Santa Maria or Hawthorne?

[BayAreaHillbilly]

Tough call. Job wise Santa Maria is a bit more difficult.

As noted, local commerce is a bit of a mixed bag.

Not sure I'd leave Hawthorne for Santa Maria, not a very compelling case.

[Clarks]

Downtown may be beyond fixing, it used to be a normal downtown, theatre, hotel, shops. It was gutted for the enclosed mall and across the street the strip mall. Most new development is in south Santa Maria of Betteravia and south Broadway.

I think it is too late for downtown.

If the esthetics of a town are important to you, neither Santa Maria nor Orcutt fit the bill, but, either is a great leap forward from Hawthorne.

[Clarks]

Regarding race. Santa Maria is the center of vegetable farming, since the winter of 1941-42 that labor intensive work has been done largely by Mexicans. Those who work the fields are good workers and good family people, often their children and grandchildren look for an easy way out, the gangs answer that, they are multi generational. North Santa Maria has become the housing center for the Mexican and Mexican American Community, for better or for worse.

Recently a friend sat in the parking lot of the mall and counted people, roughly 100 Mexicans for 1 anglo.

Whether that is a problem for anyone depends on them.