General pros & cons of Sacramento (former 20-year
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8/8/2012
This review covers Sacramento itself, but the whole area going east to the foothills is a seamless mass of houses and roads, so you usually can't tell when you've crossed into another city unless you see a sign. Folsom seems more separated from the rest because of Lake Natoma (just a wide part of the American River) but it's mostly one big suburb. I list more cons than pros because those things are what prompted me to move away. Others might like it here just fine for their whole lives.
PROS: There are decent neighborhoods with good people in the mid-town and Land Park areas, especially. The American River Parkway is invaluable to have and the bike trail is generally well maintained. The parkway land was mainly spared development because of the river's floodplain. There really isn't much in the way of nature aside from land along the river and reservoirs to the east. Weather most of the year is very comfortable, with no snow to speak of and plenty of sun. The land is mostly flat, which makes for less complicated driving than some places. Relatively close access to the Sierra Nevada is convenient for escapism.
CONS: South Sacramento is crime-ridden and the trend has extended south to the once-decent town of Elk Grove. This is apparently due in part to "escapees" from bad sections of the Bay Area seeking cheaper housing, or just general overpopulation and a welfare mentality. Sacramento just gets more and more crowded, like the whole state (NPG would be welcome). The Del Paso Heights area north of downtown is similar to the south area but is trying to improve itself. You're likely to run into thuggy people in many parts of the city but it's probably no worse than any large urban area. Traffic can be bad, especially afternoon commutes headed east on 50 & 80 or south on 5, but most big metro areas are similar.
The summer heat can be oppressive at times, but it's more tolerable than places like Redding in terms of cooling down at night. Just don't live here if you like to be outside and can't cope with drawn-out summers. If you have good air-conditioning you'll survive fine indoors. Sacramento's air quality is among the worst in the nation, though I think it might be skewed by stagnant summer air patterns. I'd like to see air quality data by month. What many people call "allergies" might be partly due to smog, not just plant material. I noticed an improvement in my exercise lung capacity not long after leaving Sacramento for the Bay Area.
SUMMARY: Overall, I moved away because of the bad air, heat overload, a general impression of growing crime and thuggyness, plus I just wanted a change of scenery after being laid off from work. Every place has negatives but you can do much worse than Sacramento. It's sort of a reflection on California as a whole. People say they're "fed up" but the so-called greener pastures out of state may be an illusion. There's a reason why California is so crowded!
Nick | Sacramento, CA