Redding CA??? (San Diego, Sacramento, Bakersfield: house, rent, travel)

[Fat Freddy]

I have always thought of Redding as a good place to stop for gas while driving north on I-5.

[scrammy]

I moved back to Redding last March after 25 years in Southern CA. I have enjoyed visiting my parents and old friends for many years and finally decided I was tired of working just to survive the high cost of living in SoCal and spending a such a large portion of my day stuck in traffic, so I quit my job, packed up my 7 year old daughter, and moved to Redding - and without a job mind you! Although I was a little nervous at first, I have absolutely no regrets now! It took me 6 months to find the right job but I was prepared for that and very happy with the outcome. The job market here is highly competitive and many people are very over qualified for their positions. If you are not prepared to wait for the right opportunity to arise I would advise starting your job search and moving after you have accepted an offer.

Yes, the summers are hot, but no hotter than Arizona or Palm Springs, and it is a very dry heat which is far more tolerable than the humid heat we had in SoCal. Yes, there is a high rate of crime & drugs but unless you run in those circles or live in those areas you will probably only read about it. My parents have lived here for many, many years and have not been affected by crime or drugs. I do remember a lot of pot floating around when I was in high school but I chose not to partake, I think this is something that exists in all high schools, the key is parenting your children to make good choices for themselves and I believe the kids that get in trouble up here are the kids that are unsupervised. No longer do we live in a society where kids can just "hang out" in the neighborhood unsupervised, but again, I think that holds true for most communities. If you are someone who enjoys good people you will not encounter much of the other kind.

Redding has so much more to offer now, when I was a kid we drove to Sacramento or Chico for good shopping, now we lack none of the shopping options I have enjoyed in SoCal this past 25 years (well, as soon as Trader Joe's opens this summer we will have everything!). In considering moving back I was mainly concerned about the narrow minded mentality I remembered from my youth, and although I believe it still exists here, there is a large and growing population that shares a much more open and evolved mindset - we have sought this population out and have not been disappointed.

The natural recreation is exceptional in my opinion (it is BEAUTIFUL here and even more beautiful as you head towards Mt Lassen or Mt Shasta), there is a HUGE population interested in health and well being as well, and we have made many wonderful new friends as well as reconnecting on a deeper level with old friends!

The cost of living is reflective mainly in housing and auto insurance (my auto insurance dropped to half what it was in SoCal!), everything else pretty much comparable to SoCal. The quality of like is exceptional, just in the time gained by not spending all day stuck in traffic alone, and the plethora of family and community activities at our fingertips.

I do not believe there is any hazardous waste to be concerned with, in fact I am unaware of ANY, but I will do little research to learn more.

Okie doke, that's but experience! I love Redding and am very happy to be back!

Originally Posted by doctorljcc

Can anyone give me some honest info regarding Redding? Example...Cost of living,quality of life, crime,pollution, etc...The enviro-map shows alot of hazardous waste near that city. Is this the breeding ground for 2 headed children??

[notmeofficer]

We have IRON mountain.. one of the number one superfund sites in the US... they keep dumping soda down the mineshafts to stop the sulphuric acid left over from years of toxic copper mining.. the shafts keep seeping from cracks in the substrata

Theres a huge cut in the mountainside where the site is. You can see it from anywhere in Redding as you look west up above Shasta Dam.. its also why the water is green up there

Clean up progress... heck I dont really know for sure... but the govt is throwing huge sums of money at it.

The seat of the pants air quality has changed substantially over the past several years
this is based upon
Construction-dust silt etc
Pollution coming up the valley from Sac etc.. Redding is at the base of mountains in a horseshoe.. the air comes here.. stops and swirls around
Changing population density,,, its growing folks

We notice a really different water quality during the winter and periods of high turbidity .. lots of chlorine.. we did defeat fluoride in the city water.. we, as end users, filter all our drinking water with high quality primary and secondary filters.. while this is an expensive proposition we maintain high water quality because of it.. We do not trust any municipality completely with something so important

Water is life... good water up here is worth a 20k premium on a rural parcel.. easily...

[scrammy]

Interesting information, thanks! Looks like there is a lot I need to learn on this topic.

Originally Posted by notmeofficer

We have IRON mountain.. one of the number one superfund sites in the US... they keep dumping soda down the mineshafts to stop the sulphuric acid left over from years of toxic copper mining.. the shafts keep seeping from cracks in the substrata

Theres a huge cut in the mountainside where the site is. You can see it from anywhere in Redding as you look west up above Shasta Dam.. its also why the water is green up there

Clean up progress... heck I dont really know for sure... but the govt is throwing huge sums of money at it.

The seat of the pants air quality has changed substantially over the past several years
this is based upon
Construction-dust silt etc
Pollution coming up the valley from Sac etc.. Redding is at the base of mountains in a horseshoe.. the air comes here.. stops and swirls around
Changing population density,,, its growing folks

We notice a really different water quality during the winter and periods of high turbidity .. lots of chlorine.. we did defeat fluoride in the city water.. we, as end users, filter all our drinking water with high quality primary and secondary filters.. while this is an expensive proposition we maintain high water quality because of it.. We do not trust any municipality completely with something so important

Water is life... good water up here is worth a 20k premium on a rural parcel.. easily...

[don't_worry_bout_a_ting_]

Great place if you like the heat like an ankle biter small dog chihuahua in the summertime could be a dream. Everything is true about the sex offenders. Major METH addicts, depressed indian casino addicts that blow their kids eatin money on the first at the local indian casino. If you are a doctor or a lawyer or nurse have your own biz etc....you can make it. They are in the process It seems of trying to revamp city. The city of Redding itself because of the lakes and mountains is beautiful in areas. You are 3 hours from San Francisco and Napa and Redwood forests. If money were no object you can make anywhere home and find great things. Do not come here to find a nice little town with culture or an artistic flair. Although as I said it seems they are on the verge of trying. I agree this town sucks for young people. The kids have nothing but going to the movies and in the summertime it's ok because of REC activities. Hardtimes right now though the job market is all retail and minimum wage jobs it seems. If you want a glimpse of the small minded mentality go to the local paper record searchlight redding.com and see the comment boards of some of the people.
Wow I think that is the most negative comment about a place I have ever made but none of it is not true.

[theslightedge75]

Originally Posted by Fat Freddy

I have always thought of Redding as a good place to stop for gas while driving north on I-5.

I heard that.... The reason why I have been stuck in Redding for all these years, is because I ran out of gas on the way to Portland....LOL.

[theslightedge75]

Originally Posted by MajorHart

Just because a town is mostly white - doesn't mean it's full of bigots.

You can see what has happened to the rest of california already.

It sure is odd MajorHart that the only word you replied on in my post was "bigots". Did I hit a sore spot? You were the only person that has replied to my post in that fashion, other people thanked me for my honest information Besides, you said that NOT me...there are plenty of other communities that are majority white that I am planning to relocate to that are no where near as bad as Shasta County like: Humboldt county, Multnomah County (Portland), King county (Seattle) or Sacramento.

Don't tell me what I (and several others as well) haven't experienced living here in Redding for 15 years, I have never encountered so much racism in my life (whether it was outright or passive and sneaky) until I moved to "Redding" and I am originally from the Southern states. When I first moved here in 1993, I didnt think anything of the fact that this town was mostly white, I liked the scenary, clean air and green land but little did I know most people would make it known in one way or another, that I didn't fit in. Although people move out of towns for different reasons, most of my family and friends had to "MOVE AWAY" because of all the racial diversity,open mindedness and acceptance that they experienced living here. But I refuse to let racism "run me out of town", like it had the irrefutable reputation throughout history, I am going to move on my terms and when I am ready. Although if you paid attention to the hate crimes in Shasta County...you would have recalled that there HAVE BEEN HANGINGS of black people (1997) in Anderson....a cross burning in Anderson that a single mother friend of mine and her chidlren had to suffer thru (post 2000..now she lives in Sacramento) and a KKK rally that was planned just a couple of months ago for the Redding area...(YES I HAVE THE FRONT PAGE OF THE RECORD SEARCHLIGHT NEWSPAPER TO PROVE IT..OCTOBER 6, 2007..I CANT BLAME THE KKK BECAUSE IT IS REDDING/SHASTA COUNTY YOU KNOW..IDEAL LOCATION)..Whats is terribly odd..is that I HAVEN"T HEARD ANYTHING LIKE THAT FROM THE "REST OF CALIFORNIA"...go figure.

You mentioned about "what has happened to the rest of california". I am curious what has happened to the rest of california that already hasn't happened in american history? (yes I am talking about genocide of native americans and the genocide of blacks during slavery..etc) I havent heard a agreeable and logical explanation for that time period of history yet but I have heard replies from people that didnt see anything wrong with that time period..go figure. So lets not make this totally about race because no matter what, people of all races commit crimes..its just that some have been getting away with it for longer than others or only a certain group has their crimes exposed moreso than others from the media and law enforcement who just happens to be mostly white. And besides all the "whites here IN REDDING" that have made "METH" more famous than Christmas are not a damn bit better than all the "thugs elsewhere in California" that smoke pot and dont want to work for a living.

Anyways, its ovbious that the rest of california doesn't live in REDDING. Which is also kind of odd because theres a reason why this town has NOT attracted more minorities (except for the asians that are paid to live here due to some Vietnam service thing from the government and the middle eastern poeple that get all kinds of free grant money and zero to very low business loans from uncle sam for foreign diplomacyand oil issues) but you know what, I don't have anybody to blame but myself for staying here so long and expecting a bunch of "whites" (whether they are prejudice or not) to accept me as being just as human as they are. AND NO I am not a criminal, thug or drug user, or I would have promptly long ago been put away in Susanville prison by the system that does one terrific job at putting minorities that commit crimes behind bars because in our pathetic justice system....its better to be guilty and rich than innocent and poor..and we all know what race of people are predominantly rich in this country DON'T WE?

[Maddiemoos]

Originally Posted by jennb

I think Redding is one of the worst bigger citiy in this state. Lots of drugs, I think the highest amount of sex offenders in the state, the hottest city, the area is depressing. Not too far from Susanville where there is a big prison and upon released are bussed and released in Redding when they have no where else to go which explains the High crime and drug problems. The schools suck too with a high dropout rate. Great camping, fishing and outdoor fun in Shasta and Lassen but that's not so much Redding.

You need to move. The prison takes released inmates to Reno, there are no longer sex offenders being relocated to this area, Shasta High is a good school for academics, drugs are all over everywhere and so is crime. Yes the recreation is great. It is not as hot as death valley!

[Maddiemoos]

[quote=theslightedge75;2694731]

Whats is terribly odd..is that I HAVEN"T HEARD ANYTHING LIKE THAT FROM THE "REST OF CALIFORNIA"...go figure.

And besides all the "whites here IN REDDING" that have made "METH" more famous than Christmas are not a damn bit better than all the "thugs elsewhere in California" that smoke pot and dont want to work for a living. (end quote)

from me: Are you serious? I can't believe that. I'm pretty sure you just aren't listening. There are plenty of terrible things happening all over this state, the problems are not just with the KKK and black people, but there is a good amount of racism against hispanics, asians, natives, and whites as well. I am not here to tell you that you are wrong, I am just trying to say maybe you should take a good look all around you before making Redding out to be the epicenter for bigotry in California.
...and the whites here in redding, christmas and meth? Wtf? Wow, again you need to take a good look around and see what is really going on all over the state, and country. Meth was not invented in Shasta couny, but I know it's a huge problem here. Small and mid-sized towns all over the US are being overrun with it. SO maybe if you are looking for people to not judge you, you can start by not judging them...smoking pot, no work? Christmas meth?

[robertpolyglot]

Sorry, but the general feeling in Redding is slightly skanky. There are nice people and some not so nice people. Given that it's California, it seems very white and somewhat conservative. One test is to go to a bookstore such as its Barnes and Noble. It just didn't seem as upscale, in terms of the population, as even one you would find in Sacramento.

Of the "North State" towns, Chico seems to be viewed the most favorably. It seems progressive and there are quite a lot of different types of people, probably owing to the college.

A little further south and east are Nevada City and Grass Valley. Nevada City is a little too "cute" and Grass Valley is a combination of sophisticated and redneck...kind of schizophrenic, but probably somewhat livable. Neither of these two towns are particularly cheap.

Redding...from what I've observed, I would probably pass.