About Espanola!

[Thunderbomb82]

It can be a good place or a bad place. The question is, what does the mover want? What type of job is being held? What type of social aspects is one looking for? It is true that you can meet worse friends in the best places and best friends in the worst places. It depends on what the mover wants and he she needs to know what to expect.

Nicest thing- Climate and Views- Spectacular- all four seasons- though spring is usually drier than one might expect
Worst thing- Drug and alcohol abuse in and/or around the area. Especially in the younger population.

Knowing what to expect makes things a little bit easier. Even though the true posts in this thread may be negative, at least the mover will know what to EXPECT and he or she won't be suprised.

We don't want to spill out tons of negatives, we just want to make sure people know what to expect. I could easily tell someone moving to North Dakota that, the winters aren't bad because the sun shines more than areas like Maine. Of course in North Dakata you will be prone to blizzards and constant white out and 10 foot drifts and it is usually just as cold or colder than Maine. So, it's better to tell what you know.

There may not be as much murder and other very bad crimes but a variety of illegal drug use and alcohol abuse is higher than average.

The nice thing about New Mexico's small towns in general is the fact that murder and severe crimes are lower than averages. However, drug abuse and alcohol abuse generally higher than average in most of the smaller towns.

[honey87532]

As a local from Espanola, who has seen the good and the bad. I agree with alot of what you all have to say. Espanola has a drug problem that is normaly seen in a bigger city, and yes it involves the whole Rio Arriba County. Nonetheless, it has to be seen as a problem by those who are emersed in it or it will always be a norm that is better off ignored, than delt with. The locals, natives, and most importantly the government and judicial systems despirately need to work honestly and justly to end this epidemic, that is threatening the youth and damaging the lives of our friends and families.

[bradly]

Originally Posted by honey87532

As a local from Espanola, who has seen the good and the bad. I agree with alot of what you all have to say. Espanola has a drug problem that is normaly seen in a bigger city, and yes it involves the whole Rio Arriba County. Nonetheless, it has to be seen as a problem by those who are emersed in it or it will always be a norm that is better off ignored, than delt with. The locals, natives, and most importantly the government and judicial systems despirately need to work honestly and justly to end this epidemic, that is threatening the youth and damaging the lives of our friends and families.

Yes, true..and as my hometown i will say that people tend to always say its "Espanola" but its mostly the communities around, I mean look at our newspaper it even makes things look worse..its not such a huge problem if you think about it, the politics is probably what brings down this town as well, people talk cheap **** about Espanola.. its always been that way, even about the high school..if people lived there I'm sure they would have a different approach, becuase the people in Espanola are far nicer and closer than in any other NM city or town.. I just throw people off when they compare other cities to Espanola and they talk talk.. but they dont know crap..

[Fischer_girl]

Yikes. I am moving to Espanola area next month...guess I'll uh...give you my opinion when I get there?!

[elsueno]

My husband and I, who are both white, have lived in Espanola for 37 years. We are LANL retirees and could afford to live elsewhere but choose to live here. Our friends are a diverse group of people that include Hispanics, Indians, other Anglos, and gays. Most of our nightlife takes place in Santa Fe because we enjoy the opera, concerts at the Lensic, and fine dining. However, we get together with our friends here in Espanola a couple of times a month for dinner. Houses (ours has an acre of yard, a swimming pool, and a wine cellar) are much cheaper here than in surrounding areas as are taxes. I agree schools here are mostly pretty poor except for McCurdy. In a way it's great that Espanola maintains such a bad reputation. It will escape being Disneyfied as Santa Fe has been and Taos is becoming.

[elsueno]

My husband and I, who are both white, have lived in Espanola for 37 years. We are LANL retirees and could afford to live elsewhere but choose to live here. Our friends are a diverse group of people that include Hispanics, Indians, other Anglos, and gays. Most of our nightlife takes place in Santa Fe because we enjoy the opera, concerts at the Lensic, and fine dining. However, we get together with our friends here in Espanola a couple of times a month for dinner. Houses (ours has an acre of yard, a swimming pool, and a wine cellar) are much cheaper here than in surrounding areas as are taxes. I agree schools here are mostly pretty poor except for McCurdy. In a way it's great that Espanola maintains such a bad reputation. It will escape being Disneyfied as Santa Fe has been and Taos is becoming.

[NewMexicoLover]

McCurdy is just as "poor" as the surrounding schools in the city. People tend to judge the school because it is private. I went there from kindergarten till twelth grade.

[bradly]

Thats why you attend the schools in the Espanola Public School system like I did. And get better oppertunities in the schools its self, test scores arent so great but they dont mean much.. Alot makes a school. When I attended Espanola Valley High, It was a great school.. looked more like a college.

Times have changed but I'm sure it is still a great school, I have tons of family in Espanola, and I enjoyed growing up there. Nothing like growing up in a small town, becuase family is everything. Espanola is just a unique place and I could see me moving back someday.