Station/Boat Location~
Galveston
Date there~
July 2000 - current
Weather~
It is very hot in the summertime, upper 90's most days. Not as much humidity, which surprised me, for the most part, as you get down near the Gulf in Texas City or Galveston.
Military facilities~
There is a small CG Exchange at Group Galveston, uniforms, kitchen appliances, kid's toys, home decor items, for example.
There is also a small AFB Exchange at Ellington Field AFB which is east of I-45 off the Dixie Farm Road exit about 2 miles to Highway 3. They seem to keep a lot of toys stocked here.
Medical~
There is no Military Treatment Facility located in the immediate area. The nearest MTF's are in San Antonio, which is about a 3 hour, or so, drive to the west of us. There you have Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland Air Force Base and Brooks Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston.
There seem to be quite a few TRICARE Prime doctors in this area. We were also recommended to a fabulous dentist who handles children and his wife deals with the adults.
Housing~
There is no base housing in this area. If you qualify for government quarters you would go through the Contracting Officer (Realtor) for this area. Otherwise you have to look for housing on your own.
FYI: Many Leasors go through Property Management agencies to list their homes and the home will also list on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). If you go through an agency bear in mind that your lease amount will include their fee (10% is added onto the Leasors mortgage payment, which could be up to $100 added onto your lease). We picked up a MLS listing, but we also chose to just go through the neighborhoods and found a Leasor that advertised on his own and probably got a better price. You can check out what the different neighborhoods look like by going to the Houston Area of Realtors website at www.har.com . It’s a great resource for checking out rentals and homes for sale.
Shopping~
Where does one begin? I-45 is littered with shopping from Webster to League City.
Baybrook Mall, Baybrook Village, all sorts of mini-malls, lots of restaurants, a huge Hobby Lobby store, Home Depot, Discovery Zone, Bed, Bath and Beyond, Linens'n'Things, ToysRUs, Baby'sRUs, the Room Store, Sam's Club, WalMart...lots and lots of shopping, the list just goes on.
Grocery stores include Randalls (same chain as Safeway/Vons), Krogers, HEB Stores (they have the best store brands and I don't buy store brands usually), to name a few.
Child Care/Schools~
From what I've been told by many people, the Clear Creek Independent School District is a highly rated school district. There are quite a few private schools and childcare facilities. Most all of your churches host Moms Day Out programs of some kind.
Adult Schools~
There are community colleges and University of Texas branches all over. There is also an Embry-Riddle Aero University.
Fun Activities~
Each city has its own calendar of events throughout the year.
Attractions in this area include: the Liberty Tree and Time Capsule set up on July 4, 1976, in Friendswood, Nolan Ryan Statue in Alvin, Space Center Houston (NASA) in Clear Lake area, West Bay Common School Children's Museum in League City, Astrodome and Astroworld and Waterworld, a Six Flags Water Park, Kemah Boardwalk (east of League City).
Also, down in Galveston is the famous Moody Gardens which hosts an IMAX theater, Discovery Museum, Aquarium, Rainforest Pyramid, Education programs. Really a neat looking setting overall with all of the Pyramids.
Additional Info~
Telephone:
Verizon, GTE Southwest; Southwestern Bell; or AT&T (apparently local service is new for AT&T) for your local, local toll and long distance services.
Cable:
Time-Warner Communications. SBC/Dish.
Electricity:
Harris County - Houston Lighting and Power; Galveston County - Texas-New Mexico Power Company. Many others now that it has been de-regulated.
Natural Gas:
Reliant Energy - Entex
Water/Sewer/Garbage:
Harris County Municipal Utility District (MUD); Trash Pickup for Harris County: Waste Management; billed quarterly for trash and recycling.
Galveston County; Water/Sewer/Garbage: Texas-New Mexico Power Company.
I love the fact that we're close to the big city (Houston), but don't have to deal with big city life. Its very easy to get around to most anything you want to do.
You can see for miles, so if you get on top of a bridge, enjoy the view. It's very flat here.
Sincerely,
Peggy
Homeport TX
Galveston
Date there~
July 2000 - current
Weather~
It is very hot in the summertime, upper 90's most days. Not as much humidity, which surprised me, for the most part, as you get down near the Gulf in Texas City or Galveston.
Military facilities~
There is a small CG Exchange at Group Galveston, uniforms, kitchen appliances, kid's toys, home decor items, for example.
There is also a small AFB Exchange at Ellington Field AFB which is east of I-45 off the Dixie Farm Road exit about 2 miles to Highway 3. They seem to keep a lot of toys stocked here.
Medical~
There is no Military Treatment Facility located in the immediate area. The nearest MTF's are in San Antonio, which is about a 3 hour, or so, drive to the west of us. There you have Wilford Hall Medical Center at Lackland Air Force Base and Brooks Army Medical Center at Fort Sam Houston.
There seem to be quite a few TRICARE Prime doctors in this area. We were also recommended to a fabulous dentist who handles children and his wife deals with the adults.
Housing~
There is no base housing in this area. If you qualify for government quarters you would go through the Contracting Officer (Realtor) for this area. Otherwise you have to look for housing on your own.
FYI: Many Leasors go through Property Management agencies to list their homes and the home will also list on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). If you go through an agency bear in mind that your lease amount will include their fee (10% is added onto the Leasors mortgage payment, which could be up to $100 added onto your lease). We picked up a MLS listing, but we also chose to just go through the neighborhoods and found a Leasor that advertised on his own and probably got a better price. You can check out what the different neighborhoods look like by going to the Houston Area of Realtors website at www.har.com . It’s a great resource for checking out rentals and homes for sale.
Shopping~
Where does one begin? I-45 is littered with shopping from Webster to League City.
Baybrook Mall, Baybrook Village, all sorts of mini-malls, lots of restaurants, a huge Hobby Lobby store, Home Depot, Discovery Zone, Bed, Bath and Beyond, Linens'n'Things, ToysRUs, Baby'sRUs, the Room Store, Sam's Club, WalMart...lots and lots of shopping, the list just goes on.
Grocery stores include Randalls (same chain as Safeway/Vons), Krogers, HEB Stores (they have the best store brands and I don't buy store brands usually), to name a few.
Child Care/Schools~
From what I've been told by many people, the Clear Creek Independent School District is a highly rated school district. There are quite a few private schools and childcare facilities. Most all of your churches host Moms Day Out programs of some kind.
Adult Schools~
There are community colleges and University of Texas branches all over. There is also an Embry-Riddle Aero University.
Fun Activities~
Each city has its own calendar of events throughout the year.
Attractions in this area include: the Liberty Tree and Time Capsule set up on July 4, 1976, in Friendswood, Nolan Ryan Statue in Alvin, Space Center Houston (NASA) in Clear Lake area, West Bay Common School Children's Museum in League City, Astrodome and Astroworld and Waterworld, a Six Flags Water Park, Kemah Boardwalk (east of League City).
Also, down in Galveston is the famous Moody Gardens which hosts an IMAX theater, Discovery Museum, Aquarium, Rainforest Pyramid, Education programs. Really a neat looking setting overall with all of the Pyramids.
Additional Info~
Telephone:
Verizon, GTE Southwest; Southwestern Bell; or AT&T (apparently local service is new for AT&T) for your local, local toll and long distance services.
Cable:
Time-Warner Communications. SBC/Dish.
Electricity:
Harris County - Houston Lighting and Power; Galveston County - Texas-New Mexico Power Company. Many others now that it has been de-regulated.
Natural Gas:
Reliant Energy - Entex
Water/Sewer/Garbage:
Harris County Municipal Utility District (MUD); Trash Pickup for Harris County: Waste Management; billed quarterly for trash and recycling.
Galveston County; Water/Sewer/Garbage: Texas-New Mexico Power Company.
I love the fact that we're close to the big city (Houston), but don't have to deal with big city life. Its very easy to get around to most anything you want to do.
You can see for miles, so if you get on top of a bridge, enjoy the view. It's very flat here.
Sincerely,
Peggy
Homeport TX
