Tehachapi.. any info please (Sacramento, Bakersfield: transplants, houses, elementary school)

[Dazey]

I found a great job in Tehachapi but would really like more info about the place before making any decisions. I currently live just south of Sacramento and really need to get out of all the hustle and bustle. I grew up in the country and would love to be able to have some land. I traveled to Tehachapi two weeks ago. The area is pretty. I can live without all the stores although I'm not sure what I'd do without Target... I would of course want good schools for my kids.. my girls are 3 and 7. It doesn't seem like a red neck community for the most part. I know the prison is there.. but most people say it doesn't affect them in the least.. that they forget that it's even there. People say Tehachapi is a great community.. safe, cultured, great little festivals.. I love that it supports all the horse enthusiasts.. because that is me. I am a runner.. but am almost always pushing one or two kids in the jog stroller with the dog along too. I live next to a great trail now.. Is there anything like that in Tehachapi? I've heard that they are making a paved trail through town. Do any of the small communities have any run/walking trails? I've heard that the hiking trails are great. I have another job opportunity in the Chico area which I like better... But, I really like the job in Tehachapi better. Any info pleazzzzz....

[toastee]

Tehachapi is much safer than Chico! The outlying areas, Stallion Springs, Bear Valley Springs, and Alpine Forest are great for jogging in the lower areas. Not sure about Golden Hills. They are doing a lot more building in town and have started putting in paved walking and running paths. Cummings Valley Elementary school, IMO is the best grade school, after that everyone goes to the same middle and high school.
There is a great deal of community support, farmers market, local organic farms, art gallary, equestrian events and things like that.
The prison will probably expand over the next few years. No one really pays too much attention to the prison because most everyone works there! And the guests over that way have nothing much to say.
The commute to Bakersfield for Target is about an hour, or even to Lancaster, the same.
Be prepared for snow and wind closures on Highway 58. Be ready to have child care in place for those fun "snow days" when the kids get cut loose and the workers still work.
We should be getting a Wal-Mart in the future and Target is never too far behind them.
Hubby and I have been here for almost sixty years.....we are OLD!! and the town has changed a lot! Used to be pear orchards and ranches everywhere. We are relocating to a more rural area soon.
That said, Tehachapi is the best place in Southern California to raise a family!!!

Chico also has a prison but they have more parolees who stick around the area after release, not so much in Tehachapi. The Dispatch center for Ontario/Chico police field more calls in one day than the Dispatch center in Compton gets.........not good!!!

[riceme]

I am a Tehachapi native, which means that I either know or know of Toastee. I second everything she said. Tehachapi is a great place to raise a family... My mom and her brothers were raised there, as were my siblings and myself.

There are a lot of changes happening in Tehachapi right now... I like a lot of them, and some of them I'm not so hot for (like WalMart, Target), but that's all a matter of personal opinion, and I am biased in that area since my Granny owned one of two local department stores for about 40 years.

Here's the link to the online version of the Tehachapi News

Tehachapi News - Tehachapi News

And here are the blogs/forums... They are not currently moderated (financial woes at TN), so we, ahh... "self moderate". Watch out for language, etc. if you're easily offended.

Blog Index Page - Tehachapi News - Tehachapi News

[The_S.P._Caboose]

toastee and riceme; thank you both for answering this question. I don.t know yet, but I also maybe moving to Tehachapi.

One thimg I do is that BNSF and UP both operate their train thru town. Any idea how many?

Thanks ahead of time.

[riceme]

Originally Posted by The_S.P._Caboose

toastee and riceme; thank you both for answering this question. I don.t know yet, but I also maybe moving to Tehachapi.

One thimg I do is that BNSF and UP both operate their train thru town. Any idea how many?

Thanks ahead of time.

Well, I've googled "Tehachapi train schedule" and all sorts of other things, and can't seem to find the answer. When I first saw your question, the first thing that popped into my mind was, "Every 20-minutes," then I thought maybe that was too frequent. They sure SEEM to run every 20-minutes!

My granny lives about a block from the tracks, and my uncle lives about a block and a half from the tracks... I'll ask them what the trains are running.

A lot of transplants seem to hate the trains, but most locals love them, including myself. I have lived in both my granny's and my uncle's houses when I was younger (both have been family homes before), and got used to the sound of the trains... For a long time after I moved from those houses I had trouble sleeping because I missed the trains. Still miss them.

[The_S.P._Caboose]

I know that it's all freight traffic, Between Mojave and Kern Junction (Bakersfield) that BNSF has trackage rights over the UP. I worked for the Southern Pacific for 16 years.

[riceme]

Originally Posted by The_S.P._Caboose

I know that it's all freight traffic, Between Mojave and Kern Junction (Bakersfield) that BNSF has trackage rights over the UP. I worked for the Southern Pacific for 16 years.

Thank god it's all freight, otherwise more people might discover Tehachapi and move there. When my mom was a little girl they ran passengers over the line for a short while... When I was younger I wished they'd do it again, but now I'm glad they don't.

SP Caboose: Are you aware of our RR Depot fire one year ago? It was the original depot and we were restoring it to original... Had all the original, neat stuff in it. It was right before Independence Day, and a couple of jackasses lit-off fireworks and the depot burnt to the ground. It was scheduled to open on Independence Day last year. Devastated the whole town. I'll see if I can pull up an article for ya.

[riceme]

I can't find the original Tehachapi News article, but here's one:

Historic Tehachapi Depot Burns

[lucie23]

Originally Posted by toastee

Tehachapi is much safer than Chico!...Chico also has a prison but they have more parolees who stick around the area after release, not so much in Tehachapi. The Dispatch center for Ontario/Chico police field more calls in one day than the Dispatch center in Compton gets.........not good!!!

The original poster may already have moved, but I have to correct a mistake here anyway.

CHICO does not have a prison
Chico, California - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Chico Wiki - The Information Resource for Chico, California


CHINO does
Chino, California - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
California Institution for Men - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
California Institution for Women - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

They're on opposite ends of the state.

Chino is in San Bernardino county in Southern California

Chico is in Butte County in Northern California, above Sacramento in gold rush country, and it's a beautiful place to live.

Not trying to lecture, but please check your facts next time, ok? Thanks!

[canibeyou]

LOL, Lucie23, if the residents of Chico got a dollar for every time someone made that mistake, they'd be millionaires by now!