Just saw the Back to the Future films and was thinking about how California grew.... (San Francisco: transplants, how much)

[the city]

I remember in my Urban Studies class learning about how much of California was farming and then it became suburban development and urban development. I think it was good that California grew and I do like looking back in past movies and seeing old malls, 80s housing tracts, and how schools in the 80s were nice and now those schools are older and nastier. This is talked about by Doc Brown in back to the future.

And I was also thinking about how I watch tv shows like House Hunters and read about people who don't like certain communities that are suburban and all the people want homes in places with a more rural feel or a rich wealthy area. I can just see house hunters showing some one buying a home in Santa Monica, a beach city in OC, or some other wealthy community.

I feel like I am one the only one who appreciates the job opportunities and affordable housing Southern California and alot of California created.

It just seems that people shun cities like Oxnard or Palmdale because all they see is the poverty at first and overlook the nice parts.

It seems all the media attention is to show off places like Santa Barbara over Ventura, Malibu over Point Mugu, Santa Clarita over Palmdale, San Francisco over LA, Hollywood over Downtown LA, The San Fernando Valley over the San Gabriel Valley, and so fourth and so on.

I swear it's seems like every place we see on the news is a community with a Whole Foods or a bunch of hipsters/yuppies.

[Caladium]

The people I know in Oxnard like it that way. Who wants to be "discovered"? It means their local stores would get booted so pricey hip spots can move in, traffic gets worse, and and rents go sky high.

[Mr. Opinionated]

Originally Posted by the city

I remember in my Urban Studies class learning about how much of California was farming and then it became suburban development and urban development. I think it was good that California grew and I do like looking back in past movies and seeing old malls, 80s housing tracts, and how schools in the 80s were nice and now those schools are older and nastier. This is talked about by Doc Brown in back to the future.

And I was also thinking about how I watch tv shows like House Hunters and read about people who don't like certain communities that are suburban and all the people want homes in places with a more rural feel or a rich wealthy area. I can just see house hunters showing some one buying a home in Santa Monica, a beach city in OC, or some other wealthy community.

I feel like I am one the only one who appreciates the job opportunities and affordable housing Southern California and alot of California created.

It just seems that people shun cities like Oxnard or Palmdale because all they see is the poverty at first and overlook the nice parts.

It seems all the media attention is to show off places like Santa Barbara over Ventura, Malibu over Point Mugu, Santa Clarita over Palmdale, San Francisco over LA, Hollywood over Downtown LA, The San Fernando Valley over the San Gabriel Valley, and so fourth and so on.

I swear it's seems like every place we see on the news is a community with a Whole Foods or a bunch of hipsters/yuppies.

I appreciated all that too when I was living there City. And I am also nostalgic, sentimental about the way my hometown was as I grew up during the late 60's and 70's. To me L.A. was like a '56 Chevy: It wasnt as fast as a Corvette, but still, it had cool style and personality. I think part of whats going on there besides becoming Mexi-centric, is similar to what happened in Portland, Oregon's Pearl District, where everything is really about the Benjamins, catering to yuppies and artsy fartsy trendies. And as rapper DJ Quik puts it, "if it aint makin' dollars, it aint makin' sense."

Municipalities do whatever it takes to lure the kinds of folks, they consider desirable prime consumers, who love shopping centers that feature hang-outs like Starbucks, Panda Express, Jamba Juice, PF Changs and Mikuni. And if your area cant attract that kind of urban development, then youre left out of the 'party', sorta speak.

[user_id]

People with wealth don't want to live in lower income communities, the "good parts" of these communities are still lower income. That is, places like Santa Monica, Malibu, etc are desirable largely because who lives there and not necessarily for the place in itself. Though, its certainly the case that the wealth tends to flock to the nicest areas.

[the city]

Originally Posted by Mr. Opinionated

I appreciated all that too when I was living there City. And I am also nostalgic, sentimental about the way my hometown was as I grew up during the late 60's and 70's. To me L.A. was like a '56 Chevy: It wasnt as fast as a Corvette, but still, it had cool style and personality. I think part of whats going on there besides becoming Mexi-centric, is similar to what happened in Portland, Oregon's Pearl District, where everything is really about the Benjamins, catering to yuppies and artsy fartsy trendies. And as rapper DJ Quik puts it, "if it aint makin' dollars, it aint makin' sense."

Municipalities do whatever it takes to lure the kinds of folks, they consider desirable prime consumers, who love shopping centers that feature hang-outs like Starbucks, Panda Express, Jamba Juice, PF Changs and Mikuni. And if your area cant attract that kind of urban development, then youre left out of the 'party', sorta speak.

And I'm stuck split between two worlds......

Coming from an affluent high school with alot of upper middle class kids, going to a junior college in an affluent city, and now soon to enter an affluent four-year college. But for a split couple of years in my life I experienced a new type of happiness from a community college in a poorer area.

I'm stuck with the desire to never leave my local area, but that also means I'd be eventually moving to one of the rich cities of California.

[ferretkona]

I live just a few miles from the site of the western part of the series. The set burned down a couple years ago. It was used in many other westerns. Bad Girls, Unforgiven, The Quick And The Dead.

[majoun]

If you think about where the Back To The Future house and neighborhood were (Panorama City), it becomes even funnier (in a tragic way) and more poignant thinking about the changes....

[ferretkona]

The sets were all over the place and in no way to represent a real town. Doc Brown's home was in Pasadena . The Gamble House Delorean With Gullwings Aloft | BTTFtimemachine.com
The Mall was The Puente Hills Mall.

[bhcompy]

Originally Posted by the city

I remember in my Urban Studies class learning about how much of California was farming and then it became suburban development and urban development. I think it was good that California grew and I do like looking back in past movies and seeing old malls, 80s housing tracts, and how schools in the 80s were nice and now those schools are older and nastier. This is talked about by Doc Brown in back to the future.

And I was also thinking about how I watch tv shows like House Hunters and read about people who don't like certain communities that are suburban and all the people want homes in places with a more rural feel or a rich wealthy area. I can just see house hunters showing some one buying a home in Santa Monica, a beach city in OC, or some other wealthy community.

I feel like I am one the only one who appreciates the job opportunities and affordable housing Southern California and alot of California created.

It just seems that people shun cities like Oxnard or Palmdale because all they see is the poverty at first and overlook the nice parts.

It seems all the media attention is to show off places like Santa Barbara over Ventura, Malibu over Point Mugu, Santa Clarita over Palmdale, San Francisco over LA, Hollywood over Downtown LA, The San Fernando Valley over the San Gabriel Valley, and so fourth and so on.

I swear it's seems like every place we see on the news is a community with a Whole Foods or a bunch of hipsters/yuppies.

The people who appreciate these areas are the locals. Let the transplants have their Silver Lake. The locals will take Belmont Shore instead. Works out quite well, honestly.

[the city]

Originally Posted by majoun

If you think about where the Back To The Future house and neighborhood were (Panorama City), it becomes even funnier (in a tragic way) and more poignant thinking about the changes....

Are you ****ting me? Panorama City? DAMN. When the movie was shot, and now is WAY different. Panorama City is a place where I ended up getting lost with my friends (and were not good friends anyways) and I remember that area being pretty bleh and one of the most Hispanic areas I've ever been through. Heck Ive never seen a Mall with a Wal-mart on one end and a latin american market on the other!

I was born in Oxnard, and when I was my 8 my dad moved and got a job in Paso Robles teaching at a youth prison or a youth correctional facility.

He moved us to a town called Templeton that has a Trader Joes. And everyday of my life I wonder why here? I'm fine that we were in a rural town. But the nearest "real" city killed the only enclosed mall in the county, by not allowing it to add a second department store to survive. Instead of an enclosed mall there is one more big box center. Most counties in California have an enclosed or outdoor mall. But not this one. Instead we have a college town that has four big box centers, a Costco, Trader Joes, a planned Whole Foods, Fresh and Easy under construction, rich homes, a glorified junior college, a beautified downtown, plenty of golf courses, your plethora of the Gap and Chico's type stores in downtown, and HIGH land value. And a trafficy downtown because of tourists.

And on top of everything, I hated my high school. Full of rich kids into partying, sex, drugs, and everything else I hate. And they were very racist too!

And myself at times believe well the city is nice. Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Costco, and the downtown stores are nice and rich people from the Bay Area make up most of the students at the four year college and the people who live here.

But then I remember I lost on seeing how most of the world is. I think of my cousin, who is my role model, and his life. He went to a school in a less nice community, went to a less nice junior and four year college, and moved back to his local area. He got to hang at a mall with friends once in a while, had friends that weren't White, little kid parties at a skating rink and at bowling alleys and at movie theaters, and lets not forget the Chuckie Cheese parties too. I missed out on that and the use of public transportation bus system. I missed out on having family meals at chain restaurants like Olive Garden and others. I never got to have a santa experience at the mall. And lost on learning about the business aspect of cities and how cities grow, change, deal with crime, add suburbs, and how to drive in traffic.