Slowly succumbing to endless growth
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6/2/2006
California keeps growing by 500,000 people annually and Sacramento hasn't escaped the bloat. Traffic jams are people problems, not car problems. I've seen gradual negative changes in the past 20 years. There are more jobs but more people are competing for them, so it's a zero sum game. Air quality has deteriorated but it was never great. There are too many criminal types and their numbers keep growing.
On the bright side, Sacramento has the American River Parkway, spared from development by a flood plain. It contains many miles of trails and you can almost pretend you're not in a city. Sacramento is centrally located between the Sierra and the Pacific, which is the main reason I chose it. Summers get hot but humidity is relatively low. The climate in spring and fall is quite nice and winters are mild.
Overall, I'd give Sacramento and its suburbs a 6 out of 10 in quality of life but I don't like big cities in general. It's probably as good as any major metro area and it beats Los Angeles.
Nick | Sacramento, CA