Is caldwell that Bad?

[LeiGul]

My brother lives in Caldwell and loves it. Personally I wouldn't move there if ya paid me to. (Okay, maybe if you paid me to, but it would have to be A LOT)

[messangerag]

What to love in Caldwell. The town is going down hill. To many gang bang.
The city is competing with City of Nampa who have the most drive by shooting by neighborhood like LA.

[chadsteele]

Originally Posted by aslowdodge

I am possibly buying at the area of Ustick and South Montana Ave. I have just seen a few posts that Caldwell is pretty bad. Is it really that bad or are there good and bad pockets. More to the point is this a bad area?

Thanks for any advice

Kevin

growing , partscan bebad just likeanywhere. good state to live in

[LAPD77]

http://www.city-data.com/forum/boise...rspective.html

[Deniseilo]

I bought a house in the West Valley subdivision 2 years ago. I remember before my realator showed me any house in the Caldwell area I thought to myself " I do NOT want to live in Caldwell" That was a misconseption on my part!!
I have found Caldwell to be very quiet and peaceful. The people are friendly and are more then willing to help you out if you have a problem. And that is anywhere I have been in this area!
The only thing I have seen that I have issue about are the schools. Not because there is a lack of education or anything from the techers but because the children are forced to have rules of adults and they seem to not be allowed to be children. But I guess that is the new problem in any city and state.
I would recommend living in Caldwell to ANYONE!!! I will never again believe someones negative thoughts before I find out for myself. Caldwell is a very nice place to live. And I am raising a teenage son here! I enjoy it out here! Thank you for reading my opinion!!!

[markpemble]

Originally Posted by Deniseilo

I bought a house in the West Valley subdivision 2 years ago. I remember before my realator showed me any house in the Caldwell area I thought to myself " I do NOT want to live in Caldwell" That was a misconseption on my part!!
I have found Caldwell to be very quiet and peaceful. The people are friendly and are more then willing to help you out if you have a problem. And that is anywhere I have been in this area!
The only thing I have seen that I have issue about are the schools. Not because there is a lack of education or anything from the techers but because the children are forced to have rules of adults and they seem to not be allowed to be children. But I guess that is the new problem in any city and state.
I would recommend living in Caldwell to ANYONE!!! I will never again believe someones negative thoughts before I find out for myself. Caldwell is a very nice place to live. And I am raising a teenage son here! I enjoy it out here! Thank you for reading my opinion!!!

Now there's an opinion from someone who actually lives in Caldwell.

It's obvious that all these Caldwell mashers out there CLEARLY do not live in Caldwell and probably have never even spent an entire day there.

[John Raider]

I've lived in Caldwell for years and I love it. There's no traffic, it's safe, and the historical district rivals any in the country. Educate yourselves about the long history of Caldwell, and you may learn something...

[jwest09]

Originally Posted by John Raider

I've lived in Caldwell for years and I love it. There's no traffic, it's safe, and the historical district rivals any in the country. Educate yourselves about the long history of Caldwell, and you may learn something...

Nice place to visit, but I would not want to live there. IMO.

[emathias]

My grandparents lived just outside Caldwell - near Florida and Ustick for those of you keeping track - and I spent a lot of time there. My parents lived there for a while, too, and my youngest brother graduated from Vallivue, and my parents now live in nearby Middleton. I, on the other hand, live in Chicago.

I think 90% of the the negative perception of Caldwell can be chalked up to three things: 1) anti-immigrant sentiment among (some of) the long-time residents in the Treasure Valley, 2) relative poverty in the area - my grandfather was a lawyer, but I know Caldwell didn't have a lot of money in it for most residents, 3) disparity between the technology and government based economy that Boise has become and the residual agriculture and frontier economy associated with Caldwell. In particular, many technology-oriented people in Boise don't "get" the frontier mentality in some parts of the state and dismiss it as a mindset of hicks and losers, which isn't really the case.

If Boise continues to sprawl, Caldwell will improve economically from familes looking for cheaper places to live. By national standards, it's not a terrible commute to Boise, and if you're commuting to Meridian or Nampa, it's not bad at all. I think it's a good long-term play to buy in or near Caldwell, but expect some short-term bumpiness.

I've always liked Caldwell, and not just because my grandparents lived there. It has an actual town center - not a great one, but there is one that can be built on and improved - it's not just generic sprawl. And it is poor, but it does have Albertson College, which is kind of a dark horse in what role it will play in the future of Caldwell. And it is more laid-back than other parts of the Valley.

Basically, it boils down to what you're looking for in a hometown. If you want the closest Idaho has to a real city, you should locate in Boise. If you want newer, modern spawl housing, anywhere between Meridian and Nampa are probably good choices. If you're looking for small town and inexpensive, then Caldwell and Middleton are both reasonable choices. Middleton just built a brand new library, too.

[TreasureValley50]

Caldwell has a reputation for being a rough town. I'd say that's still true, but not AS true as it once was. The Caldwell PD has done a great job in reducing gang crime in the past few years, which has resulted in an overall reduction in the crime rate. There are still significant gang issues to be dealt with though. The good news is, those issues are isolated to certain areas for the most part. They always have been.

These days I would say Caldwell has less gang crime than Nampa, which hasn't always been the case. Caldwell still has FAR more gang crime than anywhere in Ada County though. I guess these things are relative.

Aside from gangs, economics play a large part in crime rates. Caldwell has a lower economic average than other areas of the valley and suffers the criminal results. Having said that, most neighborhoods and business areas in Caldwell aren't "unsafe" by any stretch. I think the town suffers a lot from a "good ol' boy" city government that is averse to meaningful economic growth.