Fresno, Lancaster, or Bakersfield? (San Francisco, Clovis: rent, high crime, homes)

[Jakehorror]

Just curious what city is better as far as safety, economy, jobs, scenery, shopping, and which is more liberal.
We are a white couple (married) and dont ever want kids so family is not important. We are curious as to how hard it is (opposed to L.A.) to find jobs with no degree needed. Retail, office, etc etc.
I hear Bakersfield is full of gangbangers, I hear Lancaster just sucks, but not heard much about Fresno other than it has alot of bible thumpers- is that true of Fresno?

We just want to have a plan in case L.A. don't work out. Not that it wont work out but I like to have ideas in the back of my mind "just in case."
I DO NOT want...no, I WILL NOT end up back in podunk Indiana.
Thanks for any info!

[rkb0305]

Fresno is in a conservative area of the state, but I wouldn't say it is full of bible thumpers. The progressive talk radio station went off the air a few months ago, which sucks IMO. If you don't have to worry about schools you could live in a more liberal area of town (Tower District). The scenery in Fresno isn't good, but Yosemite and Sequoia/Kings Canyon National Parks are close by.

[cleosmom]

I suggest if you have the means and the time to go and actually spend a little time the places you've mentioned. You're going to get a myriad of opinions on all three places, might as well get a feel for yourself. Myself, I'd live in podunk, IN before living in Fresno where I lived for most of my life.

[humboldtrat]

Much of the interior of California such as the San Joaquin Valley tends to be conservative. The big cities along the coast tend to be liberal. I have noticed a lot of religious radio stations in the Bakersfield area. I know many "Oakies" settled in the Bakersfield area during the 1930's to escape the dust bowl and they tended to be more religious and I suppose it carries a little bit on to this day. But you wouldn't notice it. Nobody gets in your face about religion. I have never heard anything about bible thumpers in Fresno.

Out of the 3 towns you mentioned, I would probably go with the north Fresno area and nearby Clovis. North Fresno is newer with newer homes, shopping areas and schools. Fresno is also closer to the Sierra Nevada Mtns with Yosemite and Sequoia/Kings Canyon Nat. Parks. The ocean is about 2 hours to the west. It does get as hot as h*** in all three places you mentioned in the summertime - about 100 and maybe a little bit higher, but the humidity is low.

[Jakehorror]

Thanks for all your input.

We were in the L.A area one time and it was 98 degrees but it only felt like it was about 85. Here in Indiana our humidity is so high that 80 can feel horrific at times.
Fresno/Clovis area looks nice, but I want to visit first. The rent prices in Fresno VS the rest of SoCal are very low and affordable, but that also raises a flag to me that maybe it sucks to live there since the rent is so low.
I think we'll enjoy living in L.A. but I also know that it may get to be too much and we might move to a nearby area like Fresno. Anything but Indiana! Yes, it's that bad here.

[Caliguy2007]

Hi Jake,I live near Bakersfield,and trust me this city is not full of gangbangers,but more of the wannabee types that you'll find in every mid-sized city,but overall I consider Bakersfield as a safe city for it's size.

Bakersfield is a conservative city and has a population of over 320,000 and is considered one of the more affordable places to live in California...The Shopping,Dining and Entertainment in Bakersfield is just like other mid-sized cities,but every year it continues to improve as more new Stores,Restaurants,Etc continue to come to town.

Bakersfield is surrounded by mountains on the East,South and West,so the views are amazing on clear days and during the winter you'll occasionally see snow at the top.

Bakersfield is also not too far away from the beaches and deserts,and as i've mentioned above,the mountains are also nearby....L.A is also about 2 1/2 hours away,and Vegas is about 5 1/2 hours away.

I've included a few links on info about Bakersfield and Kern County.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakersfield,_California

http://www.bakersfieldcity.us/

http://www.visitkern.com/

[Deluxe]

I was born and raised in Bakersfield. Lived in bigger cities, and came back to Bakersfield to save $ and reconnect with family. Those 2 reasons are the only positives I can give about Btown.

Not really a lot of gangbangers LOL, I guess if you live on the wrong side of town.

But for the most part, as a white couple you will fit right in. If you are liberal however, you might not. Most whites are highly Christian and conservative and have families. Most people work in construction and labor jobs, so if you can find anything to talk about with them then there's your answer.

If you're looking for a town with intellectuals or outside of the box thinkers, Bakersfield is not for you. The radio stations ONLY play top 10 and any event in town is somehow related to church, children, military or drinking. So you'll see a lot of beer guts 'round here too.

[ERIC N]

So if I understand it you couldn't make it in the bigger cities and now you're back in Bakersfield where you sulk and complain.

Gangbangers are a problem in some, not most parts of town.

The White couple line seems to hold some sort of resentment. I'm white my wife is Hispanic. We are not highly or lowly Christian. We rely on empirical evidence when making, "belief" choices. We have many friends who share our views.

We also have many many friends and clients through our business. I would approximate less than 20% of those work in construction and labor.

I would suggest that the percentage of intellectuals and out of the box thinkers is shamefully low pretty much everywhere. That said I have many Bakersfield friends with advanced degrees, successful businesses and a witty urbane sense of humor.

Clearly this isn't Boston, New York, San Francisco and the like. Those cities tend to get criticism which is diametrically opposed to these. Left Wing Loons, Bleeding Heart Liberals, Give away the country..... I suggest that while both sets of criticism likely have merit, neither properly sums up the cities in question.

There are bright people and dolts EVERYWHERE. There are religious zealots and those with less restricted opinions EVERYWHERE.

Bakersfield has a smog problem, Bakersfield gets damn hot during the summer, Bakersfield doesn't have the activities that a major city will have. It also won't have the traffic, the cost of living, the huge high crime area, the taxes....

Originally Posted by Deluxe

I was born and raised in Bakersfield. Lived in bigger cities, and came back to Bakersfield to save $ and reconnect with family. Those 2 reasons are the only positives I can give about Btown.

Not really a lot of gangbangers LOL, I guess if you live on the wrong side of town.

But for the most part, as a white couple you will fit right in. If you are liberal however, you might not. Most whites are highly Christian and conservative and have families. Most people work in construction and labor jobs, so if you can find anything to talk about with them then there's your answer.

If you're looking for a town with intellectuals or outside of the box thinkers, Bakersfield is not for you. The radio stations ONLY play top 10 and any event in town is somehow related to church, children, military or drinking. So you'll see a lot of beer guts 'round here too.

[Deluxe]

You know nothing about me.

FYI Eric: I moved back to B-town to get away from an incredibly stalkerish ex-boyfriend I had in LA. Since he almost tried to kill me, destroy property where I was working and threatened my friend whom I was living with I decided it would be better for me to move back home to Bakersfield-- where he's never heard of-- and move on to another city from there.
So am I a bit bitter? yeah, I am. Because I was "making it" and doing just fine in a bigger city, I also want to be able to live without looking over my shoulder because some psycho can't let go.

So choke on that before you make assumptions about people's ability to survive outside of Bakersfield.