Posted: 5/18/2011 2:58:10 PM EDT
| I need some input want to move around the Delta area, coming from a small town of 6000 people, I'm semi retired, interests include atv'ing, 4 wheeling, hunting, fishing cowboy action shooting etc. Are there good and bad areas? Plan is to rent for 4-6 months then buy a house. Been around the Delta area but never to the town of Delta, so question is housing, weather conditions any areas that flood to stay away from when looking for a house? My other choice for moving is around Elko, Nevada and I did post over there as well asking the same information. Thanks to those replying in advance. |
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Wow, now that's a specific question. As luck would have it, I lived in Delta for the last 5 1/2 years before moving to Salt Lake. I grew up in Fillmore (same county but 30 miles to the east). The people in Delta can be a bit clique-ish, but not much more than most other small towns. It may take a while for you to be accepted. This is probably a bigger deal for wives than husbands. Football is big, but wrestling is bigger. High school wrestling tournaments are referred to as "the wrestles", as in, "are you going to the wrestles tonight". One high school, one middle school, one elementary, one stop light, one McDonalds. The politics there are conservative, more conservative, and so conservative that they think John Birch was a flaming pinko liberal commie. Interestingly, there are several elected democrats in county positions, but they are very conservative. The Sheriff and County Attorney are both democrats, but solidly conservative. Both are strong supporters of gun rights, including NFA. The Sheriff signed all of my NFA papers without any issues. Since I went to church with him, it wasn't too tough.  If you like guns and like to shoot, you'll do fine. If there are 6,000 people in the Delta area, there are probably 60,000 guns in the area. Plenty of ATV and off road opportunities. Delta is out in the middle of the valley, so you have to travel a bit to get to the mountains. There are 100 miles of West Desert between you and the Nevada border. Plenty of hiking, biking, etc., but it will be hot. And speaking of weather, Delta is hot, dry, and windy. The winters are mild and usually don't get much snow. The wind only blows on days that start with T, specifically today and tomorrow. Seriously, the wind blows ALL THE TIME. What are your employment plans? Without specific training or a particular skill, a meaningful job might be difficult to obtain. The Intermountain Power Plant is the biggest employer in the county, followed by county, city, and state gov jobs. Do you have a wife? Kids? Delta is quite isolated. You have to drive about 80 miles to get to the nearest Wal-Mart, and about 100 miles to get to Provo, the nearest major city, and home of BYU. Plan on driving a lot. I loved living in Delta, but my wife got very tired of driving 100 miles to get to the big city. I'm not aware of any cowboy action shooting. There's an outdoor public (and free) range just north of town. You can shoot almost anywhere outside of town. I could be shooting rabbits within 5 minutes after hopping in my truck. You'll probably need to drive a bit to find any water with any good fishing. There is a reservoir west of town, but I don't know what kind of fish it has. Most people use it for waterskiing, and refer to it as "the rez", not to be confused with an Indian reservation. I'm not aware of any significant flooding. You'd need to ask about the spring of 1983, when Utah had massive flooding. I don't know if Delta was affected, but Fillmore certainly was. The housing question is difficult. If you hit any of the real estate websites and put it Delta's zip code (84624), you'll see a big dichotomy. 10-20 houses that are 100 years old, 2 bed, 1 bath, maybe on a slab, for $50-100K. Very few houses in the $125-200K range. Then there will be a few really nice houses that are overpriced, and be in the $350-400K range. There just aren't that many people in Delta who can buy a $400K house. If you build, I would recommend the White Sage area (located east and south of the hospital on the east side of town). Also, the east side of town, ironically nearer to the dump, has some really nice areas and houses. As you go west, you will get to the older parts of town. There are railroad tracks on the west side of town. Stay away from them. More rentals, older house, trailer courts, etc. Also, the train runs frequently and you'll hear it forever, unless you can block it out. As for religion, most of the town is Mormon, with various levels of church activity and devotion. Plenty of active Mormons, jack-mormons and non-mormons. My gut impression is that it might be easier to be a non-Mormon in Delta than it would in some other parts of Utah. Of course, I'm Mormon, so my perspective may be off. There are three doctors in town (all family docs). I was the fourth one, until I moved. The docs all deliver babies, do surgery, c/sections, ER work, etc. They could use another doc or two, so the waiting room is pretty full. However, I've operated with both of the veteran docs there and I would and have trusted them with my life. If you build, the pharmacist at the hospital has a bunch of lots for sale (or did a year ago). 1 acre lots in White Sage. It seems like he was asking $50-60K for the lots, but I could be off. So, there's a few thoughts. Fire away with any more questions and I'll take a shot at them. I really enjoyed Delta, but it was tough for my family, so we ultimately moved. |
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Maybe Delta isn't a good choice for me, also interested in the Tooele area, a friend of mine said thats all military bases and a chemical storage area and everything is posted & fenced, right? As far a employment goes, I'm semi retired have skills in telecommunications out side plant, know auto body and paint work, do custom paint on cars & bikes, welder mig/tig so I guess I can find work doing something part time.
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Quoted: Forgot, CDL-A license. Look into Roosevelt or Vernal Utah... both towns are similiar in size to Delta with ENDLESS outdoor opportunities and the high uintah mountains (the real mtns of utah) are 40 minutes away. There's walmart, lowes, etc out there and "decent" restaurants. Lots of places to live, take a look at Altamont. In the Vernal/Roosevelt area you will not even notice the LDS population, so you won't have to worry about feeling like an outsider. Having a class A with hazmat and tanker end., you will get hired in a second in any oilfield job out there. Water truck drivers make ~$20 - $30 an hour. There are plenty of driving jobs for hotshot, chem, cement, frac, sand, bulk and all other oilfield service driver jobs out there. ETA Some welders in vernal make > $100/hr. Oilfield welders make $$$. |
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I was going to chime in with Vernal, or the Uinta Basin area too. The work opportunities were covered above, and he touched on some of the outdoor stuff. Lots of good fishing and hunting just a stones throw from Vernal.
There is a Cowboy Action group out there too, Diamond Mountain Rustlers http://diamondmountainrustlers.com/index.html And if I remember right the County was building a big complex just outside of town, Buckskin Hills or something like that. Seems like it was supposed to be a shooting range and motor sports park, however you would pull that off? There is also the Vernal Rod and Gun Club http://vernalgunclub.com/ The area is HOT in the summer and COLD in the winter, so if you don't mind that, give it a look. |
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Quoted: Maybe Delta isn't a good choice for me, also interested in the Tooele area, a friend of mine said thats all military bases and a chemical storage area and everything is posted & fenced, right? As far a employment goes, I'm semi retired have skills in telecommunications out side plant, know auto body and paint work, do custom paint on cars & bikes, welder mig/tig so I guess I can find work doing something part time. If you move closer to the salt lake area like tooele I am always looking for a good painter for some custom cars. |
| Elko or Vernal would be a better choice than Delta. Tax situation in Nevada is better than Utah. Probably depends on your desire to obtain employment - Vernal is pretty hot right for work right now as are North Dakota and parts of Wyoming for your type of skill set. If you are able to maintain short-term mobility I recommend you spend the summer traveling to various areas in the West rather than make a long distance decision. Remember to consider WINTER conditions in your decision. |