Having trouble getting a feel for the people/vibe of Flagstaff - help?

[treedroppings]

sounds like a great place, with lightning in the summer

[tsmw47]

Cab591 you are a good salesperson for Flag! I'm not much of a shopper so probably not an issue. Son lives in the Phoenix area so can probably find more than I'll ever need when we visit. We are Suburu folks so hopefully repairs available locally. So much neat outdoor stuff to do in the area that is what appeals to us and a few good restaurants for a night out. Just wondering if we'd fit as resident oldsters as opposed to tourists. We have a teardrop rather than a RV so odd man out already for a "golden ager"

[cab591]

Teardrops are awesome!

You're in good hands driving a Subaru. Tons of then up here. There's great restaurants around town, but downtown is definitely a college town on weekend nights. Pretty sure you'll be fine fitting in around here.

[vcourtnay]

Originally Posted by khestergk

I've lived in Flag for about a year and am prior service army, conservative. I've lived in Seattle, CA, Wyoming and another 20 states. Flag is unlike any other place I've ever lived, its the only place you'll see a tree hugging hippy talk to a conservative hunter and actually see them smile at each other. We have it all here and everyone seems to mesh together in a tolerant friendly manner where they agreed to disagree and simply not talk about how wrong the other person was. It is actually kind of refreshing. I love it here and my wife and kids love it as well. Not planning on moving any time soon.

Can you tell me more about having kids and family life in Flagstaff? We are considering a job and we are from OK. This would be a change but we have two young boys and want to give them the best place to live possible. Any info is great, thanks

[cab591]

Don't know anything about the schools here, but the town itself is very kid / family friendly. The urban trail system runs all over town and gives you a way to get around by bicycle without being in traffic. There's loads to do, from museums to weekend adventures (Indian ruins, dormant volcanos, caves, you name it), and plenty of sledding and snow play in the winter.

[tsangia]

Hello fellow NJ. I have wanted to leave NJ and our high taxes for 2 decades now. When my daughter graduates this year we are! I've been to raleigh and flagstaff. I liked them both. I will be applying for jobs in both. I dislike humidity. Flagstaff feels so far. Thoughts... Looking to rent since we lost all equity in a home we purchased 13 years ago. Will it be easy to rent a 4 br home in these areas under 2 k month?
Looking for family oriented, close to shopping with bike/ walking trails etc.m

[tsmw47]

Originally Posted by tsangia

Hello fellow NJ. I have wanted to leave NJ and our high taxes for 2 decades now. When my daughter graduates this year we are! I've been to raleigh and flagstaff. I liked them both. I will be applying for jobs in both. I dislike humidity. Flagstaff feels so far. Thoughts... Looking to rent since we lost all equity in a home we purchased 13 years ago. Will it be easy to rent a 4 br home in these areas under 2 k month?
Looking for family oriented, close to shopping with bike/ walking trails etc.m

Since I live in NC I can address humidity....it is terrible here in the summer. We lived near Charlotte for many years and I learned to start dreading summer in May. When it is 90 with humidity to match going outside just to walk is like getting in the shower. We know live near Asheville much better but still not good if you are humidity challenged. That is why Flag.is on our radar the weather was fantastic when we were there this summer, I actually wanted to be outside...hiking was a delight!
,

[cab591]

Shouldn't be too hard to find a 4 bed in the area. Keep an eye out on craigslist to give yourself an idea of the rental market (and be sure to search by map -- Flagstaff craigslist covers a lot of northern AZ). 3-4 bed houses can be found for anywhere from $1200-4000 / month, depending on the quality and location. Some friends of mine are renting a double wide for $1200 -- fully updated inside, 4 bed 2 bath with a 2 car garage and a wood burning fireplace. Asides from the layout and the thin interior walls, you wouldn't realize you were in a premanufactured house.

[heldaway]

I once lived in Flag in 2011 for work. As a transplant from Las Vegas, I felt VERY out of place. Once again, I'm relocating back to Flag this summer from Phoenix and I'm a little apprehensive. I never felt I fit in but then, my work kept me away from home for a few days at a time so it was mainly myself and my now fiance. In my short 9 months there I noticed there were either very nice folks or very rude folks. Red necks, California transplants, hipsters, Navajos, rich people, poor people, hippies, students etc. There's a large mix of people, but none that felt like people I could just hang out with. Everyone seemed to be in their own cliques. And with my mainly male-dominated job, finding like-minded females in their 30's to befriend was extremely hard. Everyone was either too young, too old or had a family with kids to tend to. I never did make a friend there.

With a new job, too good to pass up I must go back to the small town I had once sworn off. But I'm optimistic. The weather is unreal. For someone who's never lived in anything other than a desert climate, I found the winter quite tolerable. And I work outdoors! The snow at it's worst was maybe 3 feet and would be melted w/i a few days until it showed again. It was windy often but it was nice to hear it though the pines. I think for a whole month it rained nearly every day in the summer. Good cleansing rains. A lot of folks think the traffic is bad but I just laugh at that. I once had a realtor tell me over the phone that she wouldn't agree to meet me at a rental property across town because she didn't feel like dealing with the traffic. See what I mean by rude?

I've been back to visit a few times and I keep up on the local news. The town has changed in this short amount of time since I've lived there. There's new government who's now allowed more business in. It's nice to see progress since Flagstaff is described as "poverty with a view".

Here's some advice: Avoid living near the Purina plant (East end by the "mall"). The smell was nauseating at times (think: sweet fried chicken) they cook twice a week I believe. Finding a rental is difficult. When you find something you like, jump on it or get yourself on a waiting list at an apartment complex. Be prepared to pay aprox. 1400-2300 for rent for a house. Have better luck with the real estate agent pages than Craigslist when trying to find a home. Don't expect anyone to thank you for holding a door for them. Or say hello/return a smile in passing on the street. The FUTS trail system is really great, take advantage of it! Use I-40 if you need to get across town at "rush hour". Again, the traffic is laughable if you're used to big city commutes. There are though, a ton of bad drivers. Maybe it's the students, so up your auto insurance. Which is cheaper up there too. Get used to shopping online, you can't find everything here you would in the big city. Good luck finding decent Mexican food and pizza.

It's a strange town. OP, I hope you've found your niche since you posted.

[Colt AZ]

Originally Posted by heldaway

It's nice to see progress since Flagstaff is described as "poverty with a view".






Here's some advice: Avoid living near the Purina plant (East end by the "mall"). The smell was nauseating at times (think: sweet fried chicken) they cook twice a week I believe.

"Omg... omg... omg... WHAT is that smell? Horse meat?"