What do you think about the Eureka, Arcata, McKinleyville, Humboldt area? (Sacramento: crime rate, home)

[SingleNurseMom]

I visited there to check out Humboldt State about 7 years ago and I remember it being SO beautiful up there!

But we drove through "downtown" Arcata and it seemed to be loaded with homeless, filthy people under the influence of something, and it seemed really dirty. There appeared to be some sort of festival or something going on there (hippie-type thing maybe?), and we were told that drug use is rampant there- more prevalent than where we live now in Sacramento.

What do you think?

How is it to raise kids there?

What do you think about the local hospital? (I'm a nurse.)

THANKS!!!

[18WantsToLeave]

Oh its good down there but yea there are alot of hippie ppls over there, and yes intoxication happens without a doubt ,Mushrooms,Pot , LSD they love it down there , but its a nice place ...its beautiful, and the people are nice, well except some bizniz hippies they will get yea! n yea hospitals idk, i didnt visit ne

[akroxy]

[quote=SingleNurseMom;1019714]I visited there to check out Humboldt State about 7 years ago and I remember it being SO beautiful up there!

But we drove through "downtown" Arcata and it seemed to be loaded with homeless, filthy people under the influence of something, and it seemed really dirty. There appeared to be some sort of festival or something going on there (hippie-type thing maybe?), and we were told that drug use is rampant there- more prevalent than where we live now in Sacramento.

What do you think?

How is it to raise kids there?

What do you think about the local hospital? (I'm a nurse.)

THANKS!!! [/QUO

if you look you will find homeless people almost anywhere you go,and weather someone goes around dressing as a "hippie" or whatever doesn't mean they are homeless.i know that some of those people go there to hang out on that block with other people that has things in common with them.i don't live there i do have family there and all the way up to cresent city.its a beautiful place,i am surprised you being a nurse you would be so judgemental.but to each there own.

[TheDragonslayer]

The Mad river hospital in Arcata is a good hospital, there is also St Joe's and General hospital in Eureka. Arcata is pot heaven, what do you expect, it is a college town. Eureka has a crime rate higher than state average, Arcata and McKinleyvilles are lower than state average by a good amount. Arcata and McKinleyville are in the Northern Humboldt School District and the schools in McKinleyville have all of their programs intact and rank in the top ten for the state. Eureka is 28,000, Arcata is close to 17,000 and McKinleyville is close to 15,000 people. Eureka is foggier than Arcata which is foggier than McKinleyville. The major airport here is the Arcata/Eureka airport here in McKinleyville. I have lived here in McK for seven years and have watched the home prices surge from a median of $130,000 seven years ago to $329,000 for the median now. The sky is clean and so is the water- the best in the state.McKinleyville is old fashioned red neck, they may be set in their minds on some things , but they are great people. Life is a lot slower here.

[jtgray1]

Just read your missive on Humboldt. Yes, it's "Hippie Heaven," and many festivals like the one mentioned take place in the town square. Beggars show up because the liberal attitudes in the area make it a great place to beg. However, there are many hard-working moderate to conservative folks in the area (especially in Eureka and McKinleyville). Though drug use and pan-handling are ubiquitous in Arcata, the violent crime rate is extremely low. I lived their in the early to mid 90's and rarely locked my doors. The most serious crimes were minor theft and possession of small amounts of drugs. In Arcata, you can walk in the beautiful redwood forest adjacent to HSU or drive a few minutes north to lounge on Trinidad's beaches which rival Big Sur for sheer beauty. I would definitely raise children in Arcata, and avoid town square when appropriate. In my humble opinion, the benefits outweigh the disadvantages.

Best

[bbbmarilyn]

DRAGONSLAYER: I want more McKinleyville information. Moderator cut: Please only put email address in profile And THANK YOU!

[humboldtlove]

it is beautiful up here but i would choose the more southern humboldt area over arcata. try fortuna or ferndale. its even more beautiful with great atmosphere for children. try the ferndale schools.way more so that arcata/eureka. the hospital in fortuna is great.

[Coffee Mate]

Hi. I'd have to agree with jtgray1...Arcata is a 'hippy' enclave...but [at least when I was living up there...years ago now] the town was pretty neat. Sure...there were creepy hippy types but there were lots of normal people as well. Arcata has [had] a large Portuguese fishing community...and there are [were] lots of small family farms up in that area. The forest behind the university is a great area for hiking....[Don't go hiking in Garberville though] The interesting thing about the woods behind the school is that they had been clear-cut over 100 years ago....and they are only NOW starting to look like real woods again.....

[decemberbaby]

Try going a little more north. I noticed a lot less homeless and little more country folk. If you can go next to the oregon boarder, it's beautiful and peaceful there. I go to Smith River every year and it's great. It's also 10 minutes from Oregon so shopping is always cheaper!

[DonaldW]

Is it close to Crescent City, CA? I heard there is a maximum security state prison there. Wonder if the lock-up affects the crime stats in the general area of Crescent City of California?