I'm tired of the development! (Long Beach, Riverside: apartments, rentals, crime)

[eclipxe]

Originally Posted by LetterLady

When was the last time you were in Temecula? Fifteen or twenty years ago? I live 35 miles away...how is it possible that I have an "ill-informed view"? I live it...LOL! Those "custom estates" were built, for the most part, in the 1980s and early 90s. Been down the 79 South from the 15 heading towards Warner Springs lately? Suburban clutter...RedHawk, Vail Ranch, Oak Creek, and more, sprung from the gently rolling hills beginning in the mid-nineties, spreading out and around those nice 2 - 3 acre lots with the million dollar homes on them, which, by the way, are being bought up near Margarita Road, down Ynez and rezoned as commercial property for medical offices.
I have lived in Temecula, sent 3 kids to school there, worked there, have clients there, shop there and go to yardsales there on Saturday mornings. I'm quite familiar with Temecula. Sometimes I even venture into Murrieta!
I'm not including DeLuz and such lovely areas in my Temecula rant. That's up the hill, overlooking the growing smog and dust problem that 90,000 people emit. I can see that cloudiness as I'm driving down the 371. It used to be a marvelous view . I'm offended that you called me ignorant
Next time you drive 40 miles east/southeast on the 79 South, come one by! I have this really nice ranch for sale...pix coming soon (on my profile, of course). Would you also be interested in a goat? I have several to choose from.

Been here for 10 years now! Maybe my view is incorrect because you have more experience with what it was like before 2000. Despite all the growth, most of the city is all open space. The development around Redhawk/Morgan hill that you describe is a very, very small area compared to the vast swath of land south of Redhawk and along 79S. That has been zoned for years for residential development, before the area was even part of Temecula! The custom estates down Ynez aren't being rezoned for commercial development. Have you every looked at the general plan for the city? I actually try to attend most planning commission meetings and am well aware of where new commercial development is happening. Now if you are talking about 15 years ago, then I can't make any comments. Folks in Meadowview along Margarita aren't selling off plots of land for commercial development - the area is almost fully built out. In fact, Roripaugh Ranch and the rest of Morgan Hill are the last two major tracts that are not yet completed in the city. There isn't any further development within the city limits and with the economy the way it is, I think its safe to say the area won't be looking to annex more land anytime soon.

Didn't mean to offend you, I apologize for that. As far as smog and dust - again I can't comment on 10+ years ago, but I'm constantly amazed at how clear the skies are. Compared to anywhere else in LA or the IE, the view and clean air can't be matched (especially at the current price!).

[DezertGirl]

Originally Posted by eclipxe

Just drove through meadowview today, such beautiful homes! Temecula is awesome - you can definitely find many tract homes, but there are also very, very large areas of big lots with custom homes for affordable prices. Meadowview, Santiago Estates, De Luz, Wine Country, La Costa. There are house options for everyone - you can even find nice tract homes with half-acre lots and plenty of room.

I can't comment on auction prices, but the sweet spot for most homes right now is about $250-$300k. This is in the city proper. The bigger the house, the lower price per square ft. Some are down to $90-100 psqf. The good places that don't need a ton of work are getting snatched up quickly with multiple offers. Just from my experience on the ground, the brown lawns are gone and there are many fewer for sale signs.

A lot of folks complain about the traffic so I have to give it some credence, but I personally never have an issue with it. Maybe because I'm so used to LA/OC traffic, but I have no problem getting around town. I love the fact that there are cars along Winchester after 11pm. The city doesn't seem dead at night these days (as it did when I moved here in 99).

Nasty attitudes? Aww sorry you have that impression LetterLady! There are snobs everywhere (and people living in Temecula have nothing to be snobby about) but I've had the opposite experience. People have been so nice and friendly. I've made so many new friends around town in the last few years - and I'm not especially friendly myself! Hopefully we can convince you that we're good humble folks down here one day!

Meadowview, Santiago Estates, De Luz, Wine Country, La Costa are indeed fine locales. Plenty of room, beautiful homes, zoned for horses, very well-established neighborhoods. I'm not considering these areas the norms. For example, Santiago Estates was built up many years ago, before people considered Temecula to be anything but "the Stix".
When you have zero resistance when travelling from Point A to Point B, dealing with Temecula traffic is ugly. Dealing with OC and LA traffic is trying, also. Ten or fifteen years ago, these problems didn't exist at such an annoying level in that city. Many complain of the congestion.
When I mentioned "nasty attitudes", I meant in a car-to-car level, in traffic where tempers can and do flare (not me!), not a hoity-toity level. I have no problem communicating and interfacing with hoity-toitys, as I have the class, cars, jewelry, clothes, purses and 2 homes nessesary for such an endeavor Many are my best and most cherished sign clients and my wonderful signs and advertising skills enabled them to succeed and purchase more toys, clothes, jewelry, etc..

[DezertGirl]

Originally Posted by eclipxe

Been here for 10 years now! Maybe my view is incorrect because you have more experience with what it was like before 2000. Despite all the growth, most of the city is all open space. The development around Redhawk/Morgan hill that you describe is a very, very small area compared to the vast swath of land south of Redhawk and along 79S. That has been zoned for years for residential development, before the area was even part of Temecula! The custom estates down Ynez aren't being rezoned for commercial development. Have you every looked at the general plan for the city? I actually try to attend most planning commission meetings and am well aware of where new commercial development is happening. Now if you are talking about 15 years ago, then I can't make any comments. Folks in Meadowview along Margarita aren't selling off plots of land for commercial development - the area is almost fully built out. In fact, Roripaugh Ranch and the rest of Morgan Hill are the last two major tracts that are not yet completed in the city. There isn't any further development within the city limits and with the economy the way it is, I think its safe to say the area won't be looking to annex more land anytime soon.

Didn't mean to offend you, I apologize for that. As far as smog and dust - again I can't comment on 10+ years ago, but I'm constantly amazed at how clear the skies are. Compared to anywhere else in LA or the IE, the view and clean air can't be matched (especially at the current price!).

Are you a realtor? I applaud your interest in the city planning...more people should be as concerned and active as yourself. The lots where the existing homes have been demolished to make room for medical offices are at the intersection of Margarita and Ynez. Some pretty homes were levelled to make room for the stores at that intersection. Do you remember that place on the corner with all the gorgeous trees and roses? They had a wedding garden there. Plowed under for the Eco Cleaners and the organic food store!
The economy is surely slowing development. Granted, I also applaud your positive attitude in that regard. I have the same fight in me regarding Oregon...NO it does not rain EVERY DAY...ROFL!
Apology accepted. We can agree to disagree on certain issues. But when you really want to see clear skies and the Milky Way at its finest, even satellites in flight, come up to 4200 feet of elevation...it's spectactular!
Now, we should keep in mind the original intention of this thread...the OC overdevelopment

[sheri257]

Originally Posted by eclipxe

First and foremost, it is inaccurate to say Lake Elsinore is 75 miles from jobs. There are plenty of jobs in the valley - folks from LE work in Temecula, Murrieta, Riverside, etc. Some professionals in Lake Elsinore commute right over the hill to Orange County for jobs (it's only about a 35 mile drive). Others work in job centers in Ontario (about 40 miles) or Corona. The author seems to ignore facts and distort his brief encounters to illustrate a point that sells magazines.

Is the area (especially Lake Elsinore) suffering from Foreclosures? Definitely. Is it a ghost town? Nowhere close.

Yeah ... there's definitely some jobs out there but, the real question for the IE though is ... will it become the major job center that, for example, Irvine is. I used to think so but, in the five years I lived out there ... I didn't see it. But maybe it will happen over the long term.

[Morphous01]

Originally Posted by NewportBorn

I love Southern California, and yes, I know the positives and negatives, and before anyone wants to school me, I am a native.

I just wish it would slow down a bit, I want some land to be preserved, not everything needs to be BUILD BUILD BUILD.

I love the foothills and rolling canyons of O.C., and I want them to stay.

I know how you feel. I feel the same way. I even wrote a letter to the city that I was living in and expressed my anger to all the unnecessary building. In the letter I expressed my anger to the fact that they built one too many fast food chains and store fronts. This ONE CORNER, in Diamond Bar, which was a short time ago just beautiful open Fields was now the home to In and out, Chick fil a, Fresh and Easy, 24 hour fitness ( you need to work off all the calories), Subway, Rubios, Quiznios, Japanese joint, 2 Cream parlors, Hawaiian grill, verizon, Staples, Dental office ( I guess you need to see the doc after you eat the Ice cream) ect, ect.



More or less, this one CORNER has enough manpower, and food selection to sustain a small city and it's unnecessary because just down the street ( walking distance) you have the SAME D%% THING!!!!


Uaa, and we wonder why children are over weight?? We wonder why people don't cook that much at home (which is cheaper). We wonder why family's don't eat together and really know each other. We wonder why peoples health is SHOT and why there all crying at the Governments feet for health care!



You know this all ties into the economy. Corporations keep building and producing material that far oversupply's the demand for it so it only makes sense for it to collapse on itself. The United States is somewhere around 200 years old and the stock market is already crashing! If you compare that to ancient civilizations, who lasted for thousands of years without all the turmoil that we have, it proves that we are doing something wrong.

[sheri257]

What's kind of funny about this thread is ... if the California economy is collapsing like everybody says ...

Why are they building anything? We wouldn't even be having this debate.

[eclipxe]

Originally Posted by sheri257

Yeah ... there's definitely some jobs out there but, the real question for the IE though is ... will it become the major job center that, for example, Irvine is. I used to think so but, in the five years I lived out there ... I didn't see it. But maybe it will happen over the long term.

Yes, that is going to be the big issue over the next 10 years. There's been a huge growth in Class A office space since I've been out here (from pretty much nothing to a small amount). It's a chicken and egg problem - you can't attract high paying jobs without quality office space, but you can't build class A buildings without enough demand. Thankfully we've built up and now we wait for jobs to come. Will they come in the next few years? With this economy, NO! I think there is definite long term potential now. Both Murrieta and Temecula are built-out when it comes to homes. The remaining undeveloped zones are largely commercial and retail. The entire I-215 corridor that Murrieta has undeveloped is being turned into office space and the city is seeking out companies that provide products to Loma Linda (the new university hospital will be along the 215 corridor).

We'll also see if the high speed rail that passed last election gets built anytime soon. The fact they chose a route and station through Murrieta/Temecula will be a big boon to our business economy (just as the construction of the 15 caused the residential boom in the 70'sand 80's)

[eclipxe]

Originally Posted by Morphous01

You know this all ties into the economy. Corporations keep building and producing material that far oversupply's the demand for it so it only makes sense for it to collapse on itself. The United States is somewhere around 200 years old and the stock market is already crashing! If you compare that to ancient civilizations, who lasted for thousands of years without all the turmoil that we have, it proves that we are doing something wrong.

Whoa whoa whoa...our stock market crashed 70 years ago also. And to say ancient civilizations lasted thousands of years without the turmoil we have? Uhm...things really aren't that bad. Look at the quality of life we have - even the poorest folks in our society live a better life than the marginal in ancient societies. We have pretty much eliminated most of the deadly plagues, we live longer and better than people in any time in history and one of our biggest problems isn't trying to feed people but having people EAT too much!! Yeah we have problems, but ancient times weren't paradise! Our biggest problem isn't the black plague, it's our 401k's and homes losing money. Perspective!

[Morphous01]

Originally Posted by eclipxe

Whoa whoa whoa...our stock market crashed 70 years ago also. And to say ancient civilizations lasted thousands of years without the turmoil we have? Uhm...things really aren't that bad. Look at the quality of life we have - even the poorest folks in our society live a better life than the marginal in ancient societies. We have pretty much eliminated most of the deadly plagues, we live longer and better than people in any time in history and one of our biggest problems isn't trying to feed people but having people EAT too much!! Yeah we have problems, but ancient times weren't paradise! Our biggest problem isn't the black plague, it's our 401k's and homes losing money. Perspective!

Within the last 200 years, more people have been killed through war and genocide that compared to an ancient civilization it's safe to say we have evolved into psychopaths. Just look at the entertainment (programing); it's nothing but killing and murder (Saw). Look at how we romanticize the Mafia via the Godfather and the Sopranos.


I will have you know that ancient kemet had a substance similar to gun power that was used for religious ceremonies and also knew how to shape metal but never use that knowledge to create weapons for mass destruction. Also, during this time, there were no prisons.


As far as the quality of life, the sad truth is that it's at the expense of others. Nike, HP, Apple and so forth, all make there products in sweat shops in Asia were women are paid a few dollars a day for working 9-12 hour shifts. Most of the women only last a few months due to burnout. Here in the states Mexicans are being exploited. Americans are getting screwed as well, take the Rothschild's, it's estimated that the family is worth 600 trillion dollars (I'm sure it's more). Well, how do you think they amassed such a fortune; doing good business? So, more or less what I'm saying is that over all there are huge gaps between the haves and the have nots and it's growing.


As far as the Black plague and over all health the black plague may take out a lot of people all at once but how is that any different from Aids, Cancer and heart disease that picks of thousand of people each year?



Lastly, about the stock market, the REAL reason it's has crashed before and why it's crashing again is due to the the massive corruption at the highest level. The people you believe to be leaders, the people you send money to for campaigns and the people who hide behind corporations pulling the strings all belong in orange jumpsuits!

[J1ndo]

you can't attract high paying jobs without quality office space, but you can't build class A buildings without enough demand.

There is now an overabundance of office space in just about every market. First wave of the crash was residential real estate, now commercial real estate is hitting the skids. And there's not much left to fill the offices sitting empty. The mortgage, banking and insurance industries are all on the ropes and, though they'll recover, will not be engines of growth any time soon. The regions soonest to recover will be those that actually make stuff.

So to the subject of the thread: the Depression is doing what greedy municipal governments wouldn't do, that is, putting the brakes on development.