[Mrs.Salazar]

My family and I may have to relocate for my husbands work to Omaha NE. We have lived in CA our while lives. We also have 3 kids under 5. I have gone through many blogs and websites trying to figure out where to start looking for our new home. Schools are very important. So is safety and low crime rate. But we also don't want to live in a complete rural area. We don't mind a small commute for my husband, but I really can't get an idea of what's best. We are not too outdoorsy, but we do like to go out and spend family time together and have fun. I'm looking for suggestions...I'm open minded! Please help!

[Gunluvver2]

Originally Posted by Mrs.Salazar

My family and I may have to relocate for my husbands work to Omaha NE. We have lived in CA our while lives. We also have 3 kids under 5. I have gone through many blogs and websites trying to figure out where to start looking for our new home. Schools are very important. So is safety and low crime rate. But we also don't want to live in a complete rural area. We don't mind a small commute for my husband, but I really can't get an idea of what's best. We are not too outdoorsy, but we do like to go out and spend family time together and have fun. I'm looking for suggestions...I'm open minded! Please help!

Do you know where in the Omaha area your husband will be working? There are several neighborhoods in Omaha you want to avoid. I believe the Omaha Police Department has crime maps for various parts of the city. Compared to the large cities on both Coast commute times in Omaha are short but you should study them. The schools in Omaha vary drastically and the crime maps will give you a pretty good idea where the better schools are located.

[Mrs.Salazar]

His main account is Nebraska Furniture Mart and he will have to travel every week to TX and KS. So not too far from an airport would be nice. I am also concerned about the weather change. I was looking at Papillion but I'm not sure how that compares to others.

[MountainMen]

NFM is basically the middle of Omaha and has the city's easternmost decent shopping. If it were me, I'd probably target the neighborhoods west of NFM between 72nd and 90th along Pacific. While none of the city schools are very good, that area probably has the best schools. Downtown is convenient to the airport, and there's a lot of redevelopment and money going into the neighborhoods just south of downtown, so that could be an option too. Get ready for culture shock and welcome to the midwest.

[Garthur]

I agree with Mountainmen. The area from Dodge street south to Center and west of 72nd is a good area.

Papillion is a nice area, you may also consider LaVista, It's a fast growing area. I live 35 miles from NFM and it only takes me 20-25 mins to get there. Traffic here is nothing compared to California.

You will have a culture shock. Your biggest shock could be the weather.

My company transferred some employees to Nebraska from New York city and New Jersey and their first 6 months in Nebraska was tough for them. But the good news is that 10 years later all of them still live here, even after they retired. I have talked to few since they retired and they said that they would not ever go back to the East coast.

[McBain II]

MountainMen actually gave you pretty good advice, save for his line about the schools. Omaha Public Schools are actually very solid overall. I also don't think you'll deal with that much culture shock. Omaha is a big city, and if you're from another big city it shouldn't take much adjustment. The weather might take some getting used to though.

[Garthur]

Originally Posted by Bosco55David

MountainMen actually gave you pretty good advice, save for his line about the schools. Omaha Public Schools are actually very solid overall. I also don't think you'll deal with that much culture shock. Omaha is a big city, and if you're from another big city it shouldn't take much adjustment. The weather might take some getting used to though.

I have never considered Omaha a "big city". Omaha is a small to medium size city. If Omaha was on the East coast it would be just a suburb of a large city.

[aliciatague]

I just moved here from California and I miss it. Omaha has some great points but if you are from California it is hard to ever adjust to the weather culture people. When my husband and I moved out here we lived in an apartment along maple in Northwest omaha. I loved how close large stores were and the fact that it was clean and safe!! We recently bought a Celebrity home in Millard near Zorinsky lake and I like it here for the same reasons as well. Both the same distance from NFM. As far as weather like I said I hate that only a few months out of the year you can enjoy being outside without taking precautions. I don't like it consistently too hot and humid or too cold.

[Gunluvver2]

Originally Posted by MountainMen

NFM is basically the middle of Omaha and has the city's easternmost decent shopping. If it were me, I'd probably target the neighborhoods west of NFM between 72nd and 90th along Pacific. While none of the city schools are very good, that area probably has the best schools. Downtown is convenient to the airport, and there's a lot of redevelopment and money going into the neighborhoods just south of downtown, so that could be an option too. Get ready for culture shock and welcome to the midwest.

To the OP. I live in Lincoln not Omaha and I although I have friends with kids in Omaha they are all grown. Several of these friends have grown children that are doing very well in their professions and MOST of them graduated from various Omaha Public Schools. Three of them graduated from Creighton Prep and went on to Nebraska's medical and law schools. I hear a lot of bad things about Omaha Public Schools but I also know several people that have moved in to Omaha from California, Seattle and North East areas and they give the Omaha Schools a big nod over those where they lived previously.

We don't have an Ocean nearby or Disneyland but Henry Doorly Zoo has been given accolades as being the finest Zoo in the United States. I do 90% of my shopping at Wal Mart but when I need something that Wally World doesn't carry I go to Cabela's or Pro Bass World in Omaha. Not knowing what part of California you are coming from your adapting to the weather in Omaha may be a problem. Keeping that in mind I have been through Death Valley when it was over 120 F and I damn near froze to death one July night riding my motorcycle from San Francisco to Santa Cruz.

One thing to keep in mind when in Nebraska is to never bad mouth the Cornhuskers. Although you may find a few people living here that are not huge fans of the Huskers you are never out of hearing range of several Die Hard fans. So remember until you have lived in Nebraska for at least thirty years if you want to criticize the Huskers Zip the Lip. It is LEGAL to criticize the coach if he loses more than two games in a season but never the Huskers. And remember Tom Osborne is a God here.

[Jamie85]

Originally Posted by Gunluvver2

One thing to keep in mind when in Nebraska is to never bad mouth the Cornhuskers. Although you may find a few people living here that are not huge fans of the Huskers you are never out of hearing range of several Die Hard fans. So remember until you have lived in Nebraska for at least thirty years if you want to criticize the Huskers Zip the Lip. It is LEGAL to criticize the coach if he loses more than two games in a season but never the Huskers. And remember Tom Osborne is a God here.

I'm not much of a sports fan, let alone a Husker fan, but what Gunluvver stated is spot on. When the Huskers are playing, the state practically shuts down. Wal-mart, Target, supermarkets, convenience stores, etc. are open, but are practically deserted. If you shop while the Husker's are playing like I do to avoid the crowds, you will hear the game, instead of music, being broadcast while you shop. Do not question why the game is being broadcast over the intercom.

I'm not a native Nebraskan (I was born and raised outside of Philadelphia, PA), but I learned that you never criticize or even joke about the football team. I know from first hand experience. Years ago, when they lost a game, I good naturedly ribbed a co-worker about it and he flipped out on me. Nebraskan's self esteem correlates with the success or failure of the football team's fortunes, it's weird. For the past decade, the state's self esteem has been low due to the lack of championships. Yes, the team has had winning records, but Nebraskan's only considers championships as success.