Pocatello or Idaho Falls (Chubbuck, Ammon: hotel, house, job market)

[Idaho mom]

Hi - another bump for you! We've lived in both and here's my opinion:

you said:

Pocatello:
- pros: mountain views, ski hill, closer to the main campus, GREAT brewery
- cons: few rental properties, town is very spread out, and seems a little run-down, further from INL

Idaho Falls:

- pros: much more commerce, love what they've done with the Landing, closer to INL & CAES
- cons: in the flats, some cookie-cutter areas, a bit more expensive, sort of plain-Jane


All very true! IF has better looking upscale rentals, but it is quite flat. The university crowd over the years really sent Poc rentals down the tubes. We like the hilly look of Poc better, but the town is so much more limited than here. We also liked the varied university activities and the performing arts center in Poc. That aside, we like the dining and retail choices in Idaho Falls better. Poc has more ho-hum restaurants except for 2-3. Recreation seems about equal to us, being closer to Yellowstone, Targhee and Jackson Hole is a plus for us. Shopping, a good variety of stores from clothing, to antiques, to general home merchandise and computer supplies. We also still order online a bunch too. When we lived in Poc, we found ourselves coming here for a "night out on the town" and shopping at least 2x or more a month. Now, with a few exceptions, we find very little reason to do the opposite in Pocatello. Every place needs good nursing care, but I think the Pocatello situation is in much more upheaval if you follow the news or papers.
A friend of mine started in Blackfoot last month at Bingham and loves it. I wouldn't like living in Blackfoot though, I'd commute from IF or Shelley.

We have young children and also find it's a plus for things to do, as well as lessons of various sorts, parks, rec time, etc. We had to really search for things like this in Poc. If you have grandkids but not young children, it's also something to consider when they visit.

People always joke Poc is about 10-15 years behind the rest of Idaho, I didn't believe it until we left and moved here. Now I know what the fuss was about. We're still a few years behind the big cities, but hey, that's what I like about life in Idaho.

[delaura18]

I love Pocatello!! We go to IF once in a great while to shop or attend a wedding...but I really don't like the layout of the city...granted I haven't spent a lot of time trying to figure it out. I really think you could be happy in both places. I just had to put my vote in for Pokey because I really love it here!!

[Idaho mom]

We went to the Dillard's going out of business sale a few days ago. How sad, the store is in such a shambles compared to the way it looked a few years ago. I really hope their mall can revive, but walking through it, things didn't look good. It's not very busy, even on weekends. Maybe business has moved to the new strip malls?

[twinprism]

Yes, the mall is pretty sad. There is not much retail in Pocatello, so if you are "born to shop", you wouldn't be happy here but despite Dillards closing, there is still optimism that things will get better. Restaurant choice is better than a few years ago. Pocatello is a little less upscale in its tastes and income levels and Dillards didn't really sell well here. Kinda sad. Pocatello average wages are closing the gap with the rest of the state, but are still below the state average (which is heavily skewed by Ada county).

[Idaho mom]

Wow, do you think the Bistro will actually close? That's a big sign of the times if it happens.

[twinprism]

Bistro served it's last meal this weekend, and it is sad. It was one of the nicer restaurants in Pocatello. That said some of it was self-induced. I have had great food and service there and really poor service as well depending on my company or how I was dressed. I'm just one customer but I mostly decided to frequent other restaurants instead. Pocatello does not seem to have the same money in the economy as Idaho Falls or quite as many good paying jobs. It is a very eclectic place, and despite the lower average income that other certain Idaho cities, the populace is pretty well educated.

Some mentioned that Pocatello is 10 years behind, I happen to like that because I think live was better 10 years ago with fewer chain stores and traffic and sprawl. I hope we never catch up.

To speak to others about the mountains and Pocatello, in Idaho Falls it seems to me you have a 10-40 minute drive to most mountains. In Pocatello you have a 5-10 minute drive, walk, or bike to the wonderful city creek trail system and you can go on up and over Kinport Peak into the Caribou national forest and mink creek areas. Elk Meadows, Gibson Jack, West Fork and etc. I like this quote from Steve Adkinson, and ISU administrator. "I think that the best part about being on Kinport, to my mind, is how the land just keeps unfolding the higher and farther back you go; it's backcountry that's right at the edge of town. That Kinport is ever-present above Pocatello makes it easy to just glance at and take for granted and not understand how big it really is and how much country is there."

In these days of high gas prices, I like the abundance of trail accessible right from town in Pocatello. I can ride or run right from my house.

[breer23]

Sorry, folks...one last bump to squeeze out every last bit of info that we can...thanks again for all of your help so far!

[cleosmom]

Originally Posted by breer23

Sorry, folks...one last bump to squeeze out every last bit of info that we can...thanks again for all of your help so far!

Never be sorry, knowledge is power

[josephkw]

poky is run down ,polluted ,very high drug problem, not to mention mormons

[magnamatt]

Originally Posted by josephkw

poky is run down ,polluted ,very high drug problem, not to mention mormons

Don't you have to be at least 13 to post on this site? This statement is just not true.

Portions of Pocatello are run-down as it's a very old city that had the railroad as a major employer for years.

The occasional smell from the Simplot factory is not pollution. I was just in LA...they have pollution. The skies are clear here.

High drug problem? Perhaps with your group of friends. I've lived from SLC, to Boise, to San Francisco...and this is nothing here.

Mormons. Oh yes. I think there is a thread dedicated solely to this subject.