El Centro? (San Diego, Calexico, Brawley: crime, mobile home, job market)

[edgessister]

Can anyone tell me how it's like in El Centro? Is it a small,rurual town in the middle of nowhere? How is the crime rate? The schools? Are there any affordable mobile homes? Are there sidewalks for walking or is it dirt road? And also is there a city bus there? Any info would help. Thanks!

[humboldtrat]

El Centro is a rural town in the Imperial Valley where they grow a lot of winter crops. It gets hot as h*** in the summer. The area also has a large hispanic farm worker population. As for bus service go to Imperial Valley Transit.

[Donn2390]

Originally Posted by edgessister

Can anyone tell me how it's like in El Centro? Is it a small,rurual town in the middle of nowhere? How is the crime rate? The schools? Are there any affordable mobile homes? Are there sidewalks for walking or is it dirt road? And also is there a city bus there? Any info would help. Thanks!

I live in the desert and it gets up to 118 degrees in the summer. That is cool compared to El Centro. Other than that, it's a good place if you like the middle of nowhere..1

[shecali]

I grew up in that area. It is about 90min east of SD and about 40min west of Yuma and a short 20min drive to the mexican border. The area has grown a lot. You can find most of your big chains stores and their mall has a Dillard's, Macy's, JC Penney's and Sears. The housing in the area is pretty cheap compared to bigger areas in Ca, but the job market is not the best. There is a huge hispanic population in the area and some crime.

[anvanscoder]

hi,
you said you grew up in the El Centro area? I am looking for information on class of 98 reunion for Brawley.

[shecali]

Originally Posted by anvanscoder

hi,
you said you grew up in the El Centro area? I am looking for information on class of 98 reunion for Brawley.

Being that I graduated from Calexico HS in '93, I really can't be of much help. You might have better luck if you look on Reunion.com and search for your high school buddies, or call the school, they might have contact info for the organizers.

BUHS
760-312-5819

Good luck

[amc760]

Originally Posted by Donn2390

I live in the desert and it gets up to 118 degrees in the summer. That is cool compared to El Centro. Other than that, it's a good place if you like the middle of nowhere..1

Haha, its not nearly that bad.

In the summer it can get very hot. About in the 100s. But nowadays, it seems like everywhere in California except for the mountains or cities on the immediate shoreline reach the 100s in the summer.

Yes, there are sidewalks. It's a small-ish town(by CA standards) surrounded by rural areas, but the town proper actually has more of a suburban feel.
Meaning, if you move there, your not going to be living in the middle of a cornfield or anything like that, lol.
There are lots of subdivisions with tract homes popping up, some of which are extremely cheap compared to the rest of the state.
There are also some nice older homes in some nice neighborhoods.

But yeah, El Centro is pretty boring. It's not part of the metropolises of San Diego or LA and is pretty far from them. SD is over an hour away, and LA is a bit over 3 hours away. Nightlife aside from a few bars is non-existent. Not a lot of culture here.

But San Diego isn't too far to spend a weekend or a day trip at.

If your adventurous enough, Mexicali is a stones throw away. Its a Mexican city of a million, and there's lots to do there. Its safer and a bit cleaner than Tijuana(I don't know if that's saying much).

There are some pretty decent schools around here. Specifically in Imperial. They have a brand new Jr. High and newish elementary school.

The Job market is pretty bad. The vast majority of people work in service jobs, education, or government jobs.

There are some places to shop. Theres an indoor mall with a large plaza with anchore stores like Best Buy adjacent to it.

The water company, the prisons, border patrol, customs, school districts, hospitals...thats where more of the people you'd meet work at.

And crime. Crime is nothing compared to the inner cities in other areas. Homicides are fairly rare, although there is a bit of property crime. You'll feel safe in most areas, but you just have to take precaution like in any other city. Lock your car doors and your home, so you don't get broken in to.
El Centro is on the border, so there's a bit of a drug problem, but nothing that should affect you if you don't get involved.


I wrote a lot so I hope that is enough info. Sorry I'm a bit late, lol. Basically, El Centro is a small boring city, but its not too dangerous and doesn't feel too rural unless your living in the outskirts. And the heat..well people just gotta accept the fact that its going up past a 100 everywhere these days.

[greggd]

So how was the reunion?


I had to drive toEl Centro once from San Diego along Hwy 80. You can basically go as fast as you want. Went up to 175mph for miles. Nobody around and visibility for miles ahead. Heck of a long way to nowhere.


When I got into town, at the gas station/mini market, I noticed the 3 individuals/families infront of me paid with food stamps. I didn't see too much of the town, but it looked pretty much like support town for farm workers.
I also believe there is a prison out there.

[the city]

The city's population is at 45,000 population. it has a strip mall and an enclosed mall. no downtown or outletmall upscale shopping. they have a casino, and lots of stuff to do. IT'S VERY HOT! the county has 160,000 population.

[amc760]

Originally Posted by greggd

So how was the reunion?


I had to drive toEl Centro once from San Diego along Hwy 80. You can basically go as fast as you want. Went up to 175mph for miles. Nobody around and visibility for miles ahead. Heck of a long way to nowhere.


When I got into town, at the gas station/mini market, I noticed the 3 individuals/families infront of me paid with food stamps. I didn't see too much of the town, but it looked pretty much like support town for farm workers.
I also believe there is a prison out there.

Was that in the 70s or so?
I didnt know Highway 80 was still being used, and I thought the only freeway from San Diego to El Centro was the 8?