Chico, CA (Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco: rental, home, neighborhood)

[radargus]

Quite a few responses about Northern California and Chico.
I went to PV High School, Butte College and Chico State. Then I moved to LA and went to Art Center and have a career in advertising. I'm applying for a job in Chico, because I think it's a great place to live. I'm lucky because I have a lot of equity in my house down here, so the housing prices up there aren't an issue for me. The salaries are certainly lower than down here, but one has to make choices about quality of life. It does get hot and dry in the summer and early fall. The nights in the Sacramento Valley don't cool off like they do down here, but again, it's something one can live with. Chico USED to be known as a party town and to a degree still is, but not like the old days of Pioneer Week. In recent years there have been some bad incidents which have put the brakes on those kind of activities. Used to be harmless fun, but it became ugly because of some bad apples. I'm happy to see the community taking advantage of the great resource they have in the University and promoting the arts there. Glass works are very big in Chico, as well as every other kind of art. It's only going to get better as a cultural center for Northern California.

[jaada]

Originally Posted by Arngautr

Chico is pretty white, too white really. Spanish helps some but its not that important; I rarely use it (in school it was my worst subject but with 5 years of it, 2 AP, even I picked up enough to crudely communicate). If you go out to Hamilton City or Orland it would be more important. Lots of places for Mexican food though.

Politically Chico is more conservative than the rest of the state (the Coast). With the exception of the Governator the state has a one party system which sucks no matter which side is in power.

I'm moving to the Tidewater area; actually touching on your mention of religion I'll be an atheist in Churchland, which I'm not to keen on but it should be alright. Here I'm more of a conservative, there I'm probably considered more of a liberal but we'll see.

My concern though is that if you are a teacher and don't have a job in the pipeline finding a job might be tough. Awhile back the teachers were fighting the school district for higher wages; I'm not sure how that turned out but you should look into it too.

what do you mean pretty white? are they racist there? how does the general population seem to be towards native americans? they dont like other races there? that scares me!

[greatbasinguide]

There are rancherias in the area,, Indians are as accepted as anyone

[greatbasinguide]

Chico is a college town with nearly 15,000 students and the appropriate number of professors... most of whom are as professors and students are wont to be,,, fairly liberal. The surrounding community is made up of many former students, the town is a good mix of liberal and conservative,,, (by the way, if you want conservative go to Oroville

[jcp123]

Chico is a wannabe artist town and is a little pretentious in this regard. There's some interesting stuff there, though, and it has a ton more personality than most places its size. The University really keeps the place alive that way. If it weren't so overvalued, it's a place I might even look into if I were re-locating back to California.

Climate is pretty hot in the summer (100* is not uncommon, and although it's more humid than many parts of California, it should feel pretty dry to a Floridian). Winter hovers in the 30's and 40's, IIRC. In summer there is practically no rain, in winter it can come down pretty hard though.

[MotleyCrew]

We just left Chico for AZ a year or so ago and I am very homesick. I loved Chico and it is a wonderful artist town. They have open studio tours every year and also it is a university town, where both my girls graduated from. Housing is softening a little and you can still get a small bungalow around town in the mid to high $200s. Newer homes in the $300's. I disagree with Chico being more conservative, we always felt it to be a little more liberal, especially over Paradise. I especially miss Creekside Cellars where we would go for a taste of wine after a hard days work. If the housing is too high there, check out Paradise and further up the mountain, a very cute little town called Magalia. The homes there are very reasonable, but you will get snow and have a beautiful commute down the mountain to Chico. I think I want to come back home.

[cheekypercy]

Jill, I read your homesick post and can relate. I left my old home (Napa-Sonoma counties) for Portland, OR due to a number of factors including divorce, new job, etc. The family is back together, the job was a waste of time, and we want back in to CA. So much to miss...mostly the scenery, the land, the light.

I have never been to Chico but have been around that area. It looks like home, it has everything that I miss.

I keep thinking Chico would be a great place to move back to, especially since I can't afford to buy back into the market where we sold (minimum $450K). I like the idea that there's a state school there and that it has the artist-town reputation (we're artists so that's a bonus.)

The problem is, when I've mentioned Chico to a couple of people familiar with it they say that it has a run-down, dumpy feel. This has sort of rained on my parade a bit since I can't come up with an alternative. Do you have any idea why someone would say that about Chico?

I appreciate any insight into this.

[greatbasinguide]

Rundown and dumpy does not make sense, Chico is a progressive modern college town

[jaada]

i never saw that in chico. it looked so beautiful there, i love chico, and never saw any run down dumpy anything. i did see how ever some gang looking activity that did kinda bother me.

[renoguy]

I have to agree that Chico is a great place as well. My family goes there just to get away some weekends. Nice little town. Lots of things to do considering the size. Check out http://www.newsreview.com/chico/Home for all the goings on. Be sure to stop at Tacos De Acapulco if you like Mexican food.