I was wondering if anyone out there can tell me the best place to live near Holland, Mi. We were looking at the areas around there and the schools do not seem super terrific and there seems to be a greater amount of crime then other small towns. Can anyone help me out?? We do have children and would like a very community oriented area-safe with good schools...

Crime? What makes you think so?
Where have you looked so far?
Where will you be employed?
What attributes constitute "community-oriented" in your view?

Tomboy:
We have looked at all the websites we can find including areaconnect.com The larceny and rapes look especially high for such a small town. We were looking at Holland and Grand Haven. Also the schools seem to be lacking in the amount of high school grads that choose a four year college.
As far as a strong community we would desire good schools, safe streets, community events, larger town near-by, and lots of churches to choose from.

I believe the Holland/Grand Haven area is just about the most "conservative" thinking area in all of Michigan. The teachings of the Dutch Reformed Church is deeply ingrained in the life styles of area residents. Not a bad thing, just definately profound in the area.

I can't speak for the quality of the school systems there; I have acquaintances in the region though, who graduated from a number of west Michigan high schools and were accepted--then graduated from University of Michigan, Notre Dame, MSU, Vanderbilt...Isn't it up to a student to make the most of an opportunity?

As I live in Holland, and am apparently totally oblivious to all the crime going on all around me, I'm curious which websites you're looking at. Yes, there are two areas where crime seems to predominate, with a high % of Hispanic and Asian minorities, but there aren't any $200,000 houses there. Five miles away, you'll find $600,000 houses with no crime, just as in Pittsburgh or Cleveland.
Holland, West Ottawa, Grand Haven, Spring Lake, Zeeland, Hamilton, Saugatuck would be school districts you should check out.
My guess is you'll end up either near Lake Michigan or in Zeeland.
Holland has Hope College; many retirees with Hope connections have moved back to Holland upon retirement.
Grand Rapids is 30 minutes away

Did you decide to stay in Pittsburgh?

You might want to now seriously consider Kalamazoo. Donors have promised free college tuition to every high school graduate. If your children are not in high school yet, definitly check it out. It is called the Kalamazoo Promise or some such thing.

Hey Tomboy... I live in Holland, too. These alligations of crime in Holland are laughable. It really is a little too safe as far as I'm concerned although one of my favorite stories for those traveling to far away places on these boards is 'you can get killed crossing the street'... which nearly happened to me in my home town of Holland by an elderly person who was 'watching the traffic' instead of where they were turning.

Schools claw; consider Zeeland, West Ottawa or Holland Christian. I honestly don't know where you found such articles about crime in Holland. I have a friend (single female) that leaves her door unlocked in the worst area of Holland (she is a true naturalist and could be considered a hippie) and has never had a problem. Sure there is some crime but really it is very safe and you will definitly have a LARGE selection of churches to choose. It is wonderful in the summer.

I am relocating from Grand Rapids to Holland this coming summer. I, too, have kids and did some digging into schools. I would suggest you look at the northern area of Holland (West Olive, Park Township, Grand Haven) or east of Holland (Zeeland, Hudsonville, Jenison). The Eastern areas are a lot more conservative (don't even think about mowing your lawn on a Sunday - you'll get run out of town).

Some "seedy" areas are located in the lower income, transient worker regions of City of Holland. Even then, I have never been concerned for my safety while in Holland area - ever!

South of there, you will find Allegan and Saugatuck. Allegen is more "back woods" while Saugatuck is more "artsy, small town" chic. Saugatuck is across the Kalamazoo River from Douglas, a area known for it's highly homosexual population and concentration of artists. I like the Douglas area but more conservative types might shy away.

Hope this info is helpful and welcome to Michigan!

I know the areas farther away from the big Lake. You may not be considering this yet. Remember, the closer to L. Michigan you get, the more inflated vacation properities, not in my mind real year round vibrant communities, although most of these mentioned are active. But I'm not so sure about family user friendly with kids. There is a small town called Three Oaks that advertises high state grammar school scores and it's near to New Buffalo and quite South of Holland, near the IN border. I've been through that one a lot and it seems extremely family and school conscious.

Farther in, if you move into the Kalamazoo school district- you are promised full college tuition for any public state Michigan University. If the child is enrolled beginning at or before the 9th grade, it is 95 or 100% free. Even moving in during the Sophomore Year of H.S. gives you 75% free tuition etc. grandfathered % follows. 6 very rich donors have infused immense funds into Kalamazoo area. Univ. of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan State- great school choices abound with this plan. I never looked at the stats but the population is diverse, every economic group absolutely, and they seem to have a huge amount of family friendly programs. Also the smaller towns revolve around Friday Night High School football during Fall and have active parent groups and festivals throughout the year. I've seen some of their projects and programs.

The area is also surrounded by little lakes and you could actually live on lake front or lake access.

But Holland and the Lake Michigan communities are fine, as are many of the small, small towns East of those areas.

Crime is miniscule compared to any city, although there was a recent small riot in Benton Harbor not even two years ago. But the burning harmed the residents' properties and those who started the fire possessions more than anyone else's.

I am very moderate politically, and I would have had on one issue an extremely hard time with the Dutch Reform influence myself. And it does color Holland's local ordinances. The Amish are much more tolerant of others agendas, IMHO- although they might be entirely different than their own. But I don't think it overwhelms all areas of Holland as stated.

Look into Paw Paw- it seems a town on its way up and I bet it would have terrific house appreciation in the next few years. It's right on I-94 at Exit 60 too, making it easier to access Holland for work. It has lots of pluses and is large, besides being surrounded by beautiful lake country, vineyards, fruit farms and useable skiing areas.

These areas have much less snow than they used to have. In summer it's almost always cooler near the big Lake- but it is never ever as hot or as humid as it is in Chicago.

Holland area is a great place to live!! I would suggest Zeeland or Hamilton for the schools. Excellent school systems with great parent support and involvement!! Hamilton is a small community south of Holland which is wonderful. Zeeland is also great. They are both conservative Christian Communities and are wonderful safe places to raise children. Friendly warm people! Don't believe everything you read. Come visit the area, talk to people from the schools, churches, community. I've never felt unsafe or that I live a dangerous community! I'm shocked by those statements!!

My sister and her family live in Hudsonville and they LOVE it! They moved mostly because of schools (they were previously in Wyoming, MI - not too far away).