Published: May 17, 2008 11:54 pm         

Enid housing market is steady despite wider crisis

THUMBS UP

It’s good news home values in Enid and Garfield County continue to increase, even as the housing market slumps nationally. Oklahoma has been somewhat sheltered from the real estate crisis facing many metropolitan areas.

The news in Enid is home values are up significantly; however, there have been fewer home sales in the first quarter than a year ago. Enid continues to need homes in the $85,000 to $100,000 range. There aren’t enough of those homes on the market.

We hope the positive trend of increasing values continues, but we should cautiously watch the market. There are reasons to believe we will continue to fare well, as signs of the national housing crisis are starting to stabilize. That’s good news for Enid.



THUMBS UP

Thumbs up to a new Web site that helps residents and community organizations research grant opportunities for classroom resources and projects.



THUMBS UP

The site, www.donorschoose.org, posts teachers’ grants, with descriptions of the proposed project and costs of materials. Community members and organizations can log on and find projects they like and make contributions to those projects. People can give whatever they want, from a few dollars to a hundred dollars, to help these teachers with their classroom projects.

Local teachers already are seeing the benefits of this site, but it needs more attention. We encourage readers to go to the site and see if there is a project they can identify with.



THUMBS UP

Thumbs up and congratulations to Dean Ladusau for being named the Oklahoma Funeral Director of the Year. Ladusau owns and operates Ladusau-Evans Funeral Home in Enid.

We appreciate the professionalism and pride Ladusau takes in providing a valuable service to the community. Being named funeral director of the year is an incredible honor bestowed by his peers.



THUMBS UP

Thumbs up to the 4R Kids Putt Putt golf course for becoming more handicapped-accessible.

This golf course has been a labor of love for the local group, which works to provide job opportunities for its clients. Adults can work at the golf course and have a viable job. The other long-term vision is to build a vocational center to provide more jobs for their clients.

We hope people of Enid support this golf course and contribute what they can to this endeavor.



THUMBS DOWN

Thumbs down to the fact elementary school kids are now being caught with illegal drugs or marijuana at school, but we have to give a thumbs up to the Enid school district for acknowledging the problem.

School officials were candid with us when we contacted them. Parents have reported the school did let them know, and many parents say they feel comfortable with the way the school handled it.

Schools are facing more and more tough issues with students — issues they shouldn’t have to deal with, particularly at the elementary level. It’s important these students are interviewed by police to know exactly where they got the drugs — and actions need to be taken accordingly to find and prosecute the people they received the drugs from.