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Please compare Beaumont, Texas, New Bedford, Massachusetts, Bellingham, Washington and Ventura, California.
All four cities are located on the coast and within 100 miles of the major metropolitan cities of Houston, Boston, Seattle and Los Angeles. All are around 100,000 or more population and have separate identities\ distinct histories than the nearby mega-cities
Ventura came to mind in another thread and raised the question of how relatively smaller cities compare to one another. I'll post info on Ventura later but am interested if there are posters familiar with the above cities [some would call them towns].
- History
Ventura is officially named San Buenaventura and how it is referred to by city government\ maps. Ventura was founded in 1782 by Padre Serra and has a mission that is still used as a parish church. It was a sleepy pueblo along the main highway, El Camino Real until the mid\ late 1900's but still is barely over 100,000 today. Ventura is the county seat of Ventura county which is located between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles counties.
- Economy
Ventura relies heavily on agriculture with extensive citrus and avocados groves in the Santa Clarita valley [one of the last major farm districts in southern California]. There is deep-sea fishing offshore for seabass, tuna, halibut, lingcod, whitefish, barracuda, bonito, and various sharks such as Makos, blues, and even great whites. There is not much manufacturing and an increasing number of retirees so the opportunities for employment are shrinking, leaving a wealthy and poor population with a lessening middle-class. Cost of housing is high compared to most areas of the nation. Ventura county ranks as the 6th wealthiest county in California and within the 100 most wealthy counties in the U.S.
- Industries
Same as above including SunKist Growers
- Diversity
Racial breakdown is 78% White that includes 30% Latino, 3% Asian, less than 2% Black and a mixture of everything else.
- Physical Surroundings\ topography
Ventura is on the Pacific ocean with Anacapa and the other Channel Islands offshore [most of the islands are restricted as government owned with some camping or military installation; only Santa Catalina has some private ownership]. Ventura is in the lower Santa Clarita valley that extends 40 miles inland and is heavily agriculture. The Santa Monica\ Santa Susana mountains are due south and east of Ventura and the Santa Ynez mountains to the north [elevations up to near 8000'].
- Shopping
Several shopping malls in the county metro region that includes Oxnard and Thousand Oaks. Otherwise people drive into LA county\ San Fernando valley for major shopping districts or Santa Barbara.
- Food
Generic California cuisine with emphasis on Mexican, Asian with use of fresh vegetables\ fruit\ fish.
- Ethnic enclaves
Pretty much Anglo and Latino areas; anywhere near the beach or foothills is heavily Anglo and down in the lowlands and groves is mostly Latino
- Climate
Remarkably mild with only 9 degrees difference from the coldest months: 66F in winter to the warmest months: 74F in summer. But these readings are taken near the beach; 10 miles inland from Ventura it is hot. Average yearly rainfall around 16 inches that falls from November to March.
- Politics
Ventura voted for President Obama and the county leans Democratic though has a sizable Republican presence as well. Venture sort of sits in between heavily Democratic Santa Barbara and Los Angeles.
seems like 4 kinda random cities. Also, are you saying Ventura "wins" for everything? Or did you only talk about that city because you don't know enough about the others?
Anyways, I'll speak on New Bedford as it is the only city I am familiar with.
New Bedford is an old whaling town in Mass that is now a gritty city where fishing is still an important industry. A high Portuguese population, although prob. not as dominant as in neighboring Fall River. It was sorta gentrifying before the recession but is still a ways from the kind of city people on this site are willing to live in... although it's still better than Fall Riv. New Bedford does have a toooon of history (Moby Dick, anyone?) and certainly has some potential with it's location near Providence, Boston, the ocean and "density" (We know how much everyone loves that).
EDIT: BTW, Ventura looks pretty damn cool. I imagine it's crazy expensive though, is it?
seems like 4 kinda random cities. Also, are you saying Ventura "wins" for everything? Or did you only talk about that city because you don't know enough about the others?
Anyways, I'll speak on New Bedford as it is the only city I am familiar with.
New Bedford is an old whaling town in Mass that is now a gritty city where fishing is still an important industry. A high Portuguese population, although prob. not as dominant as in neighboring Fall River. It was sorta gentrifying before the recession but is still a ways from the kind of city people on this site are willing to live in... although it's still better than Fall Riv. New Bedford does have a toooon of history (Moby Dick, anyone?) and certainly has some potential with it's location near Providence, Boston, the ocean and "density" (We know how much everyone loves that).
EDIT: BTW, Ventura looks pretty damn cool. I imagine it's crazy expensive though, is it?
I have not been in any of the other cities; only Ventura. I picked the 4 coastal cities at random based on their similar population and proximity to very large cities. I also wanted one from basically the 4 corners of the nation. I don't know anything about the other cities and had to do a little research on Ventura.
Maybe these small cities are too remote and unknown to most posters but I wanted to look at other places besides the usual dozen or so major cities in America.
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Bellingham, WA is a good one. The topography is gorgeous. Driving north on I-5 into B'ham one will lay eyes on freshwater lakes, dense evergreen forests, and an awe inspiring view of Mount Baker (a glacier covered volcanic peak in the Cascades). It is also a seaport on the Northern part of Puget Sound with views of the San Juan Islands which are magical and bucolic. One may also spot pods of orca whales off these shores.
The city itself is mixed income, somewhat industrial, a college town, and also has quite a few empty nesters. Western WA University is located there which adds some vibrance to the city. It is equally distant from Vancouver and Seattle, both of which are about a 90 minute drive. The timber and paper industry had operations there although that has tapered off some over the years but it adds a gritty feel to the town. Downtown B'ham is alright, not great, but not bad. The best thing B'ham has going for it is its location and short distance to Seattle and Vancouver and being surrounded by beautiful topography.
Last edited by Champ le monstre du lac; 12-14-2010 at 08:25 AM..
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TheWereRabbit
West: Puget Sound
East: Mt. Baker
North: Vancouver
South: Seattle
All within a casual day-trip. Sounds amazing.
It really is an amazing location, and of course real estate prices have been adjusted and inflated to match accordingly. Seems anyplace nice has pretty much been discovered.
Even as a native East Texan I don't find a whole lot to like about the place other than being near the Gulf Coast, fairly green, & the beginning/end of Cajun Country.
EDIT: BTW, Ventura looks pretty damn cool. I imagine it's crazy expensive though, is it?
I'm not sure about its price, but I think it feels like a bargain when compared to Santa Barbara
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