Hey new HTF, I just recently accepted a new job in Huntsville and I need some advice.  I'll be selling my town house and moving to Huntsville in early June.  I would like to find a similar town house or small home (it's only me) in Huntsville, but I have no idea what the area is like or which areas are safe.  Here are some of things I'm looking for:
1. I'll be working near Redstone Arsenal, so I'd like to find a place that's relatively close (i.e. within 30 min with traffic)
2. I prefer the suburbs b/c it's quiet yet close to everything I need, but I would be willing to live in the city (as long as it's relatively quiet) or even the countryside (as long as it's relatively close to town) if it's the right place.  

Can you help guide me in the right direction?  

Two other things I need help with:
1. Could someone recommend a good FFL dealer with inexpensive transfer fees?
2. Are there any private gun clubs in the area accepting new members?  I'd prefer if they have 200 yd rifle, pistol, and shotgun ranges, but they must have rifle and pistol ranges.

Thanks for the help guys.  Looking forward to meeting some of you guys when I get down there.

Micah

There are a lot of housing options in the Huntsville area - most are with a 30 minute drive of the Arsenal.  I don't know what your budget is, but you can probably find a couple of acres in the county and still be within that same driving radius.

1.  Silent Industries in Madison & Scotty at SevenX Armory in Huntsville both do transfers for 25 bucks.  I trust Scotty as he's done other work for me in the past.  If you're doing more than one, I'd ask about a discount.  These aren't the only guys.  Check a thread on the first page of the Alabama HTF detailing cheap transfers in Huntsville/Madison.

2.  The Blue & Grey Rifle and Pistol Club is within driving distance.  They have 200 yards available.   To join, you need to attend one of their board meetings (at the awesome old Greenbriar BBQ restaurant) and present your application and application fee.

Most everywhere is within 30 minutes, even all the way out in New Market is close to 30 minutes on most days.  If you are working on the Arsenal sometimes the gates can cause traffic to back up but that can be avoided by changing your arrival time.

As far as locations... most everywhere is safe.  There are some areas in and around downtown that have housing projects near by, but even those are not bad compared to St. Louis.

If you want a fast way into work look for places near Research Park Blvd.  North of 72 it quiet as long as you are not right on the main road.  Look around Indian Creek Rd NW for some good subdivisions.  Townhouses are not very common and your best bet will be to look at houses.
I am selling a house, but it would be at the closer to 30 minutes away from some things because it is north of Madison and not close enough to the major roads.  20 minutes on most days though.

The other poster covered the FFL transfers and range.  If you want to be closer to the Blue and the Gray range look in South Huntsville for a place but I am not as familiar with the area so I cannot make specific recommendations.

Lots of good threads on new comers to the north AL area here:  http://www.city-data.com/forum/huntsville-madison-decatur-area/

Good luck!

Cavern Cove range, head East on highway 72, turn off going to Cathedral Caverns, take a left before the general store, turn left after the bridge.

Pretty much all of madison county is within 30 minutes or less driving distance to Redstone Arsenal. I'm a fan of south Huntsville because the Redstone Road and Martin Road gates aren't as bad as the main gate on rideout road. There's construction around martin road currently so i'm not sure how badly that is affecting the gate traffic though as I don't work on post right now.

There's townhouses around Zierdt road that might be what you're looking for as well. I'm not sure how bad that gate gets in the morning though.

Get a 6 month apartment lease and during that time, look and listen for what suits you.  There are moderate homes on and around gates 1 and 3 with Walmart, auto parts, Lowe's and Home Depot close by.  The Blue and Grey Club range is near Guntersville dam.  Madison, SE Huntsville, or Huntsville south of Drake Avenue is what you seek.

great area, traffic is very rarely a concern. In 3 years of living there I only got stuck in a 15 minute traffic back up once....

However , do a research on historical tornado tracks . Some areas are more prone than others

Welcome to the finest town in the state, possibly the nation. Huntsville is awesome!

You can actually live right on Redstone Arsenal. They have renovated the old houses that they used to put NCOs in and they are renting them to the public.

Huntsville is not Alabama.

Disregard what you've heard and what you've seen portrayed on TV and the movies.

If you're social, downtown H'ville has a LOT going on.

Good luck and welcome!

If you say where you will be working someone could recommend an area to look into living.  Huntsville has extreme urban sprawl, you can have nearly 1hr commutes depending on where you live/work.

Craigs guns in Athens does free transfers if you buy ammo for the gun you are picking up.  
Swan creek(100yd) and skyline(200yd) are public ranges, blue and grey club is 200yd, and strategic edge is 1200yd.  Those are west, east, south, and north of town respectively.  Larry's has an indoor range.  There is a Trap/skeet range on redstone.  Arnold AFB hosts 1000yd competitions run by various clubs in AL/TN and is about 1.5hr drive.