Not as good as it used to be
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6/28/2006
Sadly, I have seen the Medford area deteriorate in many ways in the past year. The cost of living has increased dramatically, the wages are still astonishingly low, and the state income taxes are the second highest in the nation. Health insurance is not provided by most employers. Granted, there's no sales tax but if you don't have anything to spend it's a moot point. The air quality is poor on many days (it's called *haze* up here) and traffic is unbelievable. There seems to be never ending roadwork going on which does nothing to alleviate the problem. All of a sudden we're seeing a lot of the superficiality (expensive foreign cars, half mil homes on the golf course, plastic surgery, etc) that is so prevalent in many areas of CA. The drug problem - methamphetamine - is old hat but still here and the jails are overcrowded to the point that a lot of druggies are released on their own recognizance. Culturally, there is very little to recommend Medford and I shudder to think of the education most children in this area are receiving. The nearest *big* city is 4-1/2 hours away which sounds nice at first but turns out to be a disadvantage in the long run. This being the Pacific Northwest it IS pretty wet in the fall/winter/spring - although not as wet as more northern spots - but also very hot in the summer and frequently humid. If you need sunshine - you're out of luck.
The good points? Absolutely stellar weather for about 3 weeks in spring, 3 weeks in fall, and occasionally a day or 2 here and there. Outdoor activities are pretty fantastic during that time and you can fish, hunt, hike, camp, ski, snowboard, etc - whatever you'd like, really. Low, low auto registration, the afore mentioned lack of sales tax. Hmmmm.....I honestly can't think of much else unless you're retired and then the bad points aren't really a problem.
Paula | Gold Hill, OR