If you won the lottery tomorrow: Newport Beach, CA, or north Scottsdale, AZ? (Phoenix: relocation)

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

Check out a thread I recently started on the General US forum: Do you consider Phoenix and/or Las Vegas "the west coast"? I firmly believe that no matter how much some people may want to believe PHX is the west coast, it isn't. It never was and it never will be. And there's nothing wrong with that... Phoenix should embrace its identity as a southwest desert oasis city. In fact, when you look at the desert southwest, Phoenix is the largest city of the region. I just think that trying to pretend you're living in California when you're not is a recipe for unhappiness.

Agreed. Phoenix is no more West Coast than Pittsburgh is East Coast. True "coastiness" usually extends no more than 100 or 200 miles inland. Phoenix has a large population of Midwestern transplants, a beautiful Sonoran desert setting, and its own distinctive Native American influences. These factors all differentiate it from southern California. The city should be appreciated on its own terms rather than as a cheap knockoff of California cities.

[Patrick754]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

The only real reason I can think of to move from CA to AZ is for much more affordable housing. That I can totally understand-- here, buying a nice house is a possibility for the middle class, in California, it's not.

That's a pretty monumental "only" reason. It's why California is bleeding out it's middle class to Phoenix, Las Vegas, Denver etc.

[Magnum Mike]

I don't gamble, but if I were to "win the lottery", I'd donate most of it to worthy causes... like the Organization For Needy Women Who Want Breast Implants, The National Starving Lawyers Association, and The Doctors Mercedes Repair Assistance Program..

Seriously, being a man of God, I'd donate all of it to a few churches to help them in their missions to bring the Gospel to those who deseperately need it.

[desert student]

Originally Posted by silverbear

Phoenix has a large population of Midwestern transplants, a beautiful Sonoran desert setting, and its own distinctive Native American influences. These factors all differentiate it from southern California. The city should be appreciated on its own terms rather than as a cheap knockoff of California cities.

Exactly! Good point. You see, in this regard, Phoenix has two things that are working against it. First off. So many southern California transplants moving into Phoenix are bringing their S.Cali lifestyle with them, and are treating Phoenix like it is some substitute, rather than giving Phoenix the credit it deserves. Then you have the second wave of Midwestern transplants that act like Phoenix is S.Cali, and the only reason they settled for Phoenix over San Diego, or LA is that they cannot afford to live there. It is really no wonder that bigger city snobs tend to attack Phoenix for having no culture, when it is the transplants from their cities like LA and Chicago that only make the culture here harder to identify with. Having lived in Chicago for almost all my life, I can tell you firsthand that over half of the suburban areas, tend to idolize, and almost worship cities that can be found in metro LA, and desert cities like Phoenix. Growing up, I found that suburban Chicago teens tend to pretend to be living a LA lifestyle, while their parents tend talk about how nice it would be to live in Phoenix. I'm not joking!! It is a very strange feature of Midwestern cities. The first time I went into Scottsdale, I was a little let down. Not because it is a bad city, but because it is coveted so much in western Chi-land that you would think that the streets were paved with gold!

Back on topic though, I think in the end I would choose neither. I have never been to Newport Beach, but have always heard it was one of "those" cities. If everything goes as planned I should be living in Scottsdale in a few years, so I'm not banking on the lottery to help me out there. If I did win that kind of money I think I would move to a nice, coastal, wooded area outside of Seattle. We rented a cabin in Seattle one year and it was heaven......ahhhhh.

[Dangerous Dave]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

I'm trying to figure something out here... do people really want to live in Phoenix... or are they settling for Phoenix? Let's say that money was no issue... that you won the lottery tomorrow-- let's make it really good-- the powerball! You could buy the house of your dreams in either Newport Beach, CA, or north Scottsdale, AZ. The best of Orange County vs the best of Phoenix. Where ever you live will be your primary residence... no second homes. Let's say that you'll still be working either way, but the commute would be 20 minutes or less-- so that's not an issue either. Which one would you pick and why?

Neither. Coeur d'Alene Idaho primary, and when the weather got brutal, I would have a second home in Bisbee, Tombstone, Sedona, or Lake Havasu City. Or maybe somewhere in western Oregon since our winters aren't that bad.

[sweettearose]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

I'm trying to figure something out here... do people really want to live in Phoenix... or are they settling for Phoenix? Let's say that money was no issue... that you won the lottery tomorrow-- let's make it really good-- the powerball! You could buy the house of your dreams in either Newport Beach, CA, or north Scottsdale, AZ. The best of Orange County vs the best of Phoenix. Where ever you live will be your primary residence... no second homes. Let's say that you'll still be working either way, but the commute would be 20 minutes or less-- so that's not an issue either. Which one would you pick and why?

Neither...call it the best of New York City!

[sweettearose]

Originally Posted by silverbear

Agreed. Phoenix is no more West Coast than Pittsburgh is East Coast. True "coastiness" usually extends no more than 100 or 200 miles inland. Phoenix has a large population of Midwestern transplants, a beautiful Sonoran desert setting, and its own distinctive Native American influences. These factors all differentiate it from southern California. The city should be appreciated on its own terms rather than as a cheap knockoff of California cities.

I disagree with your assessment. I think you are describing Santa Fe and Albuquerque more than Phoenix. I don't feel any Native American influence here aside from the names of the casinos. I'm not denying that Native American culture exists in Arizona but it's not that pervasive in terms of being well publicized in the Phoenix metro. I think the Latino culture is far more well publicized than Native American culture in Phoenix. I don't see Phoenix as a cheap knockoff of Southern California. The truth is Phoenix has developed much like Los Angelas did in the early 20th century. LA also started out as a desert and grew. Phoenix is growing in the same manner that LA once did. I don't think we are deliberately copying LA. We are in the same area of the country as them. Certain areas tend to share many of the same features. I feel that Philadephia and Boston are similar to New York. I don't think that makes them cheap knock-offs of New York. We have our own identity. Phoenix is a smaller, newer and cleaner version of Los Angelas with a Midwest sensibility. That is our identity and I'm proud of it. I don't think it's necessary to artificially start implementing Native American and southwest themes just to set ourselves apart from Los Angelas. The terms East and West Coast is describing more than geography, it's describing culture. Our culture is west coast regardless of how far inland we are. We are certainly nothing like Albuquerque, Santa Fe and El Paso in regards to Southwest culture. We are much more similar to Southern California in regards to culture and it's only continuing to move in that direction. This is why I don't think we need to be ashamed of our identity by trying to adopt a Southwest culture just so we can say that we aren't copying LA.

[snowthedirtbub]

THats easy,

Arizona, not necessarily scottsdale. Im not a big fan of California, rich stuck up people, to crowed, to expensive, and the beachers aren't that nice, ill stick with lake powell. Love the views in arizona, and the sunsets.

And someday california is going to fall off the united states, so arizona will have beaches....someday.

[shadow91]

If I won the lottery? I would definately pick Orange County, California. I live here in Fountain Hills, and although I love the small town feel, it is so far away to go anywhere. The summers are brutal, the winters mild. I am sick of coyotes, javelinas, gravel and mountains. Oh, and lest not forget the ugly damn cactus!!! How I long for an ocean breeze and GRASS!!!

[sweettearose]

Originally Posted by vegaspilgrim

Interesting to get some more responses on this thread 3 months later. If I were to rewrite the question today, I would change it to, "If you won the lottery tomorrow, would you live in Phoenix or San Diego?" San Diego is much more comparable to Phoenix size-wise and in terms of national prominence than the greater LA area, and yeah, not everybody agrees on what is considered the best part of town. The basic question though still stands. I still believe that probably half of the population here would choose San Diego if money was no issue. I know I would! But then again, I never moved to Phoenix thinking this place was a "California substitute." I'm actually thinking about moving to San Diego, but until a couple of months ago the thought never even crossed my mind.

Check out a thread I recently started on the General US forum: Do you consider Phoenix and/or Las Vegas "the west coast"? I firmly believe that no matter how much some people may want to believe PHX is the west coast, it isn't. It never was and it never will be. And there's nothing wrong with that... Phoenix should embrace its identity as a southwest desert oasis city. In fact, when you look at the desert southwest, Phoenix is the largest city of the region. I just think that trying to pretend you're living in California when you're not is a recipe for unhappiness.

I don't really know what you are trying to argue about? I said Phoenix was near the west coast and that many do consider it a part of the west coast. That definition is subjective and will be perceived differently. In that same thread, another poster Patrick called you out on your error. What was particularly interesting was how many people didn't consider Phoenix a part of the west coast but then they also considered parts of inland California not a part of the west coast either like Palm Springs. And most consider any part of California as being west coast.

Originally Posted by Patrick754

Your whole premise seems rather stupid considering the post you responded to said Phoenix is near the west coast, not Phoenix is the west coast.