Born in Show Low, AZ and have lived here on two separate occasions for a total of 12 plus years. The town is small, know this first before considering moving here. There is low income housing and there are higher rents as well. The houses are overpriced, compared to other areas and states. The cost of living is on a higher scale, thanks to tourism and mass exodus of people from CA. Yes, a lot of one time CA residents are moving this way. There is skiing, hiking and wildlife, but you "DO NOT" see them on the side of the road on a daily basis, as one poster claimed. You do however have a good chance of hitting an elk or deer with your car on some of the more rural roads. There is only "one" main road, named the Deuce of Clubs. The main employers are Wal-Mart and yes, the hospital. Some of the other employers are fast food chains, of which you have..1 burger king, 1 taco bell, 1 Denny's, 1 pizza hut, 1 dominoes, 1 Arby's and 1 Jack in the box. There may be a couple more I am not listing. There is one very small, theater,Safeway grocery and a small Kmart. You will not find a mall here. Yes, the town has a large Mormon population and a few other religious branches as well. There is also a small Pagan population, mostly all in the closet, so to speak. There is a huge problem with Meth. Do not believe anyone trying to tell you otherwise. Very small police force,and drugs are not on the top of their list. The schools are not the best in the state, keep that in mind. Vandalism has increased greatly also, from car vandalism to graffiti. There have been homicides, including one at our local Wal-Mart. Is education going to help you with a job? In some small way, if you choose nursing, but regardless the cost of living for food and other stuffs, is outrageous. Your electric service choices are Navapache and APS. APS is outrageous and charges delivery service fees that fluctuate from 50.00 in the summer all the way up 108.00 in the winter. NOTE: that is not your electric use, but an additional charge to your 'real' bill on each monthly charge. APS services the apartments in Show Low, having won some bid for them. All in all, if you love small town living, you may enjoy Show Low for it's rural feel and options to fish and ski nearby. But, the population has changed a great deal over the years and the traffic is steady and congested for such a small town. I often wonder where all these people are supposedly working??? Ah, your closest cities to shop at are Phoenix and Flagstaff. Both are a good distance away. 3 to 3 1/2 hour drives. As with any town you are considering moving to, do 'a lot' of research and be leery of 'overly positive' reviews. Most often, that is a city council member. ;) On a scale of 1 to 10, ten being the best score. Show Low, AZ gets a 4 as it is no longer the small town, family friendly place, it used to be and the crime rate is too high in comparison to the population. Are the locals friendly? The original locals are usually a warm crowd. Is there a mixed culture. There is a mix of Caucasian, Hispanic and Native Americans. A small number of Asians, Hindi and African-American.
Anissa | Pinetop, AZ | Report Abuse