Anyone's been to Fairfield, IA? (Ottumwa: condo, homes, to buy)

[lifetimefairfieldguy]

Do I know you? I graduated 88. Dave Gaumer. I would have to say you summed it up pretty well.

Originally Posted by zippywoo32

Hi,
Fairfield is not that great. I lived there for 24 years. It is safe and you can get from one side of the town to the other quickly. The schools are also ok. But with that being said you cannot make that great of living there.
It is extremely easy to get bored there also. People say you have to use your imagination to find things to do but unless you truly like small towns (9379 people according to the US census 2006) There is not much you can do. Almost all the people I went to school with and graduated with in 1985 and before and after have long since moved away. I haven't been back in 2 years and probably won't for along while. When I did go some of the few that did remain from my school days wished they had got out.
If you want to have lots to do like art ,theater, pro sports or the ocean then Fairfield is not the place to be.
I almost forgot some people talk about the "townies" and the people from Maharishi University of Management. I was a townie I guess you could say. The University did clean up the town by restoring lots of the older houses and buildings and it is clean and nice. Someone said that some of them are a little different. Aren't we all. Lots of them come from bigger cities and other countries so their cultures can be different
Last thing is I noticed the Mayor of Fairfield talks about how Fairfield has produced hundreds of new companies and thousands of new jobs.
If he is talking about these jobs and workers are in Fairfield that is NOT true.
Fairfield could not support hundreds of jobs and thousands of workers since
there is only about 9379 people.
Fairfield is a nice place to say you use to live. That is my opinion good bad or whatever

[LPerkins33]

my family is from Keosauqua which is 20 mins south of Fairfield and I must say the people in Fairfield mainly the Maharishi are weird. Sure they can be nice people but seriously, you aren't floating, you're hopping. I think they are brainwashed just like the Mormons. Doesn't make them bad people, just...odd. I am always skeptical of an organization that requires you to donate a large portion of your salary to the "cause".

One thing that bothers me about the Maharishi is that they drive fuel efficient cars, eat locally grown organic produce and yet a lot of them live in MASSIVE houses that aren't powered by say solar, geothermal, wind power(they claim that their houses are powered by solar energy but very few, if any do). And then they give you **** about driving a pick up truck when you're a farmer. Pretty hypocritical.

[HeneryHawk]

Fairfield is a nice little city in a great state to live in. The town has the split of natives and the Roos ( short for gurus, the reference to their Hindu cult thing ), and from the many friends I have had from the area, they enjoy the area, its simple though not rich with jobs, it is rich in lifestyle, big city isnt the only way to live.

The Roos made be odd to many, but unless you feel your being pushed to convert, whats the issue ( do you not see Mormons, JWs, various Christian groups all reach too? ). Check it out, and the surrounding areas too, you may find a home that you didnt expect.

[berries]

My wife and I were going to move to fairfield. We were sure of it. We did our homework, checked out real estate, contacted the schools , checked on taxes...everything. We were almost going to buy site unseen. We were sure we were moving. THEN we took the eight hour drive from wisconsin. We got there, drove around the neighboorhoods the campus the town, out on all the streets. We got a room in a hotel because we were too tired to drive anymore. We slept, got up and promptly headed back to WI with all thoughts of moving to fairfield extinguised in about 1 hours time there.

Good luck on your search op

TOO great an economic disparity in that town. Some nice places and the rest looked like a ghetto to me. Went to the gas station and there was an old gu on a bike hanging out of the dumptster. TOO depressing

[bita023]

Thumbs Down...The people are very nice. The cops are not. Excessive traffic during the day on the only main road through town. There is one stoplight that doesn't work properly, so instead of fixing it...they hung a sign telling you its going to be a while before it turns green. They are building a highway around Fairfield(the only part that isn't done yet), I would recommend staying on it. Its a streetcar racing, souped up piece of junk town. Never been to Vedic City(heard its nice).

[iowamom5]

I have lived in Fairfield most of my life. Many years ago it was a great place to live. We were economically doing well and there were a lot of small and large businesses. Employment was also good. Times have changed however. We have since had a major decline in economy and employment well sucks. The "college" so they call themselves came into town and proceeded to feel that they also ownwd more than the campus. The majority of the meditators are rude and self centered and if you are what they call a townie you get no respect. So if you are a meditator you will be welcomed with open arms and empty heads!!!!! A lot of families like mine that have been here for so many years no longer feel that we belong here. Also another thing to consider is that the realestate market moves very slow and the rent is ridiculiously high for an area like this that has such high unemployment. Again we have the "college" to thank for that. These people that have come into town seem to think that they need to price the realestate the same as it was in the bigger cities that they came from. This too is driving the rest of us out of town because we can not afford their expensive taste. So to answer the question as to whether you should move to Fairfield you will have to meet the criteria in order to fit in. As for the rest of us we are trying to move out of here to somewhere that better fits our lifestyles. Too bad that we can no longer feel comfortable in our childhood home. Sad really. Good luck in your decision.

[iowamom5]

hey berries. Can you tell me why you were considering moving to Fairfield? I am glad to hear that outsiders see what I see. Thanks for your insight and good luck in your search.

[globalgypsy747]

Hi,

I will be moving to Fairfield to attend the Maharishi University and am looking for a house to rent. Is yours available? Do you know of a house or apt that is available? Of have you heard of anyone who needs a house sitter? Or anyone with a room to rent out. I am flexible. Thanks.
globalgypsy747@yahoo.com

[CPrime]

We're considering moving to the Fairfield area (20 mile radius is ok) from too-hot Arizona, on the recommendation of my brother who's lived there awhile. We're a married couple, originally from Philadelphia. We're not looking for the hustle and bustle, night life, and must-be-entertained-every-minute lifestlye. Peace and quiet with our dogs, no hassles, lots of fishing :-), and people who respond to mutual respect are what we're looking for. Prefer a more rural place than in town-anyone able to recommend where to start a rental (for now) housing search, or know of anyone renting something? Will respond promptly to any replies. Thanks! Reply here or to: gerrychandler@lycos.com

[MastermindDSM]

Golden Triangle Media.com - Classifieds - Real Estate

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