Since I have a strong interest in guns and own a significant number, I'm considering moving to Missouri to keep them. I'll be commuting to Scott AFB daily and am looking for a good area for my family to live. My kids are between the ages of 5 and 13, so a family-friendly neighborhood with good schools is important.

If you move there or close, I know a good gun shop the owner is a buddy if mine, worked with him night and day fir over a decade.   He is also a Ham and a member here...

I think it's called Sotiera Solutions, not 100% on the spelling but deffinitly a good dude.
His shop is in Granite City I believe and I think he has a range too.

It goes without saying, but to commute to Scott from Missouri you have to cross the river. There are limited options. Your path across the river is either at downtown St. Louis or down south near Mehlville or Arnold area. I suggest you choose the southern option. You're looking at a 45 minute to hour commute at best.

I dunno if its their gun laws, taxes, roads, all those and more or what but between my Gunclub, my ham club and here, I must know 15 guys that have moved over here to escape living there in the last 5-8 years...

I agree with this advice.

I’m okay with hour or less commute to work, ideally would be closer to 45 minutes. To me owning and haveing the ability to defend in my home is more important than a long drive.

Dude you can own guns in Illinois.  You can own ARs in Illinois.

Just to clarify, I own a machine gun, a 40 mm launcher, multiple SBRs an SBS, several suppressors, and a large number of magazines with capacities exceeding 30 rounds.

Yep !!  you better come on over to Missouri
and make the best of it .

Ah.  Obviously a man of taste and excellence.

Yes-you need to be in Missouri.

Since you have kids in school, I would recommend the west county area. Rockwood and kirkwood districts are a couple of the best in the state.

Here's the exact map of Rockwood if it makes a difference.  Fenton and within in the Rockwood Summit area would be good.

Attached File

No matter where you live that commute is going to blow.

Driving it during non rush hours sucks enough.

But yeah, you’re going to want to live in Jefferson, Franklin, or St Charles counties.

There’s a ferry crossing at St Gen. I don’t know how far of a commute that would be but St Gen county is nice.

There’s another bridge at Cape but that would probably be way too far.

ETA - there’s a bridge at Chester too. Shoot straight north on 15 it’s a hair over an hour. Buy a place around Perryville and you’ve got a nice rural area with really affordable housing and under a 1.5 hour commute.

I’d take that before I’d take St. Louis.

If you can get outside the 270 Loop in West County taking either 44 or 64 to Scott you have a 45-50 mile drive.

I am in Unincorporated St. Louis County close to Manchester. Parkway school district is a decent system almost at the level of Rockwood school district.

Eureka in the Rockwood district is a 50 mile drive from Scott via highway 44 (not super crazy traffic). Rockwood district does have high property taxes. Parkway system property taxes are not as high as Rockwood.

Caution: Taking Highway 64 back and forth the whole way from Scott into West County/Parkway school system area can have some really heavy traffic from downtown St. Louis to the 270 Loop.

As mentioned, South County is not a bad area and down 55 through Arnold and to the Imperial area. South of Imperial and you are getting out of your targeted driving radius.
Southwest you can get out as far as Fenton which is at your targeted driving radius also.

I moved from Illinois to Missouri in 1997 because of the gun laws, high state taxes and high property taxes (don't regret my decision one bit). If you can make something work out for you in Missouri do it. Gas is typically cheaper in Missouri than it is in Illinois also.

What other people have said - absolutely live in MO.

I live in the city (St Louis Hills) and commute over to Scott AFB, four times a week. The commute honestly isn't that bad. Traffic in the area is fairly tolerable - nothing miserable like Nashville, etc. If you are able to, I would strongly recommend trying to work a 6-2 or 7-3 type of shift, or swings. The gate traffic at Scott can get really bad towards 8a. I only use the main gate, but know the Belleville gate can get backed up or sometimes not even opened up.

Where will you be working at on base?

https://www.scottafbhousing.com/gates

I live in Arnold.

I would recommend staying in Arnold or Oakville that way the highway jump is right there.

Telegraph & 255 is the highway you need to be at that is a strait shoot over the river then you actually drive around the bad areas and can hit 64 to Scott AFB.  The commute will be 30ish minutes from that on ramp but easy drive not much traffic until you get to base.  

In Arnold it will add another 10ish mins to your commute.  How deep in Oakville or Arnold you are will add another 5-15mins of driving through lights until you hit the highway.  

I may soon be putting my house on the market too and it has a secret gun room im just saying