Want to move to Prescott Valley, AZ (Phoenix, Tucson: relocating, real estate)

[BiggsHomes]

Hi Christy,

Don't let Pettrix scare you. People are very friendly here and the crime is very low. My wife and I are relative new-comers and we have found everyone to be extremely nice to us. As for people who are pro or anti growth, there are some on both sides. In general, Prescott is slow-growth and Prescott Valley is pro-growth. Good luck with your move and welcome to the area!

Cheers,
Brian

[LBear]

Originally Posted by BiggsHomes

Hi Christy,

Don't let Pettrix scare you. People are very friendly here and the crime is very low. My wife and I are relative new-comers and we have found everyone to be extremely nice to us. As for people who are pro or anti growth, there are some on both sides. In general, Prescott is slow-growth and Prescott Valley is pro-growth. Good luck with your move and welcome to the area!

Cheers,
Brian

I am not trying to "scare" anyone. I am just giving a BALANCED picture. Unlike what the Realtors (aka- Biggshomes) will try and sell/tell you. For a city with 38,000 people, 6 homicides in a year, is a lot. In a city of 1 million, that would equate to 160 homicides in 1 year. The "per capita" average of Prescott vs. Chicago would make Chicago seem like Mayberry. Apathy is for those who don't want to face reality. Talk to the police officers in the area, like I do, when they are honest and not scared to tell you the truth, they will tell you about how things are getting out of control (drugs, gangs, homicides, violent crime).

Hmmm.... What about that girl that was gang raped off of Iron Springs Road a month ago? Or what about that homicide they had where the guy shot an 18 year old to death over $200 that he owed for the meth he bought?

http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?Sea...tionID=101&S=1

Well, that's not good for business (real estate), so Realtors, like used car salesmen will lie and hide the truth in order to make sales.

Now to issue of Lowes and other growth:

As a business owner in Prescott I have had threats made against me by both the pro-growth & anti-growth people. The reality of this town is that it became a real viable town due to the real estate boom from the transplants coming out of Southern California. Without naming names (as the site host will not allow), this town had families that owned hundreds and thousands of acres of ranch land. Back in the 1970's Prescott Valley was nothing but an open field of grass and cattle. Prescott (except for the main historic downtown area) was the same. Land was cheap and everywhere.

Now, fast-foward to the 1990's. Arizona Highways and AARP magazine, AAA magazine along with some other journals, started to post stories about Prescott. It was toted as being this "hidden gem" in the AZ northwest. Land was cheap and the area was beautiful. The weather was mild so it toted the slogan of being a "retirement destination". All of a sudden, SoCals came and started looking at Prescott. You could have bought a 2+ acre parcel, a huge home, and still have hundreds of thousands of dollars left over after you would sell your 1/8th of an acre lot, 2,000 sq.ft. home in California. WOW! More bang for your buck!

So, they started to migrate here. In the late 90's this place was like gangbusters. They could not keep up with the demand of building. Prices started to climb and climb fast. Realtors, builders and the land owners were making MILLIONS. This town has more Realtors per capita than any other major city in the USA.

Now, when businesses such as GATEWAY MALL (Westcor) wanted to come and build, they received NOTHING BUT PROTEST. To make a long story short, the residents of the Ranch at Prescott hired lawyers (remember they are retired and have A LOT of money left over and a lot of time) and they sued Westcor to stop the FIRST and ONLY real mall for Prescott (Frontier village was on Indian reservation land & it was a strip mall). The case went ALL THE WAY TO THE ARIZONA SUPREME COURT!! Now, talk about wasted tax payer money (the city and Westcor had to hire lawyers) and time. Like the world doesn't have more serious issues to deal with (child abuse, poverty, homeless, etc.) but here in Prescott, a mall is the evil entity.

In the end, the residents lost and Westcor built the mall. Of which, not surprisingly and hypocritically, the protesting residents now shop there.

Now, the controlling entities (the ranch families) still own land and it is valued in the MILLIONS. They control the politics, the decisions, whatever has to do with growth. The realors are in with them because they each have their hand iin each others pocket.

I can go on and on about this area. As stated on NUMEROUS other forums about Prescott, if you have $$$, then you will do OK here. If you need to make a living, then you will be hard pressed. Pay is low and salaries are even lower.

[LBear]

Oh, what's this? An article today from the Prescott Courier about how the anti-growth people are attacking (verbally) the council members of Prescott:

http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?Sec...65&TM=3654.811

Hmmm... If the anti-growth people harass & threaten and go after the politicians that support growth (aka Lowes & Wal-Mart), what do they do to the actual business owners? Oh, I know, they sue them (aka- The Residents of Prescott vs. Westcor and Friends of Williamson Valley vs. Yavapai County,etc.)

[LBear]

Oh wait! What's this? A triple homicide??

http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?Sec...08&TM=6501.018

How about this? A group of residents are protesting and hiring a lawyer to stop a housing development...

http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?Sec...69&TM=6501.018

These are headlines in TODAYS paper. This stuff goes on every day,,,,

[Gretchen B]

Originally Posted by Pettrix

Oh wait! What's this? A triple homicide??

http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?Sec...08&TM=6501.018

How about this? A group of residents are protesting and hiring a lawyer to stop a housing development...

http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?Sec...69&TM=6501.018

These are headlines in TODAYS paper. This stuff goes on every day,,,,

Okay, I just have to speak up here. The triple homicide happened along the hwy south of Congress (down by Wickenburg). It was an illegal that's accused of shooting 3 other illegals, and it's thought that he and his accomplices were involved in the smuggling of illegals across the border.

I really don't think this is relevant to our immediate communities of Prescott and Prescott Valley. It is a nationwide problem and an Arizona problem.

As far as the anti-growth vs pro-growth issue - I think it's fortunate we have vocal people on both sides of the issue. I was sorry to see Young's Farm close it's doors, but the new developers have bent over backward to try to accommodate the Town of Dewey-Humboldt. I agree it's too bad that some are working so hard to get the development stopped. It's not going to bring Young's Farm back and it's time to move on.

However, there are some other new developments that I am very sad to see getting approval.

The fact that we have strong voices on each side of these issues is a good thing in my book, and I think it will help keep things in balance.

[LBear]

Gretchen B -

Well, as a business owner, you would not like the insanity that this town is going thru. When these wealthy, anti-growth people hire lawyers and sue you, I am sure that you would change your views on them, very quickly.

Just like the Youngs Farm scenario. You have the city, which agreed to and passed a new zoning to allow the developers to build. As a developer you invest A LOT of money to get the project underway. Now, you have residents that are filing a lawsuit that can stop your investment. Now, you have to wait maybe a year, maybe 2-3 years to even break ground. You have to hire lawyers and pay thousands of dollars in legal fees, time in court. You have invested money and time that is going nowhere. This gets old, VERY QUICKLY.

Do you see where I am going with this? This town is very kooky & not friendly to investors. People in the business world know this, the word is out about Prescott, they know that it can be costly to try and develop here because of the residents who have too much time and money on their hands. I know of many investors that just refuse to build out there because of this.They can easily go elsewhere and not have to deal with these COSTLY problems. Not only that, but these people then harass you once your business is underway.

[LBear]

Originally Posted by Gretchen B

Okay, I just have to speak up here. The triple homicide happened along the hwy south of Congress (down by Wickenburg). It was an illegal that's accused of shooting 3 other illegals, and it's thought that he and his accomplices were involved in the smuggling of illegals across the border.

I really don't think this is relevant to our immediate communities of Prescott and Prescott Valley. It is a nationwide problem and an Arizona problem.

The rape and the homicide of the 18 year old boy WERE done in Prescott. I am not saying this town is the pit of crime. It is a decent town BUT crime is on the rise FAST and most of it is VIOLENT CRIMES. This is not "sleepy Prescott" anymore. I talk to people who still don't lock their doors because they never had to when they moved here in the 1980's. It's time for some to wake up and smell the times and crimes.

[Gretchen B]

Originally Posted by Pettrix

Gretchen B -

Well, as a business owner, you would not like the insanity that this town is going thru. When these wealthy, anti-growth people hire lawyers and sue you, I am sure that you would change your views on them, very quickly.

Just like the Youngs Farm scenario. You have the city, which agreed to and passed a new zoning to allow the developers to build. As a developer you invest A LOT of money to get the project underway. Now, you have residents that are filing a lawsuit that can stop your investment. Now, you have to wait maybe a year, maybe 2-3 years to even break ground. You have to hire lawyers and pay thousands of dollars in legal fees, time in court. You have invested money and time that is going nowhere. This gets old, VERY QUICKLY.

Do you see where I am going with this? This town is very kooky & not friendly to investors. People in the business world know this, the word is out about Prescott, they know that it can be costly to try and develop here because of the residents who have too much time and money on their hands. I know of many investors that just refuse to build out there because of this.They can easily go elsewhere and not have to deal with these COSTLY problems. Not only that, but these people then harass you once your business is underway.

Pettrix - I totally agree with you on the whole Young's Farm thing. I think everybody would have liked to have seen it stay the way it was. Not only was it part of the history of the area, but it was also a boon to the economy as well. But, alas, it is gone, and I don't see where a lawsuit is going to do anything but hurt the Dewey/Humboldt community. First of all, the Town has no money in the coffers. They need a tax revenue base, which the new development would have provided. Now they have to spend the taxpayers money defending this lawsuit. To me, this is a lose-lose situation. The developers are already at the "throw in the towel" point, and this will probably nix the whole thing. What's going to be the alternative? More mobiles on individual wells and septics. Pretty. At least the planned development addressed the infrastructure and was also willing to address the density issue. Whoever they sell to (because I don't think they're going to hang in there any longer) will probably not be that accommodating. It's called shooting yourself in the foot!

As far as the whole Prescott/PV/CV area being anti-growth, I have to disagree. We now have 3 Mega Wallie Worlds, basically subsidized with city sales tax revenue. And the commercial sites (PV Crossroads, Lowes, Kohl's/WalMart, Centerpointe, etc) just keep on coming. I really can't see where growth has been hindered. And now there's the approval of the developments in The Dells. I'm sorry, but I think The Dell's are one of the most beautiful natural areas in the state. Already there's commercial buildings in the area that are marring the views of The Dells. Plus the one developer came in there and plowed down the old trees and filled in a natural pool. Of course, he was fined by the EPA and told to "put it back to the way it was". How do you replace 100-yr old trees? None of this would have happened if The Dells were earmarked as "open space" to begin with. I really believe there needs to be some sort of balance here.

Re crime - Yes I usually lock my doors. Our area population is nearing 100,000. With a larger population comes an increase in crime. However, I do feel safe here. I accidently went off for a weekend and left the garage door open and the house unlocked. I wouldn't recommend doing that, but nothing was touched, either in the garage or the house.

[LBear]

Originally Posted by Gretchen B

Pettrix - I totally agree with you on the whole Young's Farm thing. But, alas, it is gone, and I don't see where a lawsuit is going to do anything but hurt the Dewey/Humboldt community. First of all, the Town has no money in the coffers. They need a tax revenue base, which the new development would have provided. Now they have to spend the taxpayers money defending this lawsuit. To me, this is a lose-lose situation. The developers are already at the "throw in the towel" point, and this will probably nix the whole thing. What's going to be the alternative? More mobiles on individual wells and septics.

Yes, we agree!

Originally Posted by Gretchen B

As far as the whole Prescott/PV/CV area being anti-growth, I have to disagree. We now have 3 Mega Wallie Worlds, basically subsidized with city sales tax revenue. And the commercial sites (PV Crossroads, Lowes, Kohl's/WalMart, Centerpointe, etc) just keep on coming. I really can't see where growth has been hindered.

This is where you are missing a VITAL POINT. All those developments you mentioned above, who owns or owned the land? THE FAIN CORPORATION The only reason those businesses and areas you mentioned are being built is because THE FAINS own or have owned the land. They are the controlling entity out there.

Now, in regards to other developments, smaller businesses and smaller land owners, are getting sued and hassled by the residents who have too much time and too much money on their hands. THEY are the ones who are getting wiped out, they are the ones getting their businesses hurt.

Now the Fain Corporation is getting sued to stop the Wal-Mart build!!

It is getting old, no let me correct that, what is happening has gotten lame and old, long ago. Businesses are leaving and being bought out. Developers are packing-up and leaving due to the lawsuits and the backwards mentality of the people suing. They should just turn the town into mobiles and let everyone go back to 1910. Those were the 'good 'ole days' when you had to wait 2 weeks to get a bag of sugar or if you got a cold you would have died to the lack of health care and lack of medical science. Shoot outs, prostitution, tyrants, ruled the west. Ahhh... that is the good' ole days. That is where Prescott wants to be, back to the way it was in 1910.

I can't wait to get the H*&^ out of this town! Good bye and good riddance. They can protest, cheat, steal, harass and whatever else they want, all day long.

[Gretchen B]

Sorry, Pettrix, but the Corporation you refer to owned the land on only one of those developments. The rest were all owned by different entities.

If the developer does things right, the lawsuits don't stand a chance. If somebody isn't playing by the rules, then maybe they should worry.

Pettrix, all I'm saying is there's a lot of people pro-growth, including most council members. But there's also a vocal group that's anit-growth. I don't think either is bad and that it's nice there's a case being made on each side of the issue. That's people's right. Pettrix, you're certainly vocal about your negativity about the area. Almost to the point of squashing anyone else's viewpoint. You're certainly entitled to your's, and I respect that. However, I also respect the folks that speak out on behalf of the community as well.