looking for the perfect California town to raise our 5 children (Pacifica: work, homes)

[dchapman]

My family and I might be re-locating to Shasta City (area). We are excited about the outdoor opportunities but worried about our kids (10th and 7th grader),

Does anyone know about the community and schools there??

[ShastaLiving]

Shasta is very tiny and schools don't have a good reputation, you might as well live in West Redding, it's where most people want to live becuase of the proximity to the lakes, mountains and other city commodities like the hospital and great schools (Grant School District) being highly desirable. Shasta High is on the West also and it's an excellent school for your 10th grader. I've got more information on the schools on my website if you want to check it out Chris & Maria Jeantet : Shasta Living...a better place for you and your family go to "Resources" and you'll find the schools, jobs, communities, etc.

[barbara d]

Yes I agree Temecula is a great place to raise a family. It has grown so much. But watch the drivers. There is a 3 car deal that is after the light changes to red there are ususally three cars that run the light so watch for that. We lived in Irvine for 14 years and moved to temecula to buy a house for it was much cheaper. But since you work out of the house and you won't deal with traffic then that is the best place to be. It gets really cold at night. It could be 110 durning the day and drop to 40 or 60 at night and it is named in native american as valley of the fog. If you can handle that you can do anything. good luck and happy house hunting.

[jonie]

I'm not clear on if you were interested in socal only, we've had lots of friends all with 3-5 children live or currently living in encinitas it's not cheap or rural but if you want to be in the sd area to be by extended family or prox to beaches it's great, and all of ca is more materialistic than the rest of the country generally with socal taking the cake the sacramento roseville area is less so closer to the mountains and the traffic is nothing compared to L.A. and san diego but is getting worse, you could live in communities up here where you could walk but usually if you can walk, and the schools are good and it's safe it isn't cheap, depending on how earthy you are davis ac is very safe and you're kids could literally ride their bikes all over town once they were 10 yrs. old but it's also a liberal college town and housing isn't cheap a nice 2000+ sq. ft. home in west davis (most family area and bigger track type homes) is going to run you 650-800 but there are parks and pools everywhere and you are only 20-30 minutes to sacramento airport on a freeway (113 to 5) which never sees traffic of any kind. You'll drive to dixon or woodland or vacaville or sac for EVERYTHING, davis has a borders bookstore gap and safeway other than that and really cute boutiques and fun cafes your wal-mart, target( although one is on the way soon ) cost-co etc are all 10-30 minutes away, but if you can afford it it's somewhat a liberal earthy utopia for families while also rural becauses UCdavis is afterall the ag school of the UC's, if you go look up the purvis family they've been in the area for ever and are really helpful and kind. Lastly unless you have real reasons to be in Ca like you grew up here and all your family is here people will be shocked you've moved here, it's the most expensive state with the most regulations of all kinds lots of traffic and crime and maybe you'd like the midwest or the western states more goo luck.

[jaada]

sonora california

[tiredmomof3]

I'm not sure if you're still reading this post...but I'll put my two-cents in! I come from an old California family and feel like I've had a relative in every region! If money is not a problem then what would help guide your decision-making is determining what type of environment you enjoy (that is, hot, cold, rainy ok, foggy ok, dry/desert, mountains, (sub)urban Redwood forests, ocean, etc.), the interests you and your family have (that is, sports, clubs, hobbies, etc.) and what you mean by economic diversity - sadly those at the bottom often live in areas with crime issues, as you must know, and rural areas throughout the US are dealing with serious meth-issues. San Diego Area: Traffic has grown worse than LA! Posters who recommend the Encinitas area, I hope I spelled that correctly, should first explain that the larger San Diego area has expanded without much planning or control. My mom lived in Carlsbad, which still retains a tiny bit of it's old beach town glory, but is surrounded by development. Great schools, little diversity but super-condensed tract neighborhoods. Encinitas is a less-wealthy, not as close to the beach, version. There was a time where all the little beach towns were distinct but they have grown together for the most part - although Leucadia is still a typical surf-town - and as someone who grew-up in a small surf town I can assure you that it's all-about surfing, so if your kids aren't beach goers it might not be as welcoming as they move into their teenage years. That basically goes for the string of surf towns along the coast. Keep in mind that the San Diego area is mostly desert and the environment is dry and lacking in green. The inland area, which is where Temecula is located, is desert, and as others have stated, overgrown. Note as you drive from LAX to San Diego the lack of urban planning - it's a lot of strip malls, bed, bath and beyond, target, etc. It's terribly sad. The Ontario region is also desert and has meth problems, however, the airport is convenient.
LA: Keep in mind that LA has it's distinct areas. One poster recommended Torrance, which is an interesting option. The traffic would drive me crazy but I've heard that it has a nice feel to it. My sister lives in neighboring Redondo Beach and loves it. Much more diversity. Santa Monica is nice too - the schools have kids from less-affluent neighborhoods attending and it's redevelopment seems good for walking. I think some of the "funkier" areas are kind of neat: for example, Topanga Canyon is a real community in and of itself - check out it's website. It's an easy drive to the beach and has lots of lovely canyons to hike in.
Santa Barbara region: I lived in Santa Barbara for a long time and it has changed a lot in the last decade. Serious money has made it nearly impossible for "regular" folks and so you have condensed wealth juxtaposed with the extreme poverty of the Latino workers. The environment is IMHO is the most perfect in the state: beautiful mountains and miles of ocean. Gardens everywhere and easy to get around. Never too hot and never too cold. It has a university - one of the most important thing I think to keep a community from getting too narrow-minded (although the university is in neighboring Goleta). Other posters recommended San Luis Obispo, again, another amazingly beautiful places. It too has gotten very pricey, lots of designer stores etc. but still has the best farmer's market! The downside is that it's a hassle to fly out of.
Monterey Bay Region: Many recommended Carmel/Pacific Grove. My grandfather lived here and my uncle still does. Beautiful surroundings - more green and woody as you leave the desert south. Lovely sea-side village but much older population. Also it's somewhat chilly temperature-wise. Carmel Valley is warmer but hyper-wealthy and not walkable. Airport is a big hassle. Big Sir is beautiful, super-lush Redwood forest [currently on -fire ):] and very eclectic group but not easily reached by airport.
Santa Cruz Region: Santa Cruz itself does have some of the elements you require: a walkable downtown, nice neighborhoods, economic diversity etc. It also has a university and a nice beach. The downside is that is has a large population of lost hippies living on the streets, and some gang problems. Capitola Beach, just to the south, is a small surf town that Santa Cruz has grown into. That said, the beach itself feels like the beaches of my youth. It's worth reading-up on what surf culture is all-about so that you understand the influences, both positive and negative, before you move your children there.
San Jose Area: I really don't like this area - very big sprawl. Some nice but very wealthy areas, like Los Gatos. However, I have relatives living in the Santa Cruz mountains with a Los Gatos zipcode and love it: the best of both worlds. Your kids go to excellent schools but you live in a little mountain hamlet. Beautiful forests, easy drive to the beaches at Santa Cruz and easy drive to airports of SF and SJ. They love the community feel as well. Weather: warm/hot summers, rainy winters. Lots of green. EastBay Region: You may want to investigate Berkeley - it's all about diversity although I've met more than a few people who "love" the diversity but have their kids in prep schools. It's a tough call as the public schools aren't that great. The high school has a good reputation but it's not accurate, and it's a big, crowded, urban school and easy to get lost in. On the other side is the Lamorinda Area, where I'll admit to living. Excellent schools, beautiful hills, forests, etc. but no diversity, which often leads us to looking elsewhere to live and questioning how healthy it is for us to raise our kids here - you're right to think about this. I never thought it would be so crazy until my kids got older and now it's too expensive to move!
Northbay: I'll admit to not having spent much time here. It's beautiful with more rain as you move north.
Redding Area: Redding has drug-issues and since you are so far away from anything it can seem worse. The weather is either cold or very hot. No university. Pluses are that you have amazing forests and park-lands.
You may want to check-out Chico - it's been featured in a few magazines lately and has had a lot of thought put into its growth. It's very cute, nice downtown, has a university, economically diverse, bikable, beautiful green parks, etc. Negative: hot in summer and the nearest airport is Sacramento. Ditto Davis: very easy to get around, great farmer's market, shops, restaurants, diverse, ecofriendly, big university, surrounded by farmland (like Chico) but a quick twenty-minute drive to Sacramento airport (I went to grad. school here) and easy drive to the mountains too. Downtown area is ideal, shady-tree lined streets, walk everywhere, etc. Suburbs are boring. Cons: hot, dusty summers.
I'm sure I've missed more than a few but I'm brain-dead and will log-off! Best of luck!

[TallmanTina]

Originally Posted by michlars

Does that exist? We would like to move to Cal. for many reasons but are nervous about the schools, materialism culture, and stressful lifestyle of driving. We can pretty much live anywhere and money isn't an issue, although I prefer to live in an economically diverse (but safe) area. I prefer the simple life and like my children to walk to school and most activities. Any ideas for us? I looked up the best schools in California and as usual they are in the priciest areas. Are there some in between areas that have great properties, great people, and walkable?

-----
hello

You may want to look into Rancho Bernardo or east county (Santee, Alpine). Alpine may be just what you are looking for. Hope this helps.

[TallmanTina]

Originally Posted by dchapman

My family and I might be re-locating to Shasta City (area). We are excited about the outdoor opportunities but worried about our kids (10th and 7th grader),

Does anyone know about the community and schools there??

be careful!! It may be fine but I know in Redding, there were some drug issues as young as 12 and it seemed rampant to me.

Search out as much info as you can on what the kids do,etc.

[mminor]

any opinions of Ojai?

[Charles]

Originally Posted by mminor

any opinions of Ojai?

There are a lot of threads with Ojai information in them...check out the search tool.