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Old 08-04-2016, 08:33 AM
 
2 posts, read 7,027 times
Reputation: 21

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The 52nd largest city in the U.S.A. But you wouldn't know it driving thru. With the town growing rapidly westward, traffic has been a major problem. I wish that the city would have expanded to the east....in the foothills. Might have given this place more character instead of becoming a flatland paradise for strip malls and tract housing. ....rather expensive housing at that!
Only in Bakersfield will you see freeways dead end in the center of town. State Highway 58 expands to 3 lanes just east of town, then shrinks to 2 lanes....just in time before exits to downtown and merging into Hwy 99. Traveling southbound 99 to eastbound 58 is always backed up! The addition of the Westside Parkway is great...one can go from downtown to the western edge in under 15 minutes!! Sadly this road is around 6 miles long and does not directly connect to any freeway...asinine city planning!
Bakersfield covers a lot of area in square mileage. It has a population larger than St. Louis, Tampa, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh, yet unlike those cities, there are no pro teams here. And there is no skyline to speak of. The tallest buildings in town are the 12-story Stockdale Tower (not downtown) & the 10-story B of A building downtown.
Agriculture and oil have put Bakersfield on the map. And it is centrally located. LA is 2 hours away. The ocean about 2-1/2. SF, San Diego about 4 hours. The best snow skiing around is in Mammoth, 4 plus hours....as far as adult Disneyland, Las Vegas. Bakersfield is pretty affordable too.
Its negatives are poor city planning, no skyline, a horrendous freeway system (58 has been under construction for over 4 years), bad air quality, and very hot Summers, with several days over 100 degrees. It has not lived up to its potential....Grade in 1970: B, traffic: A-, population: 69,515. Grade in 2016: C-, traffic: F, population: 373,640. This is a place you move from, not to!
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Old 08-04-2016, 11:17 AM
 
Location: Sylmar, a part of Los Angeles
8,245 posts, read 6,300,284 times
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But you have a dragstrip, closest one in LA is Fontana.
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Old 08-04-2016, 12:15 PM
 
12,823 posts, read 24,282,550 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by V8 Vega View Post
But you have a dragstrip, closest one in LA is Fontana.
No doubt. My wife and I had not been in "Baker's Patch" for a few years.

We were driving along and we spied something in the distance. We initially thought it might be some new lux hotel. Nope - it was the freakin' grandstand of the raceway!

That is a fancy raceway.
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Old 08-04-2016, 03:52 PM
 
2,963 posts, read 6,235,416 times
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What I don't understand is why 373,640 people live in bakersfield
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Old 08-04-2016, 04:11 PM
 
Location: Living on the Coast in Oxnard CA
16,289 posts, read 32,197,901 times
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People live in Bakersfield because the homes cost a lot less than on the coast. The home we own in Oxnard was built in 1962 and supposedly is worth $477,000 or so depending on who you ask. Here are some examples of homes that you can have built in Bakersfield.

Residence 2514 in Westwind, Bakersfield, CA 93313 | ID: RESIDENCE2514 | HomeFinder.com

Residence 1670 in Olympian Hills, Bakersfield, CA 93306 | ID: RESIDENCE1670 | HomeFinder.com
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Old 08-04-2016, 04:18 PM
 
Location: Sacramento
1,226 posts, read 1,628,384 times
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Bakersfield is home to the Buck Owens Crystal Palace, if you're into the "Bakersfield Sound" (country-western tunes) as well as the Rabobank Arena, Padre Hotel, Fox Theater and Basque cuisine.
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Old 08-04-2016, 04:33 PM
 
1,994 posts, read 4,844,881 times
Reputation: 2036
Bakersfield is just a mid-sized city and traffic is not bad in my opinion...The freeway system in Bakersfield is older so it was built only to accomodate a much smaller population back then,but today since Bakersfield has been booming they've constructed The Westside Parkway which is all part of a planned Beltway that will eventually connect Interstate 5 with Highway 99,Highway 58 and Highway 178 once it's completed.

Traffic in Bakersfield is not bad,and there are so many routes around town to avoid whatever traffic you do encounter.

You don't see high rises as in other cities because Bakersfield grew outwards not upwards,but with modern engineering to construct earthquake resistance buildings,i'm sure Bakersfield and many other cities throughout the state will start building upwards as time goes by.

Bakersfield Population base is too small to support a Pro Sports Team if your talking about an NFL,NBA or MLB team.

Bakersfield is also affordable compared to what you'll pay for if you lived in Southern CA.

Bakersfield does have a lot of potential,but their are many other cities throughout CA that it has to compete with,but the city has improved a lot.

Yeah we do have poor air quality at times and yes it get's hot here since this is the Central Valley and it is summer,but at least it's a dry heat and it's not as hot as Vegas or Phoenix.

You obviously don't like living in Bakersfield,so hopefully one day you find a place that you'll be happy in.

Quote:
Originally Posted by ladonin View Post
The 52nd largest city in the U.S.A. But you wouldn't know it driving thru. With the town growing rapidly westward, traffic has been a major problem. I wish that the city would have expanded to the east....in the foothills. Might have given this place more character instead of becoming a flatland paradise for strip malls and tract housing. ....rather expensive housing at that!
Only in Bakersfield will you see freeways dead end in the center of town. State Highway 58 expands to 3 lanes just east of town, then shrinks to 2 lanes....just in time before exits to downtown and merging into Hwy 99. Traveling southbound 99 to eastbound 58 is always backed up! The addition of the Westside Parkway is great...one can go from downtown to the western edge in under 15 minutes!! Sadly this road is around 6 miles long and does not directly connect to any freeway...asinine city planning!
Bakersfield covers a lot of area in square mileage. It has a population larger than St. Louis, Tampa, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh, yet unlike those cities, there are no pro teams here. And there is no skyline to speak of. The tallest buildings in town are the 12-story Stockdale Tower (not downtown) & the 10-story B of A building downtown.
Agriculture and oil have put Bakersfield on the map. And it is centrally located. LA is 2 hours away. The ocean about 2-1/2. SF, San Diego about 4 hours. The best snow skiing around is in Mammoth, 4 plus hours....as far as adult Disneyland, Las Vegas. Bakersfield is pretty affordable too.
Its negatives are poor city planning, no skyline, a horrendous freeway system (58 has been under construction for over 4 years), bad air quality, and very hot Summers, with several days over 100 degrees. It has not lived up to its potential....Grade in 1970: B, traffic: A-, population: 69,515. Grade in 2016: C-, traffic: F, population: 373,640. This is a place you move from, not to!
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Old 08-04-2016, 04:37 PM
 
1,994 posts, read 4,844,881 times
Reputation: 2036
Because the city is booming and is one of the more affordable places to actually purchase a nice home...We've also got great weather here...I've lived up in Washington State and I don't like the gloom and rain up north.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Majin View Post
What I don't understand is why 373,640 people live in bakersfield
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Old 08-04-2016, 04:40 PM
 
1,994 posts, read 4,844,881 times
Reputation: 2036
There is so much new communities being constructed all around Bakersfield again since the economy has improved.

That's about average for a new home in a newer neighborhood,but you can actually find other nice homes in nice areas for under $200,000.

Quote:
Originally Posted by SOON2BNSURPRISE View Post
People live in Bakersfield because the homes cost a lot less than on the coast. The home we own in Oxnard was built in 1962 and supposedly is worth $477,000 or so depending on who you ask. Here are some examples of homes that you can have built in Bakersfield.

Residence 2514 in Westwind, Bakersfield, CA 93313 | ID: RESIDENCE2514 | HomeFinder.com

Residence 1670 in Olympian Hills, Bakersfield, CA 93306 | ID: RESIDENCE1670 | HomeFinder.com
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Old 08-04-2016, 11:18 PM
 
Location: The Republic of Gilead
12,716 posts, read 7,737,287 times
Reputation: 11323
Quote:
Originally Posted by ladonin View Post
The 52nd largest city in the U.S.A. But you wouldn't know it driving thru. With the town growing rapidly westward, traffic has been a major problem. I wish that the city would have expanded to the east....in the foothills. Might have given this place more character instead of becoming a flatland paradise for strip malls and tract housing. ....rather expensive housing at that!
Only in Bakersfield will you see freeways dead end in the center of town. State Highway 58 expands to 3 lanes just east of town, then shrinks to 2 lanes....just in time before exits to downtown and merging into Hwy 99. Traveling southbound 99 to eastbound 58 is always backed up! The addition of the Westside Parkway is great...one can go from downtown to the western edge in under 15 minutes!! Sadly this road is around 6 miles long and does not directly connect to any freeway...asinine city planning!
Bakersfield covers a lot of area in square mileage. It has a population larger than St. Louis, Tampa, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh, yet unlike those cities, there are no pro teams here. And there is no skyline to speak of. The tallest buildings in town are the 12-story Stockdale Tower (not downtown) & the 10-story B of A building downtown.
Agriculture and oil have put Bakersfield on the map. And it is centrally located. LA is 2 hours away. The ocean about 2-1/2. SF, San Diego about 4 hours. The best snow skiing around is in Mammoth, 4 plus hours....as far as adult Disneyland, Las Vegas. Bakersfield is pretty affordable too.
Its negatives are poor city planning, no skyline, a horrendous freeway system (58 has been under construction for over 4 years), bad air quality, and very hot Summers, with several days over 100 degrees. It has not lived up to its potential....Grade in 1970: B, traffic: A-, population: 69,515. Grade in 2016: C-, traffic: F, population: 373,640. This is a place you move from, not to!
I like in Oklahoma City and feel the same way. OKC is very similar to Bakersfield. Built primarily in oil money and agriculture and lacks a lot of the vibrancy and amenities cities its size should have. This is a place people who are graduating high school or college can't wait to get out of. I however will be stuck her for at least four more years and I really do wish it was better.
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