Free Land

[rvijay]

http://www.kansasfreeland.com

[soilman]

I think they are offering homesite lots, not acres of farmland. Like 1-acre lots or something. Lots of places in the US, you can get land for $100 per acre or so. With a town a 2-hour drive away. On paved road mosts of the way. With access to electricity and phone lines. Typically you have to pay a bit to have a phone line and electricity brought in from the nearest line tho, cost depending upon how far away it is. You can always get satellite tv, but may not be able to get dsl or cable internet.

You still have to build your house, dig your water well, your septic tank. Which costs many 1000's. So a couple hundred dollars saved on free land, instead of say $200 for land, is not such a big deal.

This is mostly a publicity stunt to attract people to the area. Only a few people will be qualified for the free lots.

[soilman]

I don't know if I'd really like flat Kansas dust-bowl land.

I'd rather live in the Great Smokies. If you just want a homesite there -- land that is unfit for farming -- you can probably pick one up for about $30 in some places, for a couple acres. Hillsides with rocks -- but you can build on 'em.

Looking at the pictures of Kansas -- flat prarie is it? No trees!!!!!! Blah.

Smokie mountains is some of the most beautifully forested land in the whole effin world. Stunning flora.

And NO tornados -- the trees and mountainsides don't give 'em a chance.

No hurricanes. No floods. No mudslides (the deeprooted plants keep the soil down good). Earthquakes -- none in recorded history big enough to do any damage.

Cold winters tho. Not too awful tho.

[Ludi]

Any sort of land, even rocky land, can be made suitable for very small scale farming (not conventional) but of course you know that soilman! All you need is water.

[soilman]

"Any sort of land, even rocky land, can be made suitable for very small scale farming (not conventional) but of course you know that soilman!"

Well yea. But rocky land, on a steep hillside, is the hardest. You won't get anything the first year or 2. Fortunately, in the Smokies there will be lots of organic matter available from the zillions of acres of uninhbited woodland. But again, with steep hillsides, carting it from place to place is quite a chore. But yes, you can eek some decent plant growth out of rocky hillsides.

I really did fall in love with the Great Smokies. The land was stunning. The people all seemed like straight shooters. Unpretentious.

[edited: I got a call from Dolly Parton asking me to remove certain information]

[soilman]

I'm not sure, but I think you can use water from brooks and streams, "springs", in the Smokies. Pretty clean water. No need to dig a well. But you may have to investigate what is upstream, before you buy land. Make sure there is no polluter upstream. I'm just speculating. I know just about nothing about buying land. It is all very confusing.

[katt]

Haha! I think I may be the only Kansan on this board, so I'll say it for everyone.
No no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no! Unless you are looking to travel into Wichita (one of the more veg friendly cities here.. yet PETA (http://www.peta.org/feat/vegcities/worst.html) has made it #3 on the least veg friendly places in the US..) to get "vegetarian" things, you won’t have many choices.
Another thing you need to consider is... "farm.. farm... land.. feedlot.. land... more land.. slaughterhouse.. farm.. town.... farms.. more land.. ooh! another feedlot! farm.. slaughterhouse.. town.." to quote a friend.. In western Kansas.. you really can't survive being veg*n there.
From the omni point of view.. The towns are small, so if there's an emergency, there's not always a hospital or good doctor nearby.. The school districts are *very* small (some are consolidated, so you may have to send your kids on an hour bus ride every day to the nearest town..) and if you have special ed kids, there's most likely not going to be very many accommodations for them at these schools. (I know this from personal experience.) Tornadoes are definitely more common in this area of Kansas. And, for the ultra paranoid, the threat of BTK coming to kill you (those old men can be deadly, you know.. they strangle you with those arthritic hands and then 25 years later come and send all sorts of information to the #2 TV station in town..)
Unless you really love small towns and weren't veg*n, I wouldn't reccomend anyone going out to live there.

[rvijay]

katt: What are who is BTK ?

Soilman great info./posts thanks. In places where land is $30 an acre, shopping must be a problem, shops are usually far away with not much variety. Also mail and other services can also be a challenge.

Vijay

[rvijay]

I also understand that suicide rate is much higer in smaller towns than in cities. A search for suicide smaller towns on the net yields a few articles on that subject.

Vijay

[katt]

katt: What are who is BTK ?

Soilman great info./posts thanks. In places where land is $30 an acre, shopping must be a problem, shops are usually far away with not much variety. Also mail and other services can also be a challenge.

Vijay
BTK or "Bind Torture Kill" was a notorious serial killer in Wichita that strangled his victms. He now has resurfaced after a 20 year absence and has sent letters to the Wichita newspaper, the Wichita Police, and a TV station. I'll post some links for some sites.
Kansas.com (http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/news/special_packages/btk/)
Catch BTK (http://www.catchbtk.com/)
BTK Message Board (http://p216.ezboard.com/fcrimeandjustice13552frm100)
The Crime Library (http://www.crimelibrary.com/serial_killers/unsolved/btk/index_1.html)
KAKE TV (He has communicated with this station many times.) (http://www.kake.com/searchresults?searchKeywords=btk&section=%2F)
I know Wichita is very far away from these places offering free land, but if you're really paranoid.. You never know when an old man will try to strangle you.

[meatless]

LOL I saw a residential lot advertised in the city I live not too long ago... it was 30 ft wide by 100 ft deep and the asking price was $300,000. It wasn't even downtown or anything.

[SeaSiren]

BTK or "Bind Torture Kill" was a notorious serial killer in Wichita that strangled his victms. He now has resurfaced after a 20 year absence and has sent letters to the Wichita newspaper, the Wichita Police, and a TV station.
I don't like serial killers...they have issues.