Affordable living in Bullhead city.

[jamies]

Originally Posted by corydon

Wow Jamies, didn't know it was a third world place, what a shame. It is been 12 or so years ago that we went there the last time, and all I remember was a nice little town, with nice homes east of the town against a hill side, great views. We stayed in the casino owned where it all began, outside in the evening it was just perfect.

Cory, 12 years ago this was the fastest growing county in AZ. It was boom times. New homes going up all about. Riverbend still had many run down properties, but it wasn't as obvious. About eight years ago it crashed and we haven't recovered.

I think you are thinking of Laughlin, NV. Across the river where the casinos are actually located. It is quite nice. No weeds, no junk, all HOA planned communities and large well maintained apt/condo properties. And good roads. Because the casino profits go to Nevada.

Also you may be thinking of the Sun Ridge area of $350,000 plus homes overlooking the casinos and lake/river. Yes it's a nice area as are some of the newer Laughlin Ranch tracts with their $250,000 to $500,000 plus pool homes and the spectacular million dollar river front properties (some with blighted trailers across the street).

What most of us are talking about is the central town areas which are predominately mobile homes and some newer site built homes. Many are run down, many are absentee landlord slum dumps that have had zero maintenance for decades and are occupied by low income people with no interest or pride in where they live.

We have codes, but code enforcement is slow to act and refuses to simply go street by street and force compliance. BUT woe unto the person who dares to speak out. While a couple hundred junk cars litter yards - code will jump right on anyone who complains for minor issues.

I have been cited for having untrimmed palm fronds the day I closed on a vacant property. I was cited within hours for hanging a security gate to keep the drug zombies from using a parking area as a drug shooting gallery leaving needles strewn about. But yet there are junk properties that have been ignored for decades.

I was once cited for a single broken exterior electric plug on a rental - but when low lifes in my neighborhood were without power or water for months, nothing was done.

Don't misunderstand me. I understand the whole glass house thing. Every property can be nit picked. Even mine, especially mine. I get it. I just want to see this town look nice, attract good people, increase property values and for everyone to prosper. It all starts with taking out the trash.

My street is a good example. Property values are in the $35,000 to $120,000 range. It is about half owner occupied, and about half site built, half mobile. About 1/3 are well maintained, another 1/3 are trashy and weed strewn and about 1/3 ought to be torn down. I'm talking long empty abandoned, boarded up dumps, a couple with doper groups with tweaker types coming and going at all hours. Not full on drug sale houses, just as someone said "party," drug user types with "medical" pot cards and no jobs.

I don't care if someone lives on the "dole" but get out and pull your weeds since you have nothing else to do between "disability" checks but get high and watch your four foot wide flat screen.

There are good people here. Many are older retired folks on low incomes. Their homes are mostly well kept. A few folks are in poor health and simply need some labor help.

My beef is with the absentee slumlords who suck the money out of our town and put nothing back. My beef is with the younger, able bodied people spounging off me and letting my town fall into ruin. I'm going to be forking out about $5,000 next week in taxes on my various (well maintained) properties.

My beef is with the near total failure of the city to enforce codes, of the City Council for long ignoring requests for cohesive action to clean the town up.

The city complaint is there is "no money. But there is money to build two more dog parks, and to water soccer fields, in the middle of the hottest desert in the western hemisphere, and for decorating the highway, etc.

Part of the problem is we pay property taxes, but NONE returns locally. It is all stolen by the state and county. Some of our money needs to come back to the town. NO, not via a tax increase. Some of the existing, already excessive property taxes need to be retained by the city.

But the govt solution is to simply try to squeeze more revenue from us via more taxes. Well folks, there ain't no more money! So figure it out.

NOTE- I should point out, I am NOT associated in any way with that " Prosperity Iniciative" group and I do NOT support the idea. I do believe we are overtaxed, but I don't support their solution.

The solutions are SIMPLE. Create a board to review and strengthen codes. Go block by block and cite blighted properties. Get the weeds and trash and junked cars removed and fine the repeat offenders. Enact criminal charges if needed for major violations and scofflaws who refuse to comply. Develop a means to assist those truly in need. Figure out a way to repurpose run down commercial districts. Stop squandering public funds on trivial pet projects - until the town is cleaned up.

[Packard fan]

jamies:

Any idea why Fort Mohave ain't as messed up as Bullhead? It's not like all of FM is "pretty", the trailers behind Bonanza def look pretty rough.

If I'm gonna keep living in Bullhead; I'd much rather be near the river, I don't see any reason to live along the Parkway even if I was rich because it's so damn far from everything. Too; it's a whole lot "greener" getting close to Riverfront and the bottom of Hancock.

I def agree with you that "something" seems to chasing out the businesses here in town. Except for TSC and Jimmy's, there's about NO business at all in that big strip mall across from Smiths near the phone company. Def huge gaps on the 95 all the way from Old Bullhead down to Cocktail Hill.

[jamies]

The downside of Ft Mohave is you have even less county code/zoning protections than inside the city limits. The county has its drug and blight issues too.

Our crime however is nothing compared to any city/urban area. Everyplace has its problems. And while our code enforcement needs improvement we have a really good police dept that does a lot with few resources.

I have not been able to figure out why areas of the city are failing. A lot of properties on the highway that are for sale are ridiculously over priced. I think many businesses fail and move because greedy landlords eat up all their profits. There is no doubt the big box stores (and now the internet) hurt the small shops. But who is to tell someone what to rent their space for. If someone wants to leave a property vacant that is their right. But it is not their right to let it run down and degrade the town.

I think we should take a million dollars out of the emergency fund and buldoze every abandoned property that the owners refuse to maintain. I'd rather see a sea of empty lots ready for redevelopment.

Those empty shopping centers are worth millions. Why aren't those people, who are losing fortunes, doing anything to attract business and to fix this mess? I'm a tiny fish, I can't fix this alone. I'm no expert. They are the ones with accounting, business and urban planning degrees.

I've called for the city govt to bring in city planning experts and figure this out. Clearly we aren't able on our own. But as usual I am ignored. There needs to be a foundational change. We may need redevelopment zones. But mainly we need to figure out how to get people to come here.

I've had an idea to create an incubator community, where small business could start on a shoestring. Small storefronts with two to ten person tech startups and cottage manufacturing. We've got rail and I40 15 miles away. We have relatively cheap electricity and water (for now). But I don't know if it is feasible or even if there is a way to implement or attract such entrapaneurs.