After reading the other Texas thread I decided to start a new one regarding this city.  I work for a large chemical company that has a plant in Beaumont, TX.   I currently reside in Memphis, TN, and this town is going down the toilet fast ('05 murder rate is on pace to set a new record, terrible public schools, corrupt & inept local government, massive welfare-dependent population, city & county taxes property increased 140% since 1999, etc., etc.).  I am seriously thinking about trying to relocate to Beaumont & work at the plant there (assuming that a position comes available; would be a lateral move).  Pay would be the same (I currently make $23.59/hr.) and I would be working outside 80% of the time, just as I do now at the Memphis plant.

I'd be interested in any opinions regarding this part of Texas, pro and con.  I am married, have a 14 month old son and my passions are hunting, golf, target shooting, etc.  We have no idea what cost of living is down there but we're basically looking for an area that is family oriented or somewhere where 5-20 acres with a decent house could be had.  What are the schools like down there & what are the demographics, crime, weather, etc.  Also, I'd like to stay within a 40 minute commute to/from the plant as well.  

Thanks for any help/advice.  As a side note, I have "long lost" family in Texas that I'm hoping to look up if this looks like a feasible move.

hometown forums are that way ----------------->

I don't know about Beaumont but I live close enough to Memphis to feel your pain.  My wife went to U-Tenn Memphis.  We're getting spillover crime and we're an hour or so away.  And I'm from Little Rock originally.  So I know exactly what your talking about.  I don't think Beamont could be anything but a step up.

I live in Nederland, a small city east of Beaumont.  Lived here all my life.

This area is a great area.  You can live outside of Beaumont and find just what you are looking for.  The area north of Beaumont is more "country" if that is what you like.

Good schools outside of Beaumont, great gun range (Golden Triangle Gun Club), lots of golf courses.

Downside:  hurricanes, hot summers, Beaumont schools are bad.

Other than that, I like it just fine here.

Beaumont, in my opinion, blows.  No real money to be made there.  Probably because it's so close to LA.

JMHO.

Quoted: Beaumont, in my opinion, blows.  No real money to be made there.  Probably because it's so close to LA. JMHO.

Guess you missed this part:  "Pay would be the same (I currently make $23.59/hr.) "

Quoted: Quoted: Beaumont, in my opinion, blows.  No real money to be made there.  Probably because it's so close to LA. JMHO. Guess you missed this part:  "Pay would be the same (I currently make $23.59/hr.) "

Hey! That's more than at Blackwater!

Beaumont is the larger of the cities in this area. There are several more close by. Its a good area. Dont let "Beaumont" scare you. There are lots of things good here. Beaches, lakes.piney woods,Galveston Island,saltwater fishing, golf,theatre,music,all close . Lots of areas to move into, from city to country, all within easy commute. Look at the area as a whole. Texas is LARGE, too many things to list.  

I'm not saying I hate the area, as I've never spent much time in Beaumont (really just driven through), but you should know this:

Most Texans would probably agree that , accurate or not, east Texas has a reputation of being a bit "backwards" socially.  While not necessarily in Beaumont, race issues have reared over the past decades.  Beaumont isn't too far from a town called Vidor, which has a notorious rep as a KKK stronghold.

Now, others will quickly jump in and probably dispute/refute these generalizations.  I hope they do, as I'd like to think they are inaccurate.  I'm just letting you know to be aware of such things.  

Good luck with whatever decision you make!

Quoted: I'm not saying I hate the area, as I've never spent much time in Beaumont (really just driven through), but you should know this: Most Texans would probably agree that , accurate or not, east Texas has a reputation of being a bit "backwards" socially.  While not necessarily in Beaumont, race issues have reared over the past decades.  Beaumont isn't too far from a town called Vidor, which has a notorious rep as a KKK stronghold. Now, others will quickly jump in and probably dispute/refute these generalizations.  I hope they do, as I'd like to think they are inaccurate.  I'm just letting you know to be aware of such things.   Good luck with whatever decision you make!

Uh, he's in Memphis now.  It's safe to say he's been exposed to racism.

  Just shot at a 600 yard service rifle match there today. Been to Beaumont several times and I like it OK. I live in Houston and I think you'll find your money goes pretty far here in Texas. I live in a pretty large house which I could not afford if I was living in the other parts of the country I interviewed in (Nev, CA, AZ)....WX is hot and humid in the summer, but that doesn't bother me as the winters are very mild and great. Rednecks?...yeah thery're here, but find me some place in the south where they ain't. So what. Area is a little rural for my taste, but I think you can find acreage to spread out. Between there and Memphis?...give me Beaumont.  I love Texas. They're going to bury me here...

IMHO, Beaumont is 1000% better than Houston.  I live up in the piney woods about an hour north of Beaumont and drive into it every two weeks to shop.  My wife was raised in Houston and liked Houston until she discovered Beaumont.

If you do it and are looking for nice housing, Lumberton just north of Beaumont has a home building boom going and a lot of people with better jobs live in the Lumberton area.  $20+ per hour is good for the area, so cost of living won't be an issue.

As compared to Houston (Just because most folks know a little about Houston.)
Beaumont has...

1. Much better traffic.
2. Is a very easy to navigate city.
3.  Does have a medium sized airport with regional and out of state flights.
4.  Has much better food.
5.  Crime is about the same.  It is like any other city, although, Beaumont does have some very trashy areas.
6.  It has one mall and at least two large movie theaters.  It comes with the usual assortment of chain stores, such as Wal-Mart, Target, Home Depot, Lowe’s, etc.

You can get some into at

http://www.cityofbeaumont.com/

Beaumont is also located close to other good attractions and medium sized cities.  It is not too bad a drive down I-10 to Houston if you must.

Some people like to claim the area is backward, etc.  However, it is no different than anywhere else.  The area has some good people, some bad people, and a lot in between.  Those types of claims remind me of the two weeks that I spent in a large metropolitan city on the west coast.  I was surrounded by “well spoken” pretty people that were supposedly worldly in both the good and the bad sense.  However, on the average, I’ve never seen more ill-informed or “backward” people than I did in that west coast city. ( I didn’t name it because I don’t want to hijack your thread.)  I've got an adopted Chinese daughter but I've never seen racism toward her from a redneck.  As a matter of fact, they are some of her biggest fans.  However, I can't say the same for other more "enlightened" classes of people.  I'm a university degree holding professional and have the opportunity to meet a lot of types of people.  I work with millionaires on a daily basis but I'd take ordinary rednecks any day when it comes to polite and fair treatment of my daughter.

If you are serious about moving, it would be worth taking a little time off and doing a personal reconnaissance of the area.  You could fly into Houston without a transfer and drive to Beaumont easily.

I live in Beaumont, and work for the City of Beaumont. DO NOT and I repeat DO NOT move to Beaumont itself, there are several surrounding communities that make up the Golden Triangle that are much better, the commute is worth it. We have the 2nd highest or highest (do not remember which)crime rate in Texas for the cities of the same size, and I work at the p.d. and trust me Beaumont is not crime free or low crime rate, though our c.i.d. is great and good about clearing cases.

The schools suck, the superintendent is the like 2nd highest paid in state (read: over 400k a year) and every school except for two are below state averages and standards. Damn near every neighborhood now is rampant with drugs and other crime due to section 8 housing going in and attracting that element of people. (did I mention a former mayor served federal pen time?)

If it were me, move to Nederland, PN-G, Winnie, Lumberton or one of the other surrounding communities that are only about 15-20 mins away and commute, your kids and insurance policies will thank you. Beaumont has many nice features and is a nice city(yes city and not town), but I would not live and will not live here if/when I had or when I do have children. Mainly due to the school system which absolutely pathetic, trust me I spent better half of my time in Beaumont schools and I am much dumber because of it.

Just move to somewhere else outside Beaumont, it is kinda like a mini Houston with little towns around it, you get to enjoy everything of a city being close, but not put up with b.s. coming with it.

Outdoors are excellent here, though of course not much in Beaumont itself, but the River is nice north of the I10 bridge, below that its more polluted than Love Canal.  But the lakes, beaches are not far away, and waterfowl hunting is usually pretty good here down at Texas Point and Mcfaddin. Game reserve. And the whole thing about the KKK is a bunch of BS, Beaumont is not a backwoods hick town at all and in no way does the klan get any support, if it's there I've never seen it. It is a medium-small city that is surrounded by smaller cities, and Vidor has gone leaps and bounds to clean up their klan past.

WOW! Never realized there were so many Golden Triangle guys here on Arfcom.  Grew up in Bridge City, went to school in Beaumont, (Lamar), before transfering to Texas A&M...  Living in Dallas now, but we should organize a shoot somewhere in southeast tx, I would definately drive in for that!

EPOCH

Quoted: WOW! Never realized there were so many Golden Triangle guys here on Arfcom.  Grew up in Bridge City, went to school in Beaumont, (Lamar), before transfering to Texas A&M...  Living in Dallas now, but we should organize a shoot somewhere in southeast tx, I would definately drive in for that! EPOCH

We're a low lying quiet bunch apparently. I'm still new here, but have been suprised at the amount as well. They are having one in Liberty, while not the Golden Triangle it's pretty close and I have every intention of going. But if you're down here and see an newer model grey Chevy short wheel base that has a sticker saying "i love my ar15" and a fat bald guy driving thats me.

The whole KKK thing was because a judge in Houston decided to export his problems to A small city with One traffic light. The Rascists were imported from elsewhere. The black families that were moved out of Houston soon learned that there was absolutely nothing for them in a town where most people drove 40 miles one way to work. No social services, no bus, and the nearest welfare office was thirty miles away by trailways.

My baby sister married into a family in Buna and I got all of this info on the day of her wedding . Nothing like sitting around with a bunch of Big thicket boys and discussing the last 50 years of their history and drinking a lot of beer.

Quoted: WOW! Never realized there were so many Golden Triangle guys here on Arfcom.  Grew up in Bridge City, went to school in Beaumont, (Lamar), before transfering to Texas A&M...  Living in Dallas now, but we should organize a shoot somewhere in southeast tx, I would definately drive in for that! EPOCH

Kinda missed this one, eh?  Linky    

The housing in Beaumont has been shrinking in cost over the last few years significantly, which means you can get a lot of house for your money, but it may continue to decrease in value.  Still, if you don't plan on moving and your job is solid, you should do alright.  Plus, the cost of housing will stabilize there over time.  It always does.

Remember the Alamo, and God Bless Texas...

Quoted: I live in Beaumont, and work for the City of Beaumont. DO NOT and I repeat DO NOT move to Beaumont itself.....the school system which absolutely pathetic, trust me I spent better half of my time in Beaumont schools and I am much dumber because of it.

I dunno-your grammar, spelling, and punctuation bely that fact. Somewhere along the line, your edumacation was upgraded!

Quoted: Quoted: I live in Beaumont, and work for the City of Beaumont. DO NOT and I repeat DO NOT move to Beaumont itself.....the school system which absolutely pathetic, trust me I spent better half of my time in Beaumont schools and I am much dumber because of it. I dunno-your grammar, spelling, and punctuation bely that fact. Somewhere along the line, your edumacation was upgraded!

I have a bad habit of leaving out words when I type.  Maybe it was the high school ejahmuhcayshun I got in Buna that was the improvement.

Buna....I bet you know my sister......

Quoted: Buna....I bet you know my sister......

Probably, if not, I probably know the family she married into.

I agree with EPOCH96.  I did not know there were ANY SE Texans on the board.  And the Buna thing, I grewup in Buna, left in '79.

Quoted: I agree with EPOCH96.  I did not know there were ANY SE Texans on the board.  And the Buna thing, I grewup in Buna, left in '79.

Way before my time, moved there in 97 and left in 02. Very rarely go back, my parents still live there. It was a nice place, better than Beaumont. But I definitley do not feel I left anything there and that I can't forget.

I also am from that area, grew up in Nederland, my Dads family was all over in the deep woods, he was from Saratoga, my Grandfather was the 1st. blacksmith in the town. I still plan to move home when i can. Oh, i live in Vidor for 2 yrs. in the 60's it was a world away from the rest at that time.'nuff said. Later, Wayne B.

Anybody know where I can buy a lower receiver in the area?  Thanks

Quoted: Anybody know where I can buy a lower receiver in the area?  Thanks

He probably won't have one in stock, but might be able to order one or at the least do a FFL transfer ($20) for you if you want to order one online and have it shipped to him.  

Name's Jim Jordan and he's in Nederland.  Good guy, decent prices, and has a wicked selection of Kimbers  

Jim's Firearms (409) 722-4000

Hmm missed this thread...

I was born and grew up in beaumont.  I left in 03 and came to college station and I guess I was sheltered from all the ghettoness since I lived and normally stayed in the west end.  

I haven't been back in 8 months and I hear things are expanding much faster and that we've had a few new gun stores pop up.  

As far as schools, I wouldn't send my kids, if i had them, to anywhere but kelly for a HS and st.annes/all saints for grade school/junior high.  

Not  a bad area.  I like Hosuton better (wife is from Woodville-Tyler County), but its not a bad place at all.  

i don't blame her, woodville is just waht the name implies, woods.  We have a bunch of rental property out there and I spent a good part of my youth up there in ivanhoe.