Moving to Alaska, Anchorage area (Wasilla, Palmer: relocating, real estate, homes)

[Sweden]

Originally Posted by mal_flisk

I DO know the story behind Gobbler's Knob on the Haul Road. LOL

Please, ease a curious mind. Do tell!

[pw72]

I am also a former resident.

Best description I ever heard of Anchorage..."like someone plopped down Santa Ana, California in the middle of the wilderness".

That description may not fit anymore, based on changes in BOTH places, but here are a couple of observations.

The south part of town is the most desirable. (Some may argue the Turnagain neighborhood is most exclusive due to the proximity to the water, but this was also the area where the 1964 mega-quake caused the most damage...actually opening up the earth and swallowing homes and people!)

Stay away from Spenard.

Tourism is huge and everything is more expensive from May to September.

Big-box stores are just as common in Anchorage as in Denver.

Winters are not nearly as bad as people think, (I believe North Dakota is colder), and I hear recent winters have been downright mild. (With the exception of this past winter which had a LOT of snow).

But one of my biggest lasting impressions of Anchorage is this. People live there for two reasons. One, they love it. Or two, they hate it, but that is where their job is. This conflict creates a unique population that sometimes comes off as course and less than friendly.

However, on the plus side, you don't have to drive too many miles outside of town to see some of the most incredible scenery and wilderness in the world!

Oh, and buckle up...many Alaska drivers don't believe in speed limits.

[mal_flisk]

Oh no, Hannah. You are much too young and I am not going to blister your tender ears and years with a tale of women who tended to pipeline construction guys for money. Nope, not gonna say a thing. Except the term knob occasionally refers to a portion of the male anatomy, and a gobbler is someone who ingests quickly.

Remember, you didn't hear it from me.

[Raven6k]

You'll want to avoid Mountain View area, there is signifigantly higher crime there. The area called hillside is generally more wealthy neighborhood a bit more spread out and also more expensive homes. All of Anchorage propper has very inflated real estate prices right now. Your best options just out of the main town of Anchorage may be Eagle River, Wassilla or Palmer, these each have smaller population and less going on than main town of Anch. There is also Girdwood in the other direction from those. I find it charming and beautiful, its got a casual, hippie grunge vibe (the people). As for crime and prostitution in Anchorage, I haven't encountered these much myself. I've lived in anchorage for 20 some years, south and north. Somebody meantioned area between Houston and Willow, that is quite a low population area with not much of a "town" to speak of. Some people are happy there, it all depends on your taste.
Good luck.

[Tressa]

Girdwood is a charming town pretty pricey due to the ski resort near by, and if you work in Anchorage the winter commute can be deadly. Not much work in Girdwood except for the summer months.

I would agree to avoid Mountain View area, they're trying to clean it up but not having a great deal of luck.

[Raven and Bear]

You guys have given her all the best advice she probably needs, and pw72 you sure summed things up well. I have that love/hate thing with Anchorage. It has a lot going for it, but the unplanned industrial sprawl is not pleasant, traffic is bad, and housing is expensive. Three good reasons to be irritated with living here.

On the upside, there are tons of city parks, and many of them are truly beautiful. There are all sorts of events going on all year round, even fireworks and a parade in the middle of winter. Produce is more expensive than the lower 48 for sure, and I"ve heard that by the time fruit gets here, it has lost its rich vitamin content, even if it does still taste okay. But there are local produce growers during the summer, too. There's a farmer's market downtown all summer long, and the bike trail network can't be beat.

Shopping is okay, but AVOID DIMOND MALL unless you're immune to dreary depressing run-down half-empty malls (most of the second floor is filled with military recruiter's offices and really gross old carpeting), but 5th Avenue Mall is nice. Downtown has tons of art galleries, antique shops, restaurants, etc. We DO have moose in our yards fairly often, and bears on the hillside (when the cops or fish and game aren't shooting them first). Coming from the lower 48, it is way more civilized than I thought it would be, except for the drivers. If you don't mind being aggressively tailgated by testosterone-poisoned young guys in humongous pick-up trucks or other people in ginormous SUV's, this is your town! And that's even if you, too, are speeding (if you can't beat'm, join'm). Snow doesn't slow this activity down at all. So, first snowfall, stay home and let them all crash into each other. Seriously tho, the city keeps the roads clear here and getting around Anchorage is no problem at all in winter unless you live way up on the hillside.

NOT impressed by the Anchorage School District in general. Kincaid Elementary and Rogers Park Elementary are good, to name a few of the better ones. There are many good private schools, or homeschool. There's a strong homeschoolers network here.

I would ditto to avoid anything to rent or buy in the Spenard area (midtown, 36th & Artic, etc.). There are still some prostitution and drug issues going on there. If looking for a home from long-distance, google map the location. Anchorage housing prices are hideous, even compared to Seattle standards, and there's a large transient population of people moving in and out of Anchorage at any given time (stay two years, decide they can't stand the winters, PFD hasn't kicked in yet, leave). But if you look hard, you can find many nice neighborhoods tucked in between blocks of not-so-nice ones. Having large amounts of money to buy in the best neighborhoods helps.

Last winter we had some days at 10 below zero, but mostly it was warmer with lots of summer days. If you ski, snowshoe or ice skate, or find something positive to do outside, winter passes, and you kind of enjoy the long dark nights. You go to bed early, read a lot, and turn inward. And then it's summer (forget spring and fall) all of a sudden, and the sun is still shining at 11 PM, and you're filled with energy. Your body adjusts to the seasons here.

Happy trails!

[Marylandkitten]

Raven & Bear that had to be one of the most illustrated and inspiring posts I've read yet! As a soon-to-be "native inthusiast" you have me bouncing on the edge of my seat. I can't wait to see it all for myself!!!

kudos

[Tressa]

Very well put but I wouldn't necessarily say we have winter and summer, it's more like winter and spring rolls into fall and then winter. But like we all say it's beautiful up here, I live on lower to mid hillside it's hard to find an area that is as beautiful as our Anchorage.

[rockypoint]

Alright! you Alaskians are great!

Very informative, and friendly........Now here is another question:
What do you guys think of Wasilla? the area on the Finger lake?

This house I am possibly purchasing in on this lake? I am waiting to hear your thoughts....Hey, I hope I am Alaska bound before September...

Thanks everyone!

rockypoint
dlea20007@aol.com
or
donnaleakfalls@yahoo.com

[rockypoint]

Originally Posted by Sweden

Please, ease a curious mind. Do tell!

Hey, I know a guy that lives in Hofmanthorp, Sweden and his name is Ulf Nystrome...do you know him...?

Thanks,
rockypoint