Scenic, but with a price
-
12/28/2009
This little town is nestled in thick green forests of Gold Country. The weather is warm most of the year, with only light rain in winter. Some snow, but very little ice. For shopping there is almost nothing (unless you love KMart), requiring a trip down the hill to Auburn (about 15 miles) and the restaraunts are just average (in quality, the prices are sky high). Grass Valley and next door Nevada City are very historic, with lots of architecture and relics from California's gold rush. Unfortunately, the negatives mostly outweigh the positives for this area. Cost of living is ridiculous; homes less than fifty years old are almost all well over $300 K. That's why you'll see tons of little shacks on tiny plots all over town (even on main street). Traffic is bad because it's California, and also the roads are old, small, worn out and badly designed (get used to cars backed up through three or four stoplights). The whole town seems carved out of the hilly forests, so everything is squeezed in (many houses and places of business have their front doors less than ten feet from the street). The surrounding forests are also a haven for the criminal element. Anti-government survivalist types waiting for the apocolypse and druggies cooking meth are pretty common. Residents seem either very wealthy (to afford the ridiculous homes) or very poor (who live in the shacks). Also, young people between the ages of 18-28 seem an endangered species; mostly its families with young children or retirement aged. Sacramento is only an hour to the west, Reno 90 minutes to the east. If you don't mind paying for the beauty and suffocating in the crowds and traveling long distance for shopping and entertainment, then maybe you can handle Grass Valley.
frank | Grass Valley, CA