Phoenix: Pluses and Minuses
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4/11/2008
I lived in the Valley of the Sun for 18 years and heres the word.
The Good: Phoenix is within 4 hours drive of L.A. and Vegas. I recall popping over to L.A. on the weekends to watch the Lakers/Suns playoff games. Also, it's about 5.5 hours to Rocky Point Mexico which, at one time, was a nice little laid back Mexican fishing village on the Gulf of Baja(I'm sorry to say that now it's getting very commercialized and plastic). Also,if you're an outdoors lover the mountains to the north and east make a wonderful getaway from the dessert heat. Weekend camping trips to the red rock country around Sedona are among my favorite memories. Arizona Snowbowl in Flaggstaff is really one of the hidden jewels for skiing, snowboarding and downhill mountain biking and it's just a short 2.5 hours north of Phoenix. The Valley also has some great spots to climb and mountain bike. South Mountain park is about 20 minutes from downtown and can be ridden year round. The trails have plenty of jumps and washes to catch air off of so get that Giant out of the garage and get to it if you've got the stones to do so. Hiking Camelback was also one of my favorite things to do. Camelback is a huge redrock mountain near the middle of the city that provides a challenging climb and a wonderful view. This may sound odd but most of the people in the Phoenix area seem to be in good shape. I live in Kansas City now and there is a noticeable difference in the number of chunky people in the midwest as compared to the west. The phoenix economy is unmatched. If you can't find a job there then you just are'nt looking. Dessert landscaping is not for everyone but having since moved away I miss the Cacti and Palm Trees that used to line the streets of the neighborhood in which I grew up.
Now the Bad: Traffic is pretty bad. Summers are absolutely brutal. Forget about going outside between May and September and don't even bother to shower during these months because you'll be instantly drenched in sweat the moment you step outdoors. Crime is really bad. I believe Phoenix has the third highest car theft rate in the nation. Tempe has the dubious honor of being number one in this category. Lots of illegal immigrants. I spent the better part of my youth there so it didnt bother me. I enjoy the Mexican culture, food and people however this seems to bother a lot of people I talk to. If you're planning on moving there it'd do you well to at least have a cursory knowledge of the Spanish language. Also, this is neither good nor bad, but the ethnic diversity is minimal. Mostly white and hispanic, very few blacks, orientals or middle easterners. Housing is pretty expensive as compared to the midwest but seems comparable to other large cities in the region. $250,000 will get you a decent 3br/2ba in an ok neighborhood in one of the burbs. Knock that price up about $100,000 if you want something centrally located. In general , the people are very unfriendly, snobbish and a little disgruntled (probably because their dehydrated). There is a small outdoor/REI/adventure community in the Vally that are open and accepting but these people are far in between and few. Forget about Scottsdale. It's full of some World Champion snobbs drunk on their own egos. Most of the Valleys neighborhoods are very young and were built up in the 90's and early 2000's. Unfortunately this means that most of the homes are ugly, cheap, stucco style ranches which tend to give the neighborhoods that 'prison block/army barricks feel that I did not care for. Landscaping in these neighborhoods consists of front yards filled with rock and cacti. On the other hand this also means that you dont have to spend your weekend mowing the lawn or raking the leaves. The older neighborhoods in Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa and Scottsdale do have some nice homes with grass and palm tree landscaping but again, since these neighborhoods are more centrally located they tend to be quite a bit more pricey.
This should give you some insight. I tried to remain unbiased by sighting observations while offering only a few opinions. I lived in Phoenix for 18 years. Went to high school and college there and enjoyed the time I spent there. Hopefully you will too.
Brett | Kansas City, MO