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Las Cruces Dona Ana County
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Old 01-17-2016, 02:38 PM
 
1,400 posts, read 856,098 times
Reputation: 824

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My wife and I moved to Las Cruces (Sonoma Ranch area) from the Midwest a few months ago after scouting out the area and conducting some research which included reading the contributions on this forum. Thanks to you all for helping us make an informed decision. We are settling in nicely and enjoying the sunshine, the hail, and the blizzard! The Sonoma Ranch area is very quiet and our neighbors are friendly. In fact most people here seem very friendly and service at the local stores and restaurants has been top notch. It is nice to have convenient access to the Desert Trails Park, Veterans Memorial Park, and the Organ Mountains National Monument. Speaking of the beautiful snow-capped Organ Mountains, what a picturesque view right outside my front door! I find the cost of living here quite reasonable if not a bit cheaper. City water is a little higher, but our heat only kicks on at night and in the early morning so our power bill is unbelievably cheap this time of year. Sure beats what we were paying in propane. Rent is pretty cheap too. We like the area and might even consider buying a home here. The main reservation would be the school system. We want our toddler to go to a great school, an okay education is not an option. It has to be great. So what do you guys think? We still have about 3 years before our daughter starts school. Are their any quality private school options? Speaking of schools I went to the new Centennial High School in hopes to run at the track. It was fenced off like a restricted area on a military compound with signs that read "Private Property, No Trespassers, Violators Will be Prosecuted." The entire school was fenced off and gated so that you couldn't even drive on to the grounds! What's up with that? Needless to say, I didn't feel invited. I've lived all over the country and have always had access to the tracks at public schools, especially on the weekends when school is not in session. Not cool. The only other issue we have is the lack of options for grocery shopping. It seems like Wal-Mart and Albertsons are it besides a few other small ones. The Natural Grocer is nice, but it sure would be great to have a few other options. I'm surprised there isn't 1 or 2 more major chain grocery stores competing here because it seems like the population could support it. Anyways, just thought I'd join the forum and give my initial impressions of Las Cruces. Any local insight would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
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Old 01-17-2016, 04:50 PM
 
887 posts, read 1,205,859 times
Reputation: 2051
Can't help you much with LC. I'm not sure where you have been finding schools where you can just wander in and start jogging around their track. Obviously you must have but I find that a bit surprising. I can't say that the high schools here on Chicago's north shore are cordoned off with concertina wire but you can bet they do not encourage their grounds to be used as some off hours free playground. It's called CYA today meant to help ward off lawsuits by some clown that hurts himself while trespassing on the property. I mean if you can avail yourself of the track, why not gather your pals on weekends and employ the baseball diamonds and football field as well?

That said, welcome to the forums. I have gathered a wealth of great info here and envy your move.
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Old 01-17-2016, 06:01 PM
 
1,400 posts, read 856,098 times
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Hey threecats it is sad to hear that Chicago's north shore doesn't allow its taxpayers (2nd highest in the nation property taxes most of which it goes to the schools) access to their taxpayer funded tracks, especially when not causing a disruption to the school's daily operations. Maybe I've just been lucky that the schools in the communities I've lived previously have been more inviting towards the local populous. It seems to me that in this age of obesity the local institutions would actually encourage health and fitness. In fact most places I've lived you would regularly see families making use of the local high school track. I find that running the rubber track surface is much easier on my knees compared to treadmills and pavement. And it wasn't considered trespassing, it was open to the public as long as you weren't causing a disruption. Heck, I would gladly even pay a fee/tax to use the facility. Also, my beef with the fencing and aggressive signage is that it gives the appearance that the school wants to be isolated from its residents.
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Old 01-18-2016, 09:08 AM
 
Location: Sacramento Mtns of NM
4,280 posts, read 9,108,911 times
Reputation: 3737
Quote:
Originally Posted by aeron View Post
...Centennial High School...The entire school was fenced off and gated so that you couldn't even drive on to the grounds! What's up with that?
Considering all of the violence on school grounds in recent years, to say nothing of rampant vandalism, it shouldn't be any surprise that newer schools are being built with greater security precautions.

As for being able to drive onto this school's grounds, a look at the aerial photos of the school shows several very large parking lots inside the security fence - which I presume are reserved for students and staff during school hours, with designated areas for "visitor" parking. Access is from Sonoma Ranch Blvd.

Aerial View on Google Maps


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Old 01-18-2016, 12:47 PM
 
Location: Albuquerque NM
2,061 posts, read 2,362,645 times
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Las Cruces used to have a Raley's and a Smith's grocery store. The Raley's was expensive and in an awkward location. The Smith's closed after Walmart moved in across the street near Lohman. I hope the Albertsons manages to stay in business as the new Walmart near Sonoma Ranch seems to be doing very well and may provide more competition. Also the Smith's in Socorro is now closing so Walmart will probably be the only alternative in that town.

Did you try another high school track? Centennial is located in a yet undeveloped area. One reason for fencing it off may be concern for vandalism during off hours with no one around to report anything.
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Old 01-18-2016, 01:03 PM
 
Location: Albuquerque, NM
1,663 posts, read 3,685,037 times
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Try the track field at NMSU or one of the other high schools.
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Old 01-18-2016, 05:54 PM
 
Location: Sacramento Mtns of NM
4,280 posts, read 9,108,911 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ABQ2015 View Post
Las Cruces used to have a Raley's and a Smith's grocery store.
It still has two Lowe's (grocery - not hardware) which are part of a chain. One is labeled as "Lowe's Fiesta."
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Old 01-18-2016, 06:30 PM
 
Location: NM
111 posts, read 236,674 times
Reputation: 161
My wife and I are considering Las Cruces as a retirement option. For me it's actually kind of important to have access to a jogging track. That's a real downer if the local HS's do not allow access to their track during off school hours.

I jog (somewhat ) regularly at two different HS tracks here in the DFW area with no problem. And I've jogged on HS tracks for years in places I've lived or visited - Roswell, Denver, Houston, Pasadena, CA, Centreville and Arlington, VA - heck even sometimes during after-school soccer practice. Never a problem.

I get the security issues - and certainly during school hours, but schools are financed by citizens' taxes. They are public property. It seems the schools should figure out a way to provide public access to an outdoor track when the school is not in session.
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Old 01-18-2016, 11:11 PM
 
Location: NM
111 posts, read 236,674 times
Reputation: 161
Yeah, property taxes in Texas are sky high. Offset by the lack of income taxes of course. States are gonna get their monies one way or another - lol. Which is actually OK by me - as long as they spend it wisely.

Maybe some citizen input to local council members - especially from the senior community - could influence policies in LC related to availability of the HS tracks. Good luck! Maybe I'll be joining you on the track someday!
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Old 01-19-2016, 08:46 AM
 
Location: Home, Home on the Front Range
25,826 posts, read 20,602,146 times
Reputation: 14818
Quote:
Originally Posted by aeron View Post
My wife and I moved to Las Cruces (Sonoma Ranch area) from the Midwest a few months ago after scouting out the area and conducting some research which included reading the contributions on this forum. Thanks to you all for helping us make an informed decision. We are settling in nicely and enjoying the sunshine, the hail, and the blizzard! The Sonoma Ranch area is very quiet and our neighbors are friendly. In fact most people here seem very friendly and service at the local stores and restaurants has been top notch. It is nice to have convenient access to the Desert Trails Park, Veterans Memorial Park, and the Organ Mountains National Monument. Speaking of the beautiful snow-capped Organ Mountains, what a picturesque view right outside my front door! I find the cost of living here quite reasonable if not a bit cheaper. City water is a little higher, but our heat only kicks on at night and in the early morning so our power bill is unbelievably cheap this time of year. Sure beats what we were paying in propane. Rent is pretty cheap too. We like the area and might even consider buying a home here.

The main reservation would be the school system. We want our toddler to go to a great school, an okay education is not an option. It has to be great. So what do you guys think? We still have about 3 years before our daughter starts school. Are their any quality private school options?
The public schools in the Sonoma Ranch area are rated highly, particularly Sonoma Elementary on Northrise.
There are very few private schools in Las Cruces - the only ones I can think of are the Catholic Schools, Holy Cross/St. Mary's downtown.


Quote:
Originally Posted by aeron View Post
Speaking of schools I went to the new Centennial High School in hopes to run at the track. It was fenced off like a restricted area on a military compound with signs that read "Private Property, No Trespassers, Violators Will be Prosecuted." The entire school was fenced off and gated so that you couldn't even drive on to the grounds! What's up with that? Needless to say, I didn't feel invited. I've lived all over the country and have always had access to the tracks at public schools, especially on the weekends when school is not in session. Not cool.
Did you try Onate High School off of Highway 70? I can't remember if they lock those grounds as well, but since it is older and in a more well-traveled area, it may not be so restricted.



Quote:
Originally Posted by aeron View Post
The only other issue we have is the lack of options for grocery shopping. It seems like Wal-Mart and Albertsons are it besides a few other small ones. The Natural Grocer is nice, but it sure would be great to have a few other options. I'm surprised there isn't 1 or 2 more major chain grocery stores competing here because it seems like the population could support it. Anyways, just thought I'd join the forum and give my initial impressions of Las Cruces. Any local insight would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
Las Cruces is, at it's heart, a small town. That there is now a Natural Grocer is a big deal.
Overall, people seem content with the status quo and unless there is a big change in the median income level, I don't see the area becoming attractive to other chains any time soon.
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