Paso Robles area (San Luis Obispo, Atascadero, Pismo Beach: 2010, crime, hotel)

[sgirl58]

Hello all
Live in Northern Ca, thinking of moving a little south when retirement comes. We enjoy camping at Lake San Antonio a lot and really like that area and the Paso Robles area. Anyone living there what are the pros/cons?
Crime, housing prices, things to do?
Thanks,
Cathie

[calicowgirl3319]

i lived south of paso in arroyo grande and san luis obispo. paso robles is nice, i say thi coming from LA but it is hot hot hot in the summer and cold at night or in the winter. not much to do besides the fair in the summer. paso and atascadero are both known for high drug/alcohol use. if your young i suggest san luis obispo or grover beach.arroyo grande cooler temps tons to do but can still escape the city, good luck

[the city]

Yeah, not much to do in north san luis obispo county.

Atascadero has the zoo and super wal-mart strip mall being bult. Paso robles has the rollerskate rink, bowling alley, paintball park, and batting cages and water park and fair during Summer for young people.

Pismo Beach has the dunes and outlet mall for entertainment. San Luis Obispo has a night club, upscale movie theater, drive-in movie theater, and a downtown with shopping centres with retail clothes stores like Urban Outfitters and Barnes'N'Nobles. The dalidio ranch project might be changed to a regional open-air mall with a food court and arcade for teens.

south san luis obispo county-five cities, morro bay-los osos, mesa area, and san luis obispo have the cooler nicer weather. it's a bit expensive in some parts of south county, but it's worth it.

[itlchick]

I have only driven through, but I wasn't that impressed. I read that Paso was an up-and-coming town, but it looked a lot like Atascadero to me - sort of country and hot.

On the plus side, I did eat at an amazing restaurant there

[CA central coast]

The crime is low in all of SLO county and cost of housing is high in most of it. Paso Robles is a nice place. Downtown has recently been revitalized near the city park in the middle of town, it's beautiful. Summers are hot, can get a bit chilly at times during the winter. All and all I think it's a nice place to live.

[truckzter]

I think I have to defend Paso here.

While working in one of the local restaurants, I met many retirees who moved to Paso. There isn't much to do for teens/college age unless they are outdoorsy, but parents/retirees love Paso -- the wine festivals, summer concerts in the Park, hot tubs, antique shops, car shows, Americana festivals .. there is always something "touristy" going on here.

I'm used to the dry heat, but it will get at least in the 100s during July/August. But the last few summers haven't been too typical.

The beaches are 30 miles away, there is Swing Dancing at Centennial Park, the Library is always hosting thematic fundraisers, you can fish at Lake Nacimiento, and the Vine Street Victorian Showcase is always a hit during Christmas.

The "charm" of Paso is the wine country (and wine tours), ranches, hilltop homes,
and ease of downtown. Now we have a horsedrawn carriage at Hotel Cheval and pedi-taxis. There are always couples strolling around downtown .. quite picturesque.

That being said, there is more traffic, more box stores opening, and more people moving from LA and SF who bring their fast pace with them. It is an expensive place to live, and, unfortunately, more and more track homes are being built.

[the city]

Originally Posted by the city

Yeah, not much to do in north san luis obispo county.

Atascadero has the zoo and super wal-mart strip mall being bult. Paso robles has the rollerskate rink, bowling alley, paintball park, and batting cages and water park and fair during Summer for young people.

Pismo Beach has the dunes and outlet mall for entertainment. San Luis Obispo has a night club, upscale movie theater, drive-in movie theater, and a downtown with shopping centres with retail clothes stores like Urban Outfitters and Barnes'N'Nobles. The dalidio ranch project might be changed to a regional open-air mall with a food court and arcade for teens.

south san luis obispo county-five cities, morro bay-los osos, mesa area, and san luis obispo have the cooler nicer weather. it's a bit expensive in some parts of south county, but it's worth it.

okay, it looks like the Dalidio Ranch project will have Target, Lowe's, Sport Chalet, Macy's, a hotel, 6 resturaunt food court, and laser tag. Yeah, I still say South county if you want a sububan feel. and Paso if u want a rural feel.

[BobsGL1800]

Originally Posted by the city

okay, it looks like the Dalidio Ranch project will have Target, Lowe's, Sport Chalet, Macy's, a hotel, 6 resturaunt food court, and laser tag. Yeah, I still say South county if you want a sububan feel. and Paso if u want a rural feel.

Where are you getting this info from? I thought I read that the Dalidio project was rejected by the city.

[the city]

Originally Posted by BobsGL1800

Where are you getting this info from? I thought I read that the Dalidio project was rejected by the city.

That's true it was turned down by the city by 51% saying no to Measure A-B-C, but that doesn't mean he can't re-submit his project with better tenets. The county voters passed his project by a landslide of 65%. But the judge invalidated that vote because voters didn't know his project interfered with local zoning laws and that the project in the county would generate traffic fees, flooding fees, and also require tax payers to pay for the rest of the 101 freeway interchange. No one wanted to do that. So, I believe if Dalidio gets Macy's back into his project. Which is very possible since Macy's made a statement this year saying they intend to come back to San Luis Obispo when our economy was doing better. Please remeber Measure A-B-C was in 2004, and at that period in time the population of San Luis Obispo was going down. Now in 2006 when Macy's looked back into San Luis Obispo, also when the Measure J ballet was cast, SLO was going up in population. San Luis Obispo is at 44,600 population now. We estimate to be at 45,000 population in 2010. And in 2020 San Luis Obispo estimates to be at 50,000 population from the Airport road, Margarita road, and orcutt road annexations so more families can move into this area. And after 2020 the market is estimated to slow down so SLO will only be gaining 2,000 population every 10 years after that. 2010-2020 is supposed to be some good years for the market. Paso Robles and San Luis Obispo and Atascadero will have a bit of growth.

[marathonali]

I lived in Paso Robles in 96-97 and I loved it! I worked at Twin Cities Hospital in Templeton and my husband was stationed at Camp Roberts. And when we weren't working, we were always on the go. In my opinion, there was always something to do, somewhere to go, even if we had to drive a little ways to SLO or the coast.

I remember eating at some really great places. Of course, I can't remember their names right now - one was a church that had been converted into a restaurant and one was a steakhouse in a building that looked "old west" (it may have been in Atascedero).

I didn't have kids at the time, but where we lived seems like it would have been perfect for a family with kids. Walking distance to the schools.

Great farmer's market in downtown too.

That was over 10 years ago, so maybe things have changed, growth has happened. But I have very fond memories of Paso Robles and the surrounding areas.