Posted: 4/9/2026 9:49:24 AM EDT
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I'm moving to Dayton next month. I'm getting stationed at WPAFB to attend AFIT. I could use advice on what part of town to live in. I'd prefer no more than a 20-30 minute commute to the west side of the base where AFIT is. I want a house or townhouse with a garage. I'm single and it would be really nice to have a bar/restaurant area within walking distance, but that's usually hard to find near houses and I do not want an apartment. Is the downtown Dayton area nice? Worth living near or is it easy to find parking nearby? Are there other city centers that have bars/nightlife? What is traffic like in the greater Dayton area? In the past I've intentionally tried to find homes near shooting ranges to avoid an hour+ drive to get to the range, is that a concern in Dayton? What neighborhoods should I absolutely avoid, and which should I look at specifically? Right now I'm looking around the Oakwood/Kettering/Centerville axis, Beavercreek, and Huber Heights. I'm looking at renting, if you know anyone with a 2+ bed house or townhome with a garage available by mid-May I'm interested. |
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Originally Posted By Sonoran_Tj: I'm moving to Dayton next month. I'm getting stationed at WPAFB to attend AFIT. I could use advice on what part of town to live in. I'd prefer no more than a 20-30 minute commute to the west side of the base where AFIT is. I want a house or townhouse with a garage. I'm single and it would be really nice to have a bar/restaurant area within walking distance, but that's usually hard to find near houses and I do not want an apartment. Is the downtown Dayton area nice? Worth living near or is it easy to find parking nearby? Are there other city centers that have bars/nightlife? What is traffic like in the greater Dayton area? In the past I've intentionally tried to find homes near shooting ranges to avoid an hour+ drive to get to the range, is that a concern in Dayton? What neighborhoods should I absolutely avoid, and which should I look at specifically? Right now I'm looking around the Oakwood/Kettering/Centerville axis, Beavercreek, and Huber Heights. I'm looking at renting, if you know anyone with a 2+ bed house or townhome with a garage available by mid-May I'm interested. No way! Too bad you'll just miss the big bore blast in a couple weeks. But maybe next year. Im at WPAFB about once a month to get tools calibrated, so maybe we can get lunch. Can't speak for the area, but you'll be less than 90min from my place. You bringing the mortar? The nice thing about WPAFB, is that even though its a reserve base with very little active duty, they still have a lot of the amenities of a full base. You have a BX, commissary, etc. |
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Originally Posted By SGT-Fish: No way! Too bad you'll just miss the big bore blast in a couple weeks. But maybe next year. Im at WPAFB about once a month to get tools calibrated, so maybe we can get lunch. Can't speak for the area, but you'll be less than 90min from my place. You bringing the mortar? The nice thing about WPAFB, is that even though its a reserve base with very little active duty, they still have a lot of the amenities of a full base. You have a BX, commissary, etc. I'm bummed I'm going to miss the shoot. I'll be out-processing here in El Paso that weekend. I'm absolutely bringing the mortar, along with the rest of the armory. I'm hoping there are some decent ranges in the area, I'm going to miss having miles and miles of unregulated desert to play in. |
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I live in Huber. As far as ranges go; there’s not much except for a few 25 yard indoor ranges. Friends and I became members at a private range in Oxford, OH (about an hour drive) but we have 365 day access from 7a-10p and 7x 25x25 yard shooting bays with a 200 yard rifle range. The main bar district is the Oregon district in downtown Dayton. Most everything immediately west of I75 are bad areas to live. I would avoid having to make a commute on I75 a regular habit if possible, between the frequent accidents and construction. The areas you mentioned are decent enough to live. |
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Originally Posted By chemcmndr: I live in Huber. As far as ranges go; there’s not much except for a few 25 yard indoor ranges. Friends and I became members at a private range in Oxford, OH (about an hour drive) but we have 365 day access from 7a-10p and 7x 25x25 yard shooting bays with a 200 yard rifle range. The main bar district is the Oregon district in downtown Dayton. Most everything immediately west of I75 are bad areas to live. I would avoid having to make a commute on I75 a regular habit if possible, between the frequent accidents and construction. The areas you mentioned are decent enough to live. I appreciate the advice. I'm definitely looking east of 75. Huber looks nice but not a lot of rentals available in the area right now. I'm checking listings daily in the hope that I can have a place lined up before I get there. |
| A lot of WPAFB folks without kids will consider Huber Hts. Traffic in Dayton area is not bad at all, commute to WPAFB is about 15 minutes drive if you live near I-675, such as Beavercreek or Centerville, going thru the gate security check takes longer. Several private shooting ranges in the area and there is DNR Spring Valley public range, $24 a year if you buy annual permit. |
Found this today. Not sure how much still applies haha Historic Video: "Welcome to Wright-Patterson AFB, OH" |
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Originally Posted By SGT-Fish: No way! Too bad you'll just miss the big bore blast in a couple weeks. But maybe next year. Im at WPAFB about once a month to get tools calibrated, so maybe we can get lunch. Can't speak for the area, but you'll be less than 90min from my place. You bringing the mortar? The nice thing about WPAFB, is that even though its a reserve base with very little active duty, they still have a lot of the amenities of a full base. You have a BX, commissary, etc. Where did you get that WPAFB is a Reserve base? It’s an active duty base which is the headquarters for Air Force Material Command which is an active duty major command. The only part of the base that belongs to Air Force Reserve Command is what houses the 445th Airlift Wing. That means they are tenant unit and not in charge of anything base wise, thats the 88th Airbase Wing, again an active duty unit. Feel free to take a minute to read up on WPAFB https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wright-Patterson_Air_Force_Base |