Need info. on Longview, Tx

[misskitty100]

Please share anything and everything you know about Longview, Tx. We are considering relocating (due to a job opportunity) to this area and know nothing about it.

Specifically, what is the weather like, terrain (can you garden?), restaurants/shopping, outdoor activities and nearby communities etc.

Thank you!!

[sneezles]

Have only ever traveled through Longview but it is in a very pretty part of the Sate of Texas...the Piney Woods. It's closer to Dallas than Houston but very close to Shreveport. Here's the Chamber site (http://www.longviewchamber.com/community_data.php)

[Jazzmatazz49]

Longview has much better shopping than most small cities of similar size. It isn't far to Dallas, but it is a friendly town that's far enough away to avoid big city problems. There are good schools from what I've heard. You should visit before deciding to relocate anywhere, especially if you're not from this part of the world. I mean, Texas is Texas, and some people are not okay with that. I personally enjoyed the time I lived in Texas!! The terrain is rolling hills, the weather can include one or two snow days a year, but not every year. The summers are HOT! I live about an hour and a half from Longview, to the east of Shreveport.

[Jazzmatazz49]

oh, forgot to say that yes, you can garden. The first frost probably won't happen till mid to late November, if then. The problem is the intense heat in the summer. Flowers are just not as pretty here as in the northwest, because the heat is hard on them. I'm constantly in awe of the beautiful flowers when I go to Colorado in the summer. We just can't do it here. And the lawn will need lots of watering to stay green. I'm not sure where you live now, I think your profile says northwest. It will be different, that's for sure!

[jjsooner73]

As mentioned, it's a pretty area of Texas--the piney woods. Tall trees, rolling hills.
THe humidity in the summer is not fun! It's about a 2.5-3 hour drive from Dallas and only about 45 miles from Shreveport, where there is plenty of gambling if that's your thing.

[misskitty100]

Anybody else want to share???:)

[Bizsmom]

I just moved away from one of the Dallas suburbs after living in TX for 13 years...I had lots of friends from the Longview/Tyler area. It is a bit prettier than the DFW area, and definitely hot & humid in the summer. Winters are pretty mild. In my visits to east Texas I found the people to be pretty friendly, and a bit more "southern" than "Texan". Definitely go check it out in person.

Sizewize I'd say that it is a bigger, small town: maybe 100,000 or so. I don't know whether or not Longview has a mall, but I know that Tyler does. Longview has one hospital, Tyler has 2 or 3. All the chain restaurants are either in Tyler or Longview...

The soil is more acidic than the DFW area...and Tyler is known as the rose capital of TX. There are lots of azaleas grown in the area, too.

Good Luck!