Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Oh there are plenty of hippy types that are light on drugs. But the OP seemed to want to avoid the slacker mentality being too prevalent. In Asheville it may be from drugs or it may be that it's just too darn hard for some kids to get jobs. One does smell the whiff of a certain fragrance and it's not just Patchouli.
Not being familiar with Arcata or Ashland I may not be the best to compare.
Just to clarify more, drugs (and alcohol) are fine. Part of life. Not inherently evil. Something I plan to tell my kids about just like I want them to know about all aspects of life and of course they'll be exposed anywhere to that which is fine. Just don't want somewhere so, so into drugs it makes it super likely they'd get really into that. Which is how I often hear Arcata and Marin County described and Santa Cruz seemed maybe too much that way too: meth, heroin. This is just one thing on my wishlist and know no city will 100% match my wishlist. That's ok, just aiming for close fit atleast.
Not all "hippie types" use drugs nor even pot. Stereotype. Maybe I should just say "nature-loving healthnut yogi into healing arts and alternative type thinking and nonviolence" instead of the stigmatized word "hippie."
Last edited by NatureYogi; 07-06-2015 at 12:10 AM..
I guess being from the Bay Area you would think it is cheap. Unfortunately the locals feel otherwise. Kind of hard to be priced out of your own home town.
Yes, living in Bay Area has totally changed my concept of cheap. I pay $700/month for room in shared apartment here in El Cerrito. That's kinda cheap for inner SF East Bay; $1,000+ is pretty common. Cities with safe rooms like $400/month make my jaw drop in awe. But of course there are less jobs there and maybe they pay less. Very sad to hear about anyone being priced out of their home
I'm 31, female, single, no kids yet. Deeply want to pick a city asap to settle down long-term, build deep roots, advance career and start family in. Currently near Berkeley/Albany, CA, and love this area yet feel there MAY be a better fit.
Have posted before and already researched, traveled, moved and chatted with locals loads. Still undecided yet have clarified preferences more. So starting a fresh thread in hopes of helpful comments as this forum is super helpful and U.S. is too big for me to research without help
=====
What city/cities meets most or all this criteria?
1) In United States or nearby Canada. Not Hawaii.
2) English is main language spoken.
3) The more racially/ethnically diverse the better but am finding that strangely hard to find so will settle for up to say like 65% white. No excessively racist/segregated culture. Yes I know racism is everywhere but it's much worse some places. I've liked the diversity of East Bay and D.C. for example.
4) The more socioeconomic diversity the better...yet less crime (especially violent!) the better. I know these two criteria kinda contradict each other but just seeking that balance. (My current city of El Cerrito, CA, is more crime than I want though adjacent Albany isn't as bad.)
5) The more GLBT-friendly the better.
6) Generally the more accepting, open-minded, kind, mature and progressive the predominant culture the better.
7) At least 50% Democratic voters; more better.
8) The more popular these things are the better: environmentalism, veganism, eating healthy, "alternative"/holistic/Eastern healing arts (wellness), nondenominational "New Agey" spirituality.
9) The more creative, artistic, expressive the better.
10) More hippie than hipster. By hippie I mean liking nature and nonviolence and expression and stuff, not some peoples' druggie-slacker definition. I'm not totally anti-drugs, just don't want overwhelmingly druggie culture which is why I'm hesitant about say Arcata or Ashland.
11) Middle class neighborhood sounds good.
12) Not too crowded/hectic like San Francisco. Berkeley even is pushing it. Yet within say 20-minute drive of major enough cit (ies) for tons of cultural, social, dating, shopping, job and food options.
13) Air quality index important.
14) The prettier the nature and closer and easier drive to hiking trails and camping and water warm and safe enough to swim in the better!! VERY important! Living near beach is ideal but with nice enough lake or river or something can live without beach. Snow sports aren't that important to me.
15) The more outdoorsy the overall culture the better! Plenty of people who adore yoga, bicycling, rockclimbing, hiking, surfing, camping, swimming, kayaking, picnics, grounding, tree-climbing, stuff like that!!
16) Weather not too excessive. Chicago winters and Austin summers for example too uncomfortable. 60s to 70s and no or little snow with decent amount of sun is really nice.
17) Good or great public schools K-12 with involved PTA. Bonus points for Montessori and Waldorf options.
18) Will change career if needed to live in right city, but ideally there is strong demand for dog walkers and pet/home sitters and trail or beach that allows off-leash dog walking.
=====
Ok, I could list more but will stop there. Have already lived in Santa Cruz, Austin, Takoma Park and Mt Rainier among other places. Great places and close fits but not quite.
Have been exploring Sebastopol/Forestville/Gratin and curious about West Marin, Monterey, Eugene, Corvallis, Asheville, New Mexico, Madison, Vancouver, BC. Would love more info and ideas. Have noticed that big enough cities tend to have outdoorsy, crunchy subcultures to find like-minded friends even if the city isn't found on "top 10 hippie city" type lists.
Thank you SO much!!! Sorry if I'm long-winded, haha!
Your post screams for Louisville. Like Asheville but 2-3 times bigger. Louisville is likely the most surprisingly hip city in the US to any coastal residents who would believe it to be flyover country (and the surrounding areas are indeed flyover country IMO) Plenty to do yet not overwhelming. A very hippie city. PM me if you would like any info. You really need to visit to do it justice...just too many cool urban nabes. Louisville is a bit more diverse than Asheville, although it is around 65-70% white. To me the city seems much more diverse than the census numbers...to get an idea, take a walk across theBig Four bridge when you visit.
Portland, Maine ticks most of your boxes: progressive, healthy, LGBT friendly, environmentally-minded, socioeconomically diverse, not crowded but with great amenities, stunningly scenic with endless outdoor activities, etc. The things that it lacks from your list are racial diversity (it is 85% white), though it is becoming more diverse all the time, and mild winters. It's definitely cold and snowy, though there are lots of beautiful, crisp sunny days throughout the winter months.
=====
What city/cities meets most or all this criteria?
1) In United States or nearby Canada. Not Hawaii.
2) English is main language spoken.
3) The more racially/ethnically diverse the better but am finding that strangely hard to find so will settle for up to say like 65% white. No excessively racist/segregated culture. Yes I know racism is everywhere but it's much worse some places. I've liked the diversity of East Bay and D.C. for example.
4) The more socioeconomic diversity the better...yet less crime (especially violent!) the better. I know these two criteria kinda contradict each other but just seeking that balance. (My current city of El Cerrito, CA, is more crime than I want though adjacent Albany isn't as bad.)
5) The more GLBT-friendly the better.
6) Generally the more accepting, open-minded, kind, mature and progressive the predominant culture the better.
7) At least 50% Democratic voters; more better.
8) The more popular these things are the better: environmentalism, veganism, eating healthy, "alternative"/holistic/Eastern healing arts (wellness), nondenominational "New Agey" spirituality.
9) The more creative, artistic, expressive the better.
10) More hippie than hipster. By hippie I mean liking nature and nonviolence and expression and stuff, not some peoples' druggie-slacker definition. I'm not totally anti-drugs, just don't want overwhelmingly druggie culture which is why I'm hesitant about say Arcata or Ashland.
11) Middle class neighborhood sounds good.
12) Not too crowded/hectic like San Francisco. Berkeley even is pushing it. Yet within say 20-minute drive of major enough cit (ies) for tons of cultural, social, dating, shopping, job and food options.
13) Air quality index important.
14) The prettier the nature and closer and easier drive to hiking trails and camping and water warm and safe enough to swim in the better!! VERY important! Living near beach is ideal but with nice enough lake or river or something can live without beach. Snow sports aren't that important to me.
15) The more outdoorsy the overall culture the better! Plenty of people who adore yoga, bicycling, rockclimbing, hiking, surfing, camping, swimming, kayaking, picnics, grounding, tree-climbing, stuff like that!!
16) Weather not too excessive. Chicago winters and Austin summers for example too uncomfortable. 60s to 70s and no or little snow with decent amount of sun is really nice.
17) Good or great public schools K-12 with involved PTA. Bonus points for Montessori and Waldorf options.
18) Will change career if needed to live in right city, but ideally there is strong demand for dog walkers and pet/home sitters and trail or beach that allows off-leash dog walking.
!
I would highly recommend Carrboro, NC which nails all of your criteria with an Asheville-vibe minus the drugs, slackers and street grifters. It's minutes from neighboring Chapel Hill, 15 minutes to Durham which has a phenomenal arts/cultural/food scene and about 20-25 minutes to Raleigh.
Your post screams for Louisville. Like Asheville but 2-3 times bigger. Louisville is likely the most surprisingly hip city in the US to any coastal residents who would believe it to be flyover country (and the surrounding areas are indeed flyover country IMO) Plenty to do yet not overwhelming. A very hippie city. PM me if you would like any info. You really need to visit to do it justice...just too many cool urban nabes. Louisville is a bit more diverse than Asheville, although it is around 65-70% white. To me the city seems much more diverse than the census numbers...to get an idea, take a walk across theBig Four bridge when you visit.
Kind of sums up the current vibe of Louisville and where its food scene is headed, but I think the overall city is on that trajectory.
Thanks for putting that new idea on my radar! Once had extremely fun friend from there. Happycow says it has great veg-friendly restaurants (I'm longtime vegan). Weather and air quality not great. Really hard to feel out culture from afar. I love Southern accents and Southern friendliness. Living so near Bible Belt sounds hard. I respect Christians but really dislike religious pressure. Maybe will visit.
With a couple asterisks, I would say Bellingham, WA fits your description. It's like a smaller, more scenic Eugene. It has it's own personality and fits in that desirable 50,000-100,000 size, but somehow avoids the attention that other similar cities receive.
Regarding the asterisks I mentioned, Bellingham is not all that diverse (though the interests of the people are). And it sounds like you're familiar with NW weather, so theoretically it may be a little grey and cool, but in reality the last several years have apparently been much more sunny and warm than usual, so it may be trending more towards the weather you seek....
Here's an old thread comparing Eugene and Bellingham. If you have questions or want to see some pics, let me know!
Thanks for putting that new idea on my radar! Once had extremely fun friend from there. Happycow says it has great veg-friendly restaurants (I'm longtime vegan). Weather and air quality not great. Really hard to feel out culture from afar. I love Southern accents and Southern friendliness. Living so near Bible Belt sounds hard. I respect Christians but really dislike religious pressure. Maybe will visit.
Louisville, at least the city, is NOT the Bible Belt. At All...It is very Midwest with southern sensibility. Air quality is not great in the city, but the NE suburbs do well. The weather is actually decent. A very even 4 seasons and much warmer than the traditional "hip" coastal cities but not as hot as the SE or Texas.
I flat out guarantee you that if you come for a visit during Forecastle Festival July17-19 you will fall in love.
Stay in the 21C hotel and Museum. Eat at Proof, Harvest, Garage Bar, Roots...see a show, There is so much to surprise you
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
