Porterville? (Fresno, Bakersfield, Visalia: house, movie theater, school district)

[tenortodd]

Hello all.

I have written inquiries about a lot of towns all over the U.S. as we are looking to relocate this August.

Well, after over 20 applications, I have my first interview...in Porterville.

Can I get some general info, please?

We are a small family with 2 young girls. We don't mind rural.

I would like to know if Porterville is safe for a young family of 4? I have family in the high desert and in the Yosemite area...so I see that we would be right in between both families.

If you comment and DON'T like Porterville...would you suggest any areas that are within commuting distance?

We love the outdoors: hiking and the mountains. My wife grew up in a rural area.

But neither of us has lived in CA. (Because I have family there, I've been visiting all my life, though.)

I always loved the drive from the high desert to Yosemite, through the central valley.

Thanks for any thoughts.

[Des-Lab]

I live in Tulare which is not far from Porterville. I've been through there a number of times so I feel reasonably qualified to offer my two bits of insight.

Porterville is pretty much just like any other small/medium town here in the Central Valley. It's got its nice areas, so-so areas, and moribund 'must avoid at all costs' areas. You'll find gas stations, fast food, chain restaurants, a movie theater, tons of dollar and thrift shops, and taco stands just like anywhere else in the Valley. Aesthetically speaking, it does leave a bit to be desired and isn't exactly a postcard setting. But again it doesn't look like bombed out Syria either. So that is a matter of preference and taste. It does have a nice old-town downtown and main street. A good chunk of the stores are empty but the ones that are open represent a respectable cross section of bars, restaurants, and boutique shops.

It's nestled right up against the foothills which means that because of the prevailing winds, the air can get especially nasty at times with all the soot, dust, and crud that's a hallmark of most of the Valley. Nearby Lake Success offers some recreational opportunities with swimming, boating, fishing, etc. Although because of the drought, has been largely desiccated and neglected in recent years. For water recreation, I would far recommend Lake Kaweah (about an hour away) over Success. Springville is a nearby Old West type of town that has its annual rodeo and there are some nearby mountain parks worth checking out like Balch Park, Camp Nelson, etc. All are nice scenic drives. Eagle Mountain casino is in the foothills nearby, but it's only accessible via a very narrow and winding mountain road and is not at all a pleasure to get in or out of. And the casino isn't very big. McDermont house in nearby Lindsay is a popular indoor sports park/arcade/pizza parlor all in one. But the crowd there can be a bit sketchy at times. Go at your own risk. YMMV. For any sort of nightlife, you'll probably need to go to Visalia if not Bakersfield or Fresno.

Probably the biggest complaint I have about Porterville is getting in or out of there. It does not have any direct freeway access. Hwy 65 is built to freeway standards but only for a few miles through town. From there, both all the way down to Bakersfield as well as up to Exeter, it is a rural highway that's loaded with CHP officers just itching to give you a ticket. And because there's a Wal-Mart distribution center on the south side of town, this road is LOADED with truck traffic. The only other approaches are via two-lane country roads (such as Hwy 190).

Once *IN* town, you're fine. Getting out is somewhat cumbersome.

The closest other nearby large town that might be worth checking out would be Visalia, which for all intents and purposes, is a major city in its own right. The outskirts of it can be reached from Porterville in about 30 min.

So I'm not saying you should or should not avoid Porterville. As with anyone else, you would be best advised to make at least a couple of exploratory trips of it and the nearby area before committing to anything.

Good luck.

[tenortodd]

Thanks so much for the quick reply. Your info was great. It looks like it's possible to live in Visalia and only have a 35-45 minute daily commute. That might be a great option for my wife to have the amenities of a city, but be close enough to my job. I know I'd have to deal with rural highway driving, which should be ok. Any other thoughts?

[Snort]

Just looking up the population info, you have Porterville at 55K and Visalia at 128K.
For me, 55 thousand is a pretty good-sized town. YMMV.

[Des-Lab]

Give the town of Exeter a look. It is between Visalia and Porterville (closer to the former but IMO much better than-say Lindsay or Strathmore) and is for the most part, one of the nicer of the small towns here.

Exeter-Porterville: about 20-25 min.

Exeter-Visalia: 15-20 min.

[Bruce81]

I go to Porterville every week for work and it's not too bad despite the isolation. It does have a more attractive mountainous setting than Visalia but it is a small city. Most of the nightlife, good restaurants, or concerts will be in Bakersfield or Fresno. Despite that I still enjoy how close it is to the mountains and still feels more like a nice small town compared to the other unattractive valley towns. You do have the basics, Walmart, Target, Kohls and other shopping options plus like I mentioned it still feels like the nicer, cleaner valley town when compared to say, Tulare, Delano, Reedley, Mendota, Dinuba and so on.

Visalia is close enough if you need to head to a larger mall or better dinning options but I personally would stay in Porterville, especially if you plan on working there. Living in Visalia wouldn't be that much of an upgrade or huge difference since it's not that big of a city either.
Porterville still has the basics and has a more attractive surrounding than Visalia. I say live where you work. Porterville is not that bad at all.

[tenortodd]

Thanks, Bruce. My uncle told me he used to live in Exeter awhile ago. He suggested looking there, too.

[sacreole]

I lived in Visalia for 12 years and am familiar with Porterville and other parts of Tulare County. Porterville is the third largest city in the county after Visalia (county seat) and Tulare. As was mentioned earlier, it's a little off the beaten track along SR-65 yet has most of the well-known retail and dining outlets. Porterville has its own public transit system and is served by the countywide transit service that provides connections to Tulare and Visalia. In terms of more upscale shopping, dining and entertainment options, you would need to head for Bakersfield or Visalia. I would also recommend Exeter located about 12 miles east of Visalia. Exeter is a slice of Mayberry in the San Joaquin Valley. It's about a 20 minute commute to Porterville.

[janellen]

I've lived in Porterville most of my life and that's a looooooong time. I was born here. Spent a few years traveling all over the US but wound up back here. Everybody is pretty much right on in their assessment of the town. If you'll be working in Porterville, you don't want to be commuting from Visalia in the winter when it's foggy. I second everyone's suggestion in checking out Exeter. It really is a nice little town.

Springville is also a good choice if you want to live out of town but close enough to commute to work. It's a cute little mountain town 13 miles from Porterville. Springville's high enough to be out of the fog but below the snow (most of the time). Springville has the best elementary school for your children, although they have to come down to Porterville for high school and Porterville's high schools leave a lot to be desired. They have lots of little gang banger wannabes causing lots of trouble at all three high schools. There aren't any private schools so you're stuck with the public ones. I think Exeter's high school is much safer. The one high school in the Porterville school district that rates really high statewide is the Harmony Magnet Academy, a charter school. I think it specializes in engineering and performing arts. It's located in Strathmore five miles north of Porterville.

You should probably try to make a visit to the area before you get too committed. Bone up on your spanish (just kidding..............not).

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Originally Posted by Des-Lab

I live in Tulare which is not far from Porterville. I've been through there a number of times so I feel reasonably qualified to offer my two bits of insight.

Porterville is pretty much just like any other small/medium town here in the Central Valley. It's got its nice areas, so-so areas, and moribund 'must avoid at all costs' areas. You'll find gas stations, fast food, chain restaurants, a movie theater, tons of dollar and thrift shops, and taco stands just like anywhere else in the Valley. Aesthetically speaking, it does leave a bit to be desired and isn't exactly a postcard setting. But again it doesn't look like bombed out Syria either. So that is a matter of preference and taste. It does have a nice old-town downtown and main street. A good chunk of the stores are empty but the ones that are open represent a respectable cross section of bars, restaurants, and boutique shops.

It's nestled right up against the foothills which means that because of the prevailing winds, the air can get especially nasty at times with all the soot, dust, and crud that's a hallmark of most of the Valley. Nearby Lake Success offers some recreational opportunities with swimming, boating, fishing, etc. Although because of the drought, has been largely desiccated and neglected in recent years. For water recreation, I would far recommend Lake Kaweah (about an hour away) over Success. Springville is a nearby Old West type of town that has its annual rodeo and there are some nearby mountain parks worth checking out like Balch Park, Camp Nelson, etc. All are nice scenic drives. Eagle Mountain casino is in the foothills nearby, but it's only accessible via a very narrow and winding mountain road and is not at all a pleasure to get in or out of. And the casino isn't very big. McDermont house in nearby Lindsay is a popular indoor sports park/arcade/pizza parlor all in one. But the crowd there can be a bit sketchy at times. Go at your own risk. YMMV. For any sort of nightlife, you'll probably need to go to Visalia if not Bakersfield or Fresno.

Probably the biggest complaint I have about Porterville is getting in or out of there. It does not have any direct freeway access. Hwy 65 is built to freeway standards but only for a few miles through town. From there, both all the way down to Bakersfield as well as up to Exeter, it is a rural highway that's loaded with CHP officers just itching to give you a ticket. And because there's a Wal-Mart distribution center on the south side of town, this road is LOADED with truck traffic. The only other approaches are via two-lane country roads (such as Hwy 190).

Once *IN* town, you're fine. Getting out is somewhat cumbersome.

The closest other nearby large town that might be worth checking out would be Visalia, which for all intents and purposes, is a major city in its own right. The outskirts of it can be reached from Porterville in about 30 min.

So I'm not saying you should or should not avoid Porterville. As with anyone else, you would be best advised to make at least a couple of exploratory trips of it and the nearby area before committing to anything.

Good luck.

RE: Hwy 65. One of my "missing infrastructure" laments is the fact that Hwy 65 was not completed in accordance with the original plan from 45 years ago. A couple weeks ago, sitting in gridlock in Sacto trying to get from the North to the South part of town ... I was really, really lamenting it. Imagine having another controlled access superhighway going from (at least) Lincoln all the way to Bakersfield, along the base of the foothills. So many traffic problems would be solved.