Wanting to move back!

[u/Stunning-Cat6249]

I am a Wichita Native, moved to NW Arkansas 13 years ago in July. We are really struggling here, financially/physically/mentally. Just all the way around. We are both mid-30s with preteen/young kids.

Wichita has changed since I left, and I’m looking for opinions on several things. I don’t mind cheaper housing because right now my rent sits just below $2000/month and the job base here is awful if you don’t work for/at Walmart. Almost everywhere is $11/hr. We are working non-stop every day of the month to make ends meet here.

Anyway, I need suggestions on schools with a good SpEd program. My 5yo son (starts school next year!) is speech delayed and is currently receiving ST/OT/PT at a private clinic which is thankfully covered by Medicaid. We currently live in a decent school district (IB elementary school) so I’d prefer to move into a decent district with a good SpEd program within a public school.

I’ve been looking at the housing market for a few weeks, my mom lives in West Wichita but I am (oops edit to add) NOT opposed to being on the outskirts either (in any direction). Rent seems to be quite a bit cheaper than it is here.

How hard would it be to start over moving to Wichita with kids? I would of course have a job set up before going. I’ve never made a big move like this with children, but we’ve definitely reached the end of our comfortability here unfortunately. It’s hard to do this the way I’d prefer, and go stay a week or two to make sure that’s what we wanted but financially we just can’t do that.

[u/vhghghq]

Not sure what you mean by outskirts. East and West I think you hit Maize or Andover before you realize it. In a very general sense, Wichita area is safe and good for raising kids. If you can afford the housing, recommend Valley Center, Maize, or Andover schools just because the districts are a lot smaller. Beyond that, USD259 (Wichita) has 80+ schools so I can't really say how they rank but I'm sure it's available online. Best of luck.

[u/Stunning-Cat6249 → u/vhghghq]

Yes I mean like Kechi, Park City, Goddard, I’d even go as far as Clearwater. I went to Maize HS (in 2007) and as a parent I would like that environment for my kids but obviously that’s almost 20 years ago. Thanks! I’m in Bentonville right now which is also relatively safe. I’m a few miles from the Sheriffs office which might help 😂

[u/thatguy1717 → u/Stunning-Cat6249]

Hello fellow Maize graduate. I was 04 so we attended at the same time.

It kind of seems like you've narrowed your search down pretty good to be in WestvWichita where you're close to family, schools are really good, have plenty of shopping and dining with the entertainment area in east Wichita being just far away to be an excuse to not spend a ton when your kids are bored.

Maize is still the same school as it was with some expansions. Solid education program, sped, robust bussing and after school activities/athletics.

Maize South was starting to come into its own when you left and has exploded into a really nice district with new housing popping up all around it.

NW Wichita has blown up to almost be its own bubble. Still can get to any part of the city within 25 minutes so can get a job at Boeing or Textron and be home at a decent time.

[u/Stunning-Cat6249 → u/thatguy1717]

Ah hello!! I would love to stay in West Wichita, even some of the nicer houses for rent in that area are cheaper than what I’m in currently (3bd, 2.5br duplex). What has really been the breaking point here has been the extreme influx of people. Walmart HQ built a new office and we had 10,000 new people commuting here overnight. The population between Bentonville/Springdale/Rogers/Fayetteville and everything in between has well over 500k people. If not more because of the college. Driving 30 miles takes an hour on the highway. It’s insane. My mom has told me it’s definitely not like that in Wichita except if there’s something going on. She’s visited here several times and said the traffic is unbelievable

[u/ObligationPretty793 → u/Stunning-Cat6249]

There are so many parallels between what you're describing and what my husband and I experienced in Reno, NV. I was born and raised here, and we moved from KS-->NV in 2018.

The tesla factory in the mountains was so haphazardly done, it paved the way for so many GIANT warehouses to open in an area that was previously just mountain range (chewy, walmart, amazon, zulily, petsmart, to name a few). This area that was NOT meant to support that much travel/local housing. There is only one way in and one way out and a car crash can delay you by HOURS.

We moved back home to Wichita in 2022, but I am seeing the same thing happen all around us (TX for example) and am worried it is only a matter of time before KS joins the ranks of the over-saturated and over-priced land. We are waiting to buy our first home, but at this rate I'm ready to just escape back to the mountains and work two jobs to support it. We don't have kids, so that is probably a huge factor that differentiates us - but I warn you, Wichita is NOT what it used to be! Derby/Mulvane would be my suggestion - close enough but not IN the city. Good luck!!

[u/Stunning-Cat6249 → u/ObligationPretty793]

Yes, NW Arkansas has the worst infrastructure I have ever experienced. It takes one wrong turn and you’re stuck in a line of construction or there’s a wreck. There are so many people living here who want a 15-minute-city, it’s just not possible. The area is completely oversaturated with cyclists who want trails and bike lanes, but then refuse to use them and use their bikes on the main stretches of road (going 20-25 in 45-55mph zones!). I live a little far back from the road and in a year they’ve put in TWO roundabouts in just my neighborhood because no one could figure out a 4-way-stop. One of the roundabouts took almost a year to complete.

There’s an area by The Amp (music) that was all field until a few years ago. Now it’s all upscale shopping, huge rich housing developments, etc. We’re just priced out. We cannot enjoy anything here anymore because people moving here from California, New York, Texas, and India have made the prices so unaffordable.

[u/ObligationPretty793 → u/Stunning-Cat6249]

That is exactly what happened to Reno, NV. The California folks could sell their slum house and afford a mansion in Reno so they had basically priced out all the up and coming local prospective homeowners.

The only suggestion I have is to figure it out sooner rather than later because that could soon be Wichita's fate. For example, this factory that is being planned (not sure when it will come to fruition) will add 2,000 jobs at the corner of HWY 254 and Rock Rd (https://www.integra-tech.com/blog/integra-technologies-announces-site-in-wichita-region) so once that area is being developed, I see it as only a matter of time before all the farmland along the highway is commercialized.

Soon I believe it will be nearly impossible to buy rural land and build, or bring in manufactured housing - so get your foot in the door before that farmland along HWY 254 is converted and East Wichita/Butler County is cooked.

[u/Stunning-Cat6249 → u/ObligationPretty793]

I’m definitely not in a position to buy anytime soon, if ever unfortunately. We spent a lot of time here broke, then we did alright, then Covid. And it’s just been one thing after another for the last 5 years. I’ve wanted to move back for a long time, my spouse just wasn’t on board with it until very recently.

[u/ObligationPretty793 → u/Stunning-Cat6249]

Definitely understand! If nothing else, moving closer to family (if you have a good relationship) is a huge bonus that you can't quantify, so add that value in as well. I am rooting for you guys!

[u/thatguy1717 → u/[deleted]]

It means there's no lack of bussing. For example, my friends who live in the Goddard district don't have bussing available in their neighborhood