info. I will look into that neighborhood for sure. The other ones that I was told about are Highland Trails and The Grove.

[GoThunder]

Just a couple suggestions for when you're here in August... eat at Othellos if you like Italian food. If not, or if you don't want to spend the money, Hideaway pizza or Cafe 501 are always good.

[eRod v1.0]

Love italian food, so I will for sure check out Othellos. Any good mexican joints?

[hipsterdoofus]

There are more Mexican places than you can try. Chances are, people will try to push you to Ted's, which while good enough, is very overpriced. Just explore til you find something you like...I'm sure you can find something.

[fuzzytoad]

There are more Mexican places than you can try. Chances are, people will try to push you to Ted's, which while good enough, is very overpriced. Just explore til you find something you like...I'm sure you can find something.

I'd say just *barely* good enough.. Avoid Ted's

[eRod v1.0]

I'll keep that in mind about Teds. I think I will go to Othello's.

[hipsterdoofus]

I'd say just *barely* good enough.. Avoid Ted's

Ted's is very much Tex as opposed to mex. At one point it was one of the few Mexican places in town. It became wildly popular. Now there is a Mexican place on every corner and for some reason people still swear by Ted's even though it isn't any better than any other place, they herd you out like cattle, and they charge you a premium.

[Casey]

That's funny, I heard that Ted's was the best Mexican in town. Which made me chuckle a bit, as I've never heard of Ted the Mexican.

[cjohnson.405]

I moved back to Edmond 6 weeks ago (after 5 years in McKinney, TX) and really love it. McKinney is a large Dallas suburb that is one of the fastest growing cities in the US and in an area that is hyper-transitional. My thoughts:

- People in Edmond (and Oklahoma in general) are typically from Oklahoma and there is a great sense of permanence. People are personally invested here and tend to form deep relationships.
- There is no more snobbery here than other communities that have some degree of wealth. It's funny how people in Norman will talk about how snobby Edmond is but they are practicing their own form of snobbery.
- Traffic in Edmond is bad because of poor development (lots of untimed traffic lights). It's worse than Dallas. Seriously, Edmond has really been let down by it's leadership in regards to traffic.
- Because of traffic, I wouldn't take kids to Deer Creek schools and work on the East side. You will be in the car alot. We live on the East side of 35 where there is zero traffic and avoid going West.
- I made a list of restaurants that we enjoy and was glad to see that they are all locals. In Edmond, you don't have to rely on national chain restaurants. My favorites are Othellos for Italian, Humble Pie & Hideaway just for Pizza, Chelinos for Tex-Mex, Flat-Tire for burgers, Steve's Rib for BBQ, Charleston's for American, Fish City Grill for Seafood, and Cafe 501 for sandwiches. Chinese is the lone letdown. We haven't tried any Thai places yet but that is on the list.
- Shopping here is fine for everyday stuff and homegoods. You'll need to head to OKC for clothing.
- There is no nightlife here so you will have to head down to Western in OKC or Bricktown.
- The one thing we miss in Edmond is a high-end grocery store. We used to do our basics at Wal-Mart/Target and then buy lunch meat, fruit, steaks and other stuff at Market Street in McKinney. There is a huge difference and it is noticed.
- There are alot of well-known, solid, large churches in Edmond.
- We found a great drive-in theater in Guthrie and have been 3 times in the 6 weeks we've lived here. Something about seeing a movie at the drive-in is so great.
- While we did just go through a home search, I can't really talk to neighborhoods with kids because we had a pretty narrow criteria. I just know that I've seen kids everywhere.

If you join a club or a church or somewhere that plugs you into a group, it is easy to make friends in Edmond. And people here tend to be pretty active and go out and do lots of things. We've been invited more times to hang out with new friends and do more things in 6 weeks than we were over the last 2 years in McKinney.

Good luck.

[calitook]

My husband and I heard that Ted's was great when we first moved here. We thought it was majorly gross. I think it depends on what we're used to. Since we're from CA, we're used to more authentic Mexican food, and not stuff covered in Velveeta.

[MightyHorse]

It seems too oily to be velveeta.

[hipsterdoofus]

And yet the people who like Ted's swear it is the best place to eat ever...

[ImTheDude]

For a nice dinner around $100 for 2, you can't beat Signature Grill in Kickingbird Square. Be sure to make reservations.

[eRod v1.0]

Cjohnson, thanks for the great info. I am looking forward to my trip there in a few weeks. We have a long list of things to do while we are there so I am excited to see the area.

[Debzkidz]

I agree with all the negative comments about Ted's. Blah! The food is overpriced and mediocre at best, but for us, I think the worst part of Teds the the horrible smell of bathroom deodorizer as soon as you walk in the front door. I can't stand to go in there because the smell hits you as soon as you walk in. We've been here for 4 years, also from Texas, but have yet to find any Mexican or Tex Mex that we really like. Do go to Humble Pie for pizza. I love that place.

[ImTheDude]

For authentic mexican, there is a taqueria on Kelly just south of 15th on the east side of the road. Its in a strip mall and is a mexican convenience store with a grill in the back. Best street tacos I have had in the city.

[eRod v1.0]

Can you guys recommend any good builders in Edmond?